Towards data-driven culture in a Spanish automobile manufacturer: A case study

Abstract

Purpose: Data-driven decision-making is a growing trend that lots of companies are nowadays willing to adopt. However, the organizational transformation needed is not always as simple and logical as it could seem and the comfort of the old habits can dim the change effort. The purpose of this study is to identify the potential problems that may arise in a real company’s transformation from a traditional intuition-driven decision-making model to a data-driven model. 

Design/methodology/approach: In order to reach this goal, a single case study method was used. Initially a literature review was conducted to analyze both the importance of the change to a data-driven culture and the process of organizational change. Thus, a case study method was adopted in a company of the automotive sector that included experimentation in the website design decision-making process. 

Findings: As a result of the case study, it was found that all the most cited risks for the organizational change process commented in the literature appeared in the project. However, even being warned of potential dangers the specific actions to prevent the damages were not trivial.

Originality/value: The study presents in detail, the application of an organizational change model in a company. Important insights can be extracted from the specific case of a digitalization performed inside traditional industrial company.