How do you build a data culture in the workplace?

Publication November 10, 2026

Why do people drop off?

A BI platform does not change your way of working by itself. Those who are used to relying on gut feeling or a familiar Excel file do not immediately switch to a dashboard. Especially not if it is unclear what it yields or if it does not answer daily questions.

What does work

Organizations where dashboards are widely used do a few things differently. They invest in a short, practical basic training instead of a technical manual. They find an ambassador per department who can explain how colleagues can use the dashboard in their own work. And they build dashboards around the questions that people actually have, rather than around all the data that is available.

The role of change management

Besides the technology, this is primarily a change task: people need to not only know how to use a dashboard, but also why it is better than their current way of working. This requires visible support from management, space to get used to a new way of working, and patience — a data culture does not emerge with the launch of a platform, but grows in the months that follow.

How to approach this

• Start with the questions that employees have daily. Build the first training around concrete, recognizable questions from practice, not around the full functionality of the platform.

• Find an ambassador per department. Someone who is just a bit further along and can help colleagues is often more convincing than a central instruction from IT.

• Let management participate visibly. If leaders work with the dashboards themselves and refer to them in meetings, it normalizes usage faster than any instruction.

• Make learning an ongoing process, not a one-time session. Build structurally on basic training with advanced sessions and key-user tracks. Axelio Academy offers learning paths and 'train the trainer' programs that have trained dozens of organizations from basic use to key-user level.

You do not build a data culture with an implementation project alone, but with structural attention in the months and years that follow.