In Episode 18 of Season 7 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Laura Fiacco, Founder of Adaptive Assets, where they discuss why communication, influence and commercial thinking have become the competitive advantage for modern data professionals, and how learning to communicate like an executive is now just as important as technical expertise.

They also discuss:

• Why influence without authority is the defining skill for modern data leaders.
• The 4 quadrant brain framework for tailoring communication to different thinking styles.
• Why successful influence starts by understanding other people's goals before presenting your own ideas.
• Why relationship building happens outside the meeting room, not inside it.
• How to communicate technical work in a way executives immediately care about.
• Why every presentation should start with the business outcome, not the analysis.
• Why data professionals often answer questions that were never asked.
• What data leaders can learn from sales discovery.
• The questions every data professional should ask before proposing a solution.
• Why understanding failed attempts and hidden assumptions leads to better stakeholder conversations.
• How to influence when different executives have conflicting priorities.
• Why peer success stories influence behaviour more effectively than data alone.
• Why communication, influence and leadership should become measurable career progression criteria.
• Practical habits that help build influence, trust and credibility every day.
• Why AI will make communication, influence and judgement more valuable than technical expertise.
• Why every person needs to understand their specific role in delivering the wider business objective.
• Why every business strategy is built on assumptions that data should validate or challenge.
• How to align stakeholders when everyone interprets the same strategy differently.

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