With the growing importance of customer insights in organizations, the role of analytics to extract insight from customer data and embed it back into organizational processes is at the forefront of business transformation. This increased profile has elevated the customer insights role from data geeks feeding the marketing funnel to critical change agents and strategic business partners. It has also made it crucial for companies to have a coherent and consistently executed customer data strategy. In order to seize the opportunity presented by this shift in data’s role, companies must plot a deliberate strategic course — beginning with a clear-eyed assessment of their current capabilities and needs.