When I first started conducting analytics trainings in the Philippines back in 2012, I was pretty much the only game in town.
There were very few companies offering any kind of big data management training, the terms data scientist and data storytelling were not part of the lexicon and 90+% of companies operating in the Philippines were pretty much just using MS Excel for their analysis and reporting.
You want to know what has changed in the past six years?
Not much, except that there are now at least a dozen companies offering analytics themed trainings, courses and certifications.
Sure they all sound like they are going to teach you cutting edge techniques to finally get a handle on all your big data, but in the end I keep hearing the same thing… the training I went to didn’t really give me anything I can use.
The training was too abstract, to high level, to dependent on one type of software, etc are the constant feedback I here from executives and managers who have been spending on outside training for their teams.
That plus it’s gotten quite expensive.
Analytics Executive Masterclasses, Big Data Boot Camps, Master’s Degrees in Data Science… they cost a lot when most companies are having to tighten their training budgets.
So the risk of wasting time and money on something that is not really going to move the needle is becoming a problem with all these analytics trainings.
With all the efforts of so many people to “help” the Filipino people level up their organizations analytics talent, you’d think by now we should be really competent when it comes to the use of advanced analytics techniques.
Unfortunately, that is just not been the case. There are definitely some pockets here and there were some world class analytics is happening, but for the most part we have to accept the reality that we have a long way to go to be on the level of Singapore, Viet Nam or China when it comes to analytics.
The one thing that has no changed at all since I started all this back in 2012, is the fact that most companies are still relying mostly on MS Excel for 90+% of their analytics.
Everyone wanted to run before they could walk. They through money at high priced trainings with cool sounding names promising to supercharge your business.
I think it’s time to face the reality, that while a few of our companies can do the big stuff, they are also sucking up all the available talent. It’s really, really hard to build a solid analytics team in your business without breaking the bank.
Unless you do what I do.
Get back to the basics.
Make sure everyone is able to really optimize the use of Excel.
Build a solid foundation in analytics that starts with aligning the data gathers, data managers, analysis builders and data presenters.
Make sure your dats is clean, easy to access, fresh, and shared.
Focus on what’s most important to the business.
Then you add on.
So when you go out to find an analytics training for your team, look for some basic ingredients.
The 4 Key Content Ingredients to Analytics Training are:
- Data Sourcing
- Data Management
- Data Analysis
- Data Presentation
If its missing one or more of these ingredients, the training is going to leave you with a sense that something is missing. You will likely struggle to implement what you learned in class.
The 3 Key Trainer Ingredients to Analytics Training are:
- Knowledge
- Engagement
- Hands on Practice
Over the next couple of weeks I’ll be blogging about each of these ingredients, so that we you and your team sit down to plan your analytics upskill strategy for 2019 you’ve got all the angles covered.
Decision-Making, Analytics & Intelligence > Philippines 