Janita Sluurman – Eurofiber

Janita Sluurman is the Head of Data at Eurofiber, a leading supplier and operator of infrastructure in the Benelux and France. In her role, Janita and her team are responsible for successfully implementing data-driven initiatives along the chain, enabling that data is properly used for decision making, embedding procedures in the organisation and ensuring high-quality data.

eurofiber’s kpis for growth

Janita’s department is continuously developing and currently consists of around 25 data officers, stewards, analysts and engineers. The data stewards have various KPIs on which they focus, but overarching KPIs for the business are also set: “We focus on the more standard KPIs like profit, efficiency and better customer satisfaction. Our growth is partly organic but also stems from acquisitions. Next to that, we have formulated KPIs for data. We have agreed on what is good quality data, have started to measure that and formulated KPIs. Our sales- and marketing teams also have a lot of data at their disposal, and the success of the marketing department also heavily depends on the quality and completeness of the data. As a team, we work with the different departments on their goals and what type of data they need to reach them. There are also many regulations around acquiring data, so that is something we advise on as well. You want to keep it uniform across departments and make sure all reports are structured in the same way.”

market share and lead generation

When it comes to marketing, Janita shares that the department’s main KPI revolves around lead generation: “We look towards the quality of leads and how you can convert those leads. As a company, we want to drive market share, but our brand recognition is something we can improve on. Our market share in the Netherlands is around 30%, whilst our recognising is at 10%. You can’t do everything, so our marketing activities mainly focus on finding smart ways of offering our services. If a business wants a fibre-optic connection, we have to invest in it. Part of it is paid for by the customer, and part by us. But if we can make a deal with five properties in the same street, it is a lot cheaper for both parties. We also look at what the market demands, think of the new legislation where hospitals must have extra data security. Alongside that, we are also trying to make more personalized offers to customers. Hyper-personalisation is now mainly taking place in the consumer market. But even with the amount of data available on consumers, it is still not easy, let alone in the business-to-business market where a lot less data is attainable. We are still in the innovation phase on that front. There is still a lot of potential in using data to grow our marketing and it will be a point of attention for 2022.”

“You need to keep balance. You can automate everything with data, but human contact remains important in business.”

data as a means for growth

Eurofiber wants to reach a level of maturity in data: “Data-driven decision making is a term we often use within the business. Not because we see it as a goal, but as a means for us to grow. We don’t just want to grow in the number of customers or fan customers, we also want to be climate neutral within 5 years. Alongside that are a few other pillars that revolve around the values we have for society. In our view, data is a great tool for this. From there, we started looking at how we, as the data department, can ensure that our organisation becomes more mature in this respect. Not by occasionally looking at a list in Excel, but by working in a more automated and integrated way. In addition, we want to create a certain culture where employees trust the data and insights. Still, this needs to remain in balance. You can automate everything, but human contact remains important in business. We have been taking steps in both culture and structure for the past years and are looking at how we can deploy those insights. In marketing, it is important to not only focus on current customers but also leads and new customers. Not to mention customer retention. You don’t want to end up investing only for them to walk away soon after.”

from strategy to data-driven

In 2019, Eurofiber started to form a strategy on becoming data-driven, Janita: “We wanted to get a grip on the entire process, from data acquisition to deliverable. So, we developed a maturity model which consists of 5 phases. When you score a 5 on technology, culture, customer focus, strategy and organisation, it means that everything is well integrated, balanced, and every employee has the tools to make decisions based on data. Insights anywhere, anytime. When you score a 1, a lot of ad hoc decisions are made and many data streams don’t match. We are now at 3 on that scale, but it is not a straight line. I think that those final few steps are the hardest to take. But I do hope we will reach that score of 5 within a few years.”

getting people on board

Talking about challenges, Janita mentions how data literacy is a recurring topic: “How people are capable of understanding, reading, using and applying the data is something that lies with my department, but also throughout the organisation. Training people and helping them make the right decisions, but also helping them ask the right questions. You can say you want to start a new marketing campaign, but why? Who for? You need people who are at the forefront of this, to ask the right questions and thus arrive at the right solution together. There are the experts who already use the data, there are the learners who want to do it, and you have people who aren’t that keen. Of course, not everyone has the same need for understanding data, and everyone has their own set of skills. I see getting people on board with new technologies as one of the biggest challenges.”

involve the business, have fun and just start

“One of the biggest tips I could give in working with data: don’t house data under IT”, Janita continues. “Data belongs to the entire company, IT only facilitates it. Make sure that data is part of the whole business and continuously ask for input. The second tip is to make it fun. Data should be fun and provide value. Show that because of these insights we are generating so much revenue and so many happy customers. It might be an obvious one, but it is important nonetheless. And thirdly, I think you just have to do it. Anything you do towards a data-driven organisation is a step in the right direction. If you start making elaborate plans and finally start doing something years later, you won’t get there. Something I am still working on is that making mistakes is not a bad thing. It is not a waste of time and money, it is something you can learn from as a company. You will never step out of your comfort zone if you don’t try.”