The Data Paradox: Why Organizations Struggle to Turn Data Into Action

I recently posed a simple question: “What's your biggest data challenge?” The responses didn’t really surprise me. 

Here’s how 55 individuals, including association and corporate CEOs and executives, small business owners, and solo practitioners, answered in the most recent Avenue M poll:

40% Acting on it
36% Collecting it
24% Analyzing it

At first glance, collecting and acting on data seem to be the biggest problems   with the data lifecycle, but when I dug into the follow-up responses, a more nuanced picture emerged.

The Real Issue Isn't What You Think

The organizations struggling to collect data aren't always lacking surveys or engagement metrics. Sometimes, they’re wrestling with something more fundamental: data quality and confidence.

"Our data isn't clean," one respondent admitted. Similarly, another shared that accuracy and confidence in the data is actually their biggest issue – bigger than any of the three options I listed.

This matters because you can't analyze what you can't trust. And, you certainly can't act on insights built on a shaky foundation.

Analysis Paralysis Is Real

The 24% who identified analysis as their primary challenge described a familiar pattern: The more data they gather, the more data leadership wants before making a decision.

One executive put it perfectly: "Our challenge is analysis paralysis. We are intentionally providing actions that can be taken after sharing information to help guide the board and keep them from needing even more information to make a decision." This is a strategic pivot worth noting. Instead of producing more comprehensive reports, this team is providing recommendations for their leadership to consider. They're framing data as a starting point for action, not a prerequisite for certainty.

As I’ve mentioned in my book, The Unexpected Power of Boundaries, there's an important distinction between listening (through data collection and feedback tools) and performing. It's easy to host a town hall, conduct a survey, or nod in a meeting. It's much harder to be changed by what you hear and take action.

The Gap Between Knowing and Doing

The 40% who said acting on data is their biggest challenge may have the most frustrating problem of all. They've done the hard work. They have the insights. And still, the organization struggles to move.

Some are trying to close this gap with simple accountability tools – spreadsheets tracking which actionable items have actually been acted upon. Others are being more intentional about reviewing data with a bias toward change, rather than just documentation.

One executive captured the tension many feel: "Redirecting existing resources to take some calculated risks. Hopefully short-term pain that can lead to long-term gain."

This is the crux of it. Acting on data often requires saying no to something else. It demands prioritization, which means disappointment for someone, such as a volunteer leader, a department, or a team. No dashboard can make that easier.

Building a Feedback Infrastructure

Before you send that next survey, ask yourself: What will we do with this?

If you don't have a clear answer, consider these steps:

1. Audit your feedback loops. Before you can improve how you act, you need to understand how you're collecting feedback, and where it goes after you collect it.

2. Differentiate between listening and performing. Are you genuinely open to being changed by what you hear? Or are you checking a box?

3. Build accountability into the process. Do you have a person, team, or process for closing the loop on feedback? If not, the insights will sit in a deck somewhere, and the cycle of inaction fatigue will continue.

4. Start with what you already have. Most organizations are sitting on years of historical research, engagement data, and feedback that's never been fully utilized. The central question isn't what to study more – it's how to use what you already have. 

The Uncomfortable Truth

Here's what struck me most: These three challenges – collecting, analyzing, and acting – aren't really separate problems; they're symptoms of the same underlying issue.

The question isn't whether to invest in another survey or another dashboard. The question is whether the organization has the discipline to do something meaningful with what it already knows or what it plans to collect.

That might mean cleaning up existing data before collecting more. It might mean presenting two options instead of twenty. It might mean accepting that 80% confidence is enough to move forward.

Feedback without follow-up leads to frustration. But when you ask, act, and update? That's how you build trust.

Data should be a tool for decisions, not a substitute for them.