How to make your team visible as a data leader

How to make your team visible as a data leader

From Hub & Spoken: Data | Analytics | Chief Data Officer | CDO | Data Strategy by Cynozure

January 22, 2026 · 35 min · Episode 249

About this episode

Lindsay Mason shares insights on making data teams visible and valued within organizations.

In this episode of Hub & Spoken , Jason Foster , CEO & Founder of Cynozure, speaks with Lindsay Mason , a senior data leader with 20 years of experience across retail and the public sector. Lindsay shares her journey from analysing sales and forecasting trends at Debenhams, where frustration with poor data quality led her into data, to leading data strategy at John Lewis Partnership and moving into the civil service four years ago. The conversation explores what makes data teams visible and valued. Lindsay reflects on joining a team that was "driven and committed but effectively invisible to leadership", teaching her that "if the value isn't visible, it might as well not exist". She shares practical lessons on setting clear visions, why data leaders need to be "cheerleaders" and why "perfect is sometimes the enemy of progress". The discussion covers delivering visible value through use cases, understanding stakeholder outcomes rather than data challenges and building advocates who retell your story across the organisation. 🎧 Listen now to hear Lindsay's practical wisdom on making your team's work recognised and valued. Cynozure is a leading data, analytics and AI company that…

People in this episode

Host: Jason Foster

Guest: Lindsay Mason

Topics covered

  • data leadership
  • data visibility
  • stakeholder engagement
  • data strategy
  • team dynamics

Keywords

  • data leadership
  • visibility
  • stakeholders
  • data strategy
  • team value

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Cynozure, Debenhams, John Lewis Partnership, civil service, The Sunday Times

More episodes of Hub & Spoken: Data | Analytics | Chief Data Officer | CDO | Data Strategy

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Hub & Spoken: Data | Analytics | Chief Data Officer | CDO | Data Strategy podcast page.