South Africa, July 23 -- The problem is not data itself. It's the belief that data alone can tell us where to go next.

As Harvard Business Review cautions, leaders often either 'take the evidence presented as gospel or dismiss it altogether. Both approaches are misguided'.

Data is exceptional at explaining what has already happened. It helps us understand behaviour, refine processes, and assess performance. What it cannot do is imagine new futures. Left unchecked, an over-reliance on data risks narrowing ambition, rewarding short-term efficiency over long-term value, and blinding organisations to opportunities that don't yet show up on a chart.

True growth happens when data informs decisions, but human insight sets the destination.

Wh...