I’m hoping by now you’ve read my first wrap up blog from our annual global conference, Qlik Qonnections, which went live yesterday, and I’m glad to say that the awareness of data literacy was just as evident today!

Today, attendees had the opportunity to hear from a range of speakers including Data Literacy Project Advisory Board member, Alan Schwarz, talking about data literacy in journalism, to US Army Division Chief Lori Mongold talking about how the service is bringing its systems up to date to achieve its primary mission of constant readiness.

I, myself hosted several sessions from empowerment with data literacy, to informing attendees about the results of our Data Literacy Index, which found that while the majority of business decision makers recognize the importance of a data literate workforce, less than 20% are actually encouraging their employees to become more confident with data. Something the Data Literacy Project is trying to change!

Elsewhere, my close colleague, and Qlik’s chief learning officer, Kevin Hanegan, explored the psychology of data-informed decision making, while South Africa Qlik Master Reseller service executive, Rene McGregor, talked about how organizations can pitch a data literacy program to C-suite executives.

It was a fitting topic to cover, coming after the Fireside Chat with Olympic and World Cup winning Lindsey Vonn, the most successful female alpine skier in history. In her keynote, she talked about turning a passion into success, touching on the role of capturing, understanding and actioning data in her career. Her passion for the sport was electrifying, and it was great to hear that she gives 110% to every single race.

The continued positive response to the data literacy focused sessions from attendees was incredible to see and demonstrated how people’s understanding of data literacy has grown, cementing its position in organizations’ approaches to harnessing data. In fact, we had several customers talk about exactly that – from children’s hospital, Nemours, using data to improve patient outcomes – and ultimately, children’s lives, to Accenture discussing how to gain a competitive edge with data literacy.

The packed day came to an end with the Qlik Qonnections 2019 appreciation event, celebrating the achievements of Qlik customers in driving business impact with data at the Dallas Cowboys World Headquarters at The Star.

A fitting end to what has been a showcase of the power of data and data literacy.