Background: Over the years, Data Analytics (DA) has gained much attention enabling the extraction of valuable insights from the massive amount of data that is being produced every day. To exploit DA practices, various requirements for its successful usage are needed. Organizational Culture (OC) is provenly one critical intangible resource that is required for DA practices. However, there is a lack of existing research about what factors and values of OC facilitate DA practices.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore what role OC plays for DA practices and how OC can support the effective use of DA in a company. This research is guided by the research question: What are facilitating factors and underlying values of OC for DA Practices? By exploring and linking the two concepts of DA and OC, the study aims to provide a greater understanding of OC for DA practices. This offers insights for DA practitioners and managers to handle their specific OC and guide DA more targeted.

Method: Following an inductive, qualitative study with an exploratory research design, the authors conducted 12 semi-structured interviews. The interviewees were selected through purposive sampling and represent two different perspectives: DA experts and DA collaborators. By conducting a Grounded Analysis, a deeper understanding of OC factors and values was created, leading to a final framework of an OC for DA practices. 

Conclusion: The study results illustrate various OC factors that facilitate DA practices. These factors differ between subcultures, which are represented by four groups of actors. Three factors were identified as superior, as they had an enabling effect on DA practices in the investigated OCs. Finally, the study derived five underlying values, representing a shared cultural mindset among organizational members, that facilitate DA practice.