Data-Driven Decision-Making:
Why Trusting the Numbers Alone is Not Enough

Data-driven decision-making sounds like common sense: collect the right data, analyse it properly, and let the numbers guide the way.

 But the real world tells us a different story.

According to Precisely's 2025 Data Integrity Trends and Insights report, 67% of organisations admit they do not completely trust the data they use for decision-making.

Gartner's research backs this up, stating that poor data quality costs organisations at least $12.9 million a year on average.

 And even more concerning, Harvard Business Review found that only 3% of company data meets basic quality standards.

If data-driven decision-making was as easy as it sounds, why are so many organisations still struggling?

Because having data is not enough.

The real challenge is making sense of it.

Beyond the Surface: My VVA Approach

Data might seem objective, but it comes from human interactions, behaviours, and decisions, all with their own complexities and biases. Leaders often rush to act on data without verifying its quality, questioning its meaning, or understanding the full context behind it. This is when mistakes happen, and decision crises start.

Coming from a background in Quality Assurance, paying attention to details has always been second nature to me. Verifying and validating everything I work on is not just a habit; it is part of how I think. That is why, over time, I developed my own approach to decision-making, something I call Verify, Validate, Act (VVA).

• Verify the accuracy of the data

• Validate its relevance and true meaning

• Act only once you have confidence in both

It may sound simple. But reality tells a different story. The statistics already show how much organisations struggle with trusting their data.

From my experience, even million-dollar projects inside well-known organisations run into this problem. You would think that data quality would not be an issue with brilliant minds involved. But it is.

I have seen firsthand how gaps in verification lead to poor decisions, and part of my role has been helping leadership teams recognise and close those gaps.

It is not just my experience either. The same struggle is often shared in conversations within leadership communities and professional networks: trusting the wrong data can derail even the best strategies.

This is why critical thinking is essential. Acting on data alone is not enough. How we think about the data defines whether we move the business forward or make costly mistakes.

It Is Not Just About the Story Behind the Data

A lot of advice about data-driven leadership talks about "finding the story behind the data."

That matters. But it is only half the picture.

It is not just about understanding what the data is telling you. It is about understanding the factors around the data too.

• What external pressures might be shaping these results?

• What internal processes might be skewing what you are seeing?

• What human behaviours, incentives, or biases are affecting the numbers underneath?

If you do not step back to see the whole system, you risk making decisions based on symptoms, not causes.

Real data-driven leadership requires you to think systemically. 

You have to ask not just, "What is this number saying?" 

You have to ask, "What else could be making it say that?"

The Kind of Leaders Organisations Actually Need

Organisations today need leaders who think beyond the surface.

Leaders who question, who investigate, and who take responsibility.

Leaders who understand that good decision-making does not happen by accident. It happens when you trust the integrity of the information you are using, and when you understand the forces shaping it.

When leaders are willing to verify, validate, and then act, they build a culture where decisions are made thoughtfully, not reactively. They create organisations that are not just chasing short-term metrics, but building long-term resilience.

In a World Obsessed with Speed, Thinking Deeply Is a Competitive Edge

In today's fast-paced environments, there is often pressure to move quickly. Decisions are needed now. Metrics must go up now. But speed without critical thinking is not agility. It is recklessness.

The companies that survive and thrive will not be the ones that move the fastest. They will be the ones that move the smartest.

In a world flooded with data, your ability to think clearly, question bravely, and act with integrity is the true advantage.

And it starts by remembering: Data does not make decisions. Leaders do.