How to Be Unafraid of Data: Neil Hoyne

Here are three questions that arise from this Change Signal conversation with Neil Hoyne: 

• How is data really used in your organization?

• How much uncertainty can your culture comfortably handle? 

• And what ideas are your people quietly shelving because they don’t think anyone will listen?

If you lead change in a large organization, you already know the promise of being “data-driven” often runs into the reality of politics, incentives, and human behaviour. Neil Hoyne — author, analyst, and Google’s Chief Strategist — joins me to explore how data can help transformation, and also how it can unintentionally slow it down.

We dig into the difference between using data to learn and using it to justify decisions already made. Neil explains why intuition isn’t the opposite of data, but a compressed form of expertise that deserves to be surfaced and tested.

We also talk about what really shapes a data-driven culture: the decision standards leaders set, the level of uncertainty they’re willing to tolerate, and who takes responsibility when experiments fail.

If you’re navigating change management, digital transformation, or complex initiatives where data plays a starring role, this conversation offers a practical, human way to think about decisions, experiments, culture, and influence — so your organization can move faster and learn smarter.

Change Signal. Where transformational change leaders seek and find modern change wisdom. Cut through the blather, the BS, and the noise to find the good stuff that works.

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