#123 Why We Need More Data Empathy (with Phil Harvey)

When working with data, it’s easy for us to think about it as a mechanistic process, where data comes in, and products come out. But as we’ve explored throughout the show, succeeding in data, whether you’re a data leader looking to build a data culture, a data scientist ascending the ranks, or even a policy maker looking to have an impact with data, the human side is crucial. At the heart of the “human side” is empathy— whether it’s for your stakeholders if you’re a data scientist developing a dashboard for them, empathy for your workforce if you’re a data or learning leader, or empathy for the planet and your citizens if you’re a policy maker. So how can we all practice better empathy? Specifically, can we all practice better data empathy? Luckily, empathy is a muscle that can be built, it’s not a “you have it or you don’t” type of skill. So how can individuals and organizations utilize data empathy to improve the way they work with data and the success rate of their projects? Enter Phil Harvey, an Industrial Metaverse Architect in the Industrial Metaverse Core group at Microsoft. He is an expert in Data & AI Technical and Business Strategy & Philosophy. Harvey is also co-author of the book Data: A Guide to Humans, which explores the concept of Data Empathy, and how it can power better use of data through better communication and understanding of stakeholders in the value-chain of data. Throughout the episode, we talk about Phil’s new book, the concept of data empath, real-world examples of data empathy, the importance of practice when learning something new, the role of data empathy in AI development, and much more. Itunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/123-why-we-need-more-data-empathy/id1336150688?i=1000596052077 This is the DataCamp podcast link; check it out for the show notes and other goodies: https://www.datacamp.com/podcast/why-we-need-more-data-empathy