Tag: Analytics Leadership

Getting Buy In From the Top

One of the biggest reasons analytics projects fail is that they are not fully supported by senior management.

According to Gartner, more than half of all analytics projects failbecause they aren’t completed within budget or on schedule, or because they failto deliver the features and benefits that are optimistically agreed on at their outset.

I’ve seen a lot of studies like this, asking why big data projects fail, why companies come up short with their digital transformation efforts or why going out and hiring a rock star, data scientist fails to fix everything. Quite often it’s because the bosses never really believed that great analytics was going to be make much of a difference as compared to just basic analysis and reporting.

I’m fact, lack of management support, was among the top 3 reasons analytics projects fail in a survey I conducted of over 700 analytics professionals via LinkedIn a few years ago.

When someone in an organization identifies a need for better analytics, one of the first things they need to do is get buy in from the top.

In a lot of cases, people will just jump to the conclusion that this is a technical problem. One that can be fixed with a technical approach.

However, it’s often the case that the real problem is in the culture of the business. And when that’s the case, technical solutions usually fail.

I recently wrapped up an 18 month training project with Accenture’s operations in the Philippines. We trained over 400 Accenture team members in Applied Analytics at the request of their top brass. Their support was essential in getting the ball rolling, fine tuning the training curriculum and filling up each class with 25 analytics minded employees.

Wether it be sending people to a training, buying a new piece of technology or adding staff, you’ll need their support to make sure you are successful.

Applied Analytics with Accenture

Dan Meyer heads Sonic Analytics, an analytics advocacy with offices in Manila, the San Francisco Bay Area and as of February 2019, Ocala, FL. With over 20 years in Big Data, Dan is one of the most sought-after public speakers in Asia and has recently begun offering public training seminars in the United States. Dan has also recently joined the Powerteam International family as a small business analytics resource speaker.

Sonic Analytics(www.sonicanalytics.com) brings big data analytics solutions like business intelligence, business dashboards and data storytelling to small and medium sized organizations looking to enhance their data-driven decision-making capabilities. We also advocate the use of analytics for civic responsibility through training, consulting and education.

As citizens of this great democracy, we need to look at the data (analytics), plan a course of action (strategy) and share our data-driven viewpoints (presentation). This approach to a data savvy work force starts in school. So, we started an internship program to empower our youth to use Analytics, plan Strategy and Present their insights… ASP!

When not training current and future analysts, you can find Dan championing the use of analytics to empower data-driven citizenship by volunteering his expertise with schools and non-profits dedicated to evidence-based social progress like Saint Leo University’s Women in Data + Science Program and the Data + Women of Tampa Meet Up Group.

Advertisement

The Analytics Association of the Philippines and our DSA Moonshot

When I think about what we can accomplish with the AAP I think about some pretty big stuff.

Moonshot kind of stuff.

It took more then just a government initiative to put a man on the moon. It took an effort of thousands. And the support of millions.

For the AAP, our moonshot starts with advocacy which comes in the form of doing as much talking about DSA as possible.

http://www.aap.ph

Raising awareness among decision-makers is key. It is no longer an awareness about what is DSA (Data Science & Analytics). People get it.

Now it is an awareness of how Filipinos can use DSA in their  business.

I get excited thinking about how the AAP  can focus our message as thought leaders and look to continue to complement each other in ways that individual companies could never dream of.

We have been actively looking for speaking opportunities to push the message that DSA in the Philippines is of paramount importance.  In many ways, even a matter of national security when you look at the threats of Artificial Intelligence, nationalism and political instability… impact OFWS and BPOs directly. The two biggest source of revenue in the country.

Outside the core group who have come together to get the association off the ground, we can empower the multitude of interested parties to help too spread our advocacy too.

I see us sharing our message of collaboration and the idea that a rising tide lifts all boats across every industry and from all sectors. Big and small, domestic and international, size and scope don’t really matter, we all need more analytics in our businesses.

If we get enough key players on board with the advocacy we will have a legit change to actually upskiil train 500,000 Filipinos to be DSA enabled in the next 5 years. That is the moon shot goal I’m dreaming about.

IMG_9107

Analytics Leadership – DMAIPH is a founding member of the Analytics Council of the Philippines and specializes in arming the Data-Driven Leader with the tools and techniques they need to build and empower an analytics centric organization. Analytics leadership requires a mastery of not just analytics skill, but also of nurturing an analytics culture.

We have guided thousands of Filipino professionals to become better analytics leaders. Contact DMAIPH now at analytics@dmaiph.com or connect with me directly to discuss a uniquely tailored strategy to ensure you are the top of your game when it comes to Analytics Leadership.

 

Decision-Making with Data Learning Session with Ariva Events

This coming Friday, March 31, in Ortigas, I will be Data-Driven Decision-Making for Executives, Managers and Leaders. I will focus on proven strategies of data mastery go a long way to becoming a Data-Driven Leader.

This master class  is for you if you feel like you’re drowning in data and unsure which data to use to drive your companies decision-making processes.

Information is supposed to make decision-making faster and easier, but more often than not, it simply overwhelms our ability to accurately use the data we have in our business.

The truth is that the amount of data available to help run your business is greater than ever before. To effectively use this information, exeuctives, managers and leaders must consider the practical side of big data and how best to use it to make better decisions…because what matters to you is how do you grow and build a team to make smarter decisions. Much of the information out there just discusses the promise of the data deluge.

The challenge is not the volume of data but rather the judgment needed to use it. This learning session  is specifically designed for executives, managers and leaders to learn techniqeues that will ensure reliable business decisions can be made based on the massive amounts of data at your fingertips.

Through a series of case studies, exercises and interactive lecture, we will cover the following:

  • Specific skills to effectively frame the problem you’re addressing to uncover key opportunities and drive growth
  • Critical marketing steps of orientation necessary before engaging tools and technology
  • How to simply and quickly amplify decision making by separating the signal from the noise
  • A framework for asking the right questions, allowing the ability to link analytics to business strategy

Attendees will also be able to learn how to do the following things for their team:

  • Learn the best practices for organizing, summarizing, and interpreting quantitative data
  • Create a repeatable process for analyzing your data
  • Bring out patterns in data that were not apparent at first glance
  • Identify and explain tools for data analysis
  • Shorten the time between analysis and action to avoid “analysis paralysis”
  • Know how to get from hard data to well-reasoned conclusions

There are still seats available, contact me at danmeyer@dmaiph.com so I can connect with you my events partner, Ariva.

http://www.ariva.com.ph/data-driven-decision-making/

Stone Age Analytics

I was chatting with a friend about Peter Drucker’s famous quote, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”

He made a point that made me think this lesson is still hard to actually put into practice even though it’s a 50+ year old concept. In fact the idea that a good culture is more important than a good strategy is as probably as old as man.

My reply was the best run caves where probably run by the caveman with the most efficient hunters and gathers, who felt a common purpose that their leader empowered in them.

In many senses, analytics has been around since day one. Even before we had basic math, just by observation cave men that survived told stories to explain where the best hunting grounds where and things like saber toothed tigers are bad for your health.

Centuries before Lean and Six Sigma, human engaged in process improvement. And Im sure the smartest cave man (or woman) in the cave ended up being the data guy who did some kind of simple analytics to advice the chief on who was the best hunter and who was the best candidate to use as bait to stampede a mammoth into a box canyon.

My point is, analytics is not anything new. In fact most businesses don’t have good analytics because they think its too complicated and too expensive. Now maybe employing a data scientist to build a state of the art predictive modeling tool, is a bit to Space Age for some, but everyone needs to have at least Stone Age Analytics.

That’s where DMAIPH comes in. We specialize in helping companies who feel like their analytics are stuck in the Stone Age evolve.

may18

Analytics Training – DMAIPH offers a wide range of analytics centric training solutions for professionals and students via public, in-house, on-site, and academic settings. We tailor each training event to meet the unique needs of the audience. If you need empowerment and skills enhancement to optimize the use of analytics in your organization, we are here to help. Contact DMAIPH now at analytics@dmaiph.com or connect with me directly to set up a free consultation to learn which of our DMAIPH analytics training solutions is best for you.

Data-Driven Leaders

Came across this blog post recently

https://analyticsweek.com/content/the-10-commandments-for-data-driven-leaders/

I love the points made here. For the sake of brevity, data-driven leaders do these 10 things:

  1. Don’t try to do it all alone.
  2. Do what you say, actions need to follow words.
  3. Analytics leadership has to come from the top. The boss has to be a user of data.
  4. Data-Driven Leaders use analytics to make sure they have a feel for the culture of their business. They have the pulse of it at their fingertips.
  5. You need to surround yourself with people who speak data. It has to be ingrained in your leaders for your leadership to work.
  6. When your data brings business problems to light, then tackle them swiftly.
  7. Always look for new data geek recruits. Find apostles.
  8. Tell your story. If you are doing it right with analytics, then you need to let the world know about it. IMG_6912
  9. Constantly refresh your strategy with new data and new analysis. Dont make decisions on stale information.
  10. Always keep an eye on the long term. Balance your time and focus between tactical and strategic needs.

When you strive to do these things, you make those around you better. You will empower them to start doing the same thing and you will be well on your way to not just being a Data-Driven Leader, But running a Data-Driven Organization.

Analytics Leadership – DMAIPH specializes in arming the Data-Driven Leader with the tools and techniques they need to build and empower an analytics centric organization. Analytics leadership requires a mastery of not just analytics skill, but also of nurturing an analytics culture. We have guided thousands of Filipino professionals to become better analytics leaders. Contact DMAIPH now at analytics@dmaiph.com or connect with me directly to discuss a uniquely tailored strategy to ensure you are the top of your game when it comes to Analytics Leadership.

What % of Companies Can Both Afford Data Science Teams and Understand How to Use them?

Woke up this morning thinking about the future of analytics and data science in the Philippines.

I created this image to help visualize one of the biggest challenges. From my perspective the majority of companies out there don’t really understand data science and probably cant afford a traditional data science team.

who-can-afford-it

Best guess is ever 50% of companies operating in the Philippines aren’t yet at a place where data science is practical.

The smallest group are ones who both understand data science and know how to use it. These are the ones who are players in the data science consulting, training and outsourcing business.

Best guess its about 10% of the companies operating here and just about all of them are big corporations with lots of resources.

The next segment is the ones who do understand the value of data science, but don’t have the resources to compete for a the talent it takes to build a top data science team.

I’ll peg this at about 15%. But its  growing quickly. Awareness and adoption are actually ahead of the talent, as you see so many “data scientists” in name only out there filling open jobs right now.

That leaves the 25% of companies operating in the Philippines who have money and resources but just don’t know how to get started using data science and building a team. This is the target market of companies like mine.

DMAIPH has the capability to educate your managers and decision-makers on how to use data science to add value to the business. We can also train your team in the basics of data science to allow you to cultivate a data driven culture and promote from within to build a data science team. And we can also take some of the load off your shoulders in the terms doing some of the data science for you.

Analytics Consulting – DMAIPH specializes in a variety of analytics consulting solutions designed to empower analysts, managers and leaders with the tools needed for more data-driven decision-making. We have helped dozens of companies get more analytics in their business. Contact DMAIPH now at analytics@dmaiph.com or connect with me directly so we can tailor an analytics solution made just for your unique requirements.

Let Your Data Tell You When It’s Time To Say Goodbye – Habitual Tardiness

Came across this blog post the other day and it inspired me to write about how use analytics to know when to let go of troublesome employees.

The first type I’ll blog about is ones who are habitually tardy.

“Handling employees who are constantly tardy for work is one of the difficulties of being a manager — no matter the industry. Simply firing them isn’t always the best policy when you consider the effort spent trying to hire their replacement. On the other hand, if your organization thrives on teamwork, having one team member not pulling their weight is bad for office morale.” Wise words form the blog I read.

The best way to deal with tardy employees is to look at the various data points that are generated by their behavior.  This allows you to be unbiased in your decision-making when it’s time to say goodbye. The 5 data points I suggest you focus on are:

  1. Total Down Time. What % of their shift did they miss plus what time it takes for them to get ready to work (logging in, opening systems, etc.) plus any time out of production you use to counsel them. Take this number and compare it to someone who comes in early, is ready to go when the clock starts and you never have to pull out of production to give warnings too. You will see a surprising difference of how much less time habitually late employees are contributing for the same pay
  2. Distance To Work. Look at how far they have to travel every day to get to the office. I am betting its further than most. There is generally a strong correlation between schedule adherence and distance to work. Not always, but a high % of the time.
  3. Difficulty of Commute. Look at the commute they have every day. How much time do they spend in traffic? Do they have to switch transportation modes? Is their route full of unpredictable impediments? It’s likely that challenges in their commute also have something to do with their consistent tardiness.
  4. Quality Scores. Again, as a general rule, employees who have trouble getting to work on time also have lower than average quality scores.
  5. Primary Production Metrics. Likewise, you generally see lower production metrics from employees who don’t start their shift ready to go.

“When simply walking by their desk to acknowledge a late arrival doesn’t stop the issue, it is probably time for a one-on-one meeting with a frank discussion.” Use this one-on-one time to review these metrics. Share with the employee some insights into why they might be late so often as well as how it effects the business.

It’s my experience that when you show them the data, it generally has a much more profound impact then just talking about things in a general sense. The power of your total down time is the highest on the team. You have the longest and most challenging commute. Your QA scores and production metrics are in the bottom 25% of the entire team. All of these can either be more motivating to the employee or they can provide a good reality check.

Time-to-say-goodbye-300x225

“Being proactive as a manager while showing you understand and even relate to their personal situation might enhance that employee’s performance over the long haul. It is vital you take the steps to get to the bottom of the issue before contemplating further discipline.” Using these data points in your verbal, written and final warnings add much more weight to your counseling. And when/if they finally hit the 3rd strike, you have a lot more data-based rationale behind your final decision. See the original article here:

How long until You Give Up on an Employee Who Keeps Showing Up Late?

If you need help in coming up with a way to build more analytics in your schedule adherence and discipline process, just let me know. I am happy to help.

HR & Recruitment Analytics – The recruitment and retention of top talent is the biggest challenge facing just about every organization. DMAIPH is a leading expert in empowering HR & Recruitment teams with analytics techniques to optimize their talent acquisition and management processes.  Contact DMAIPH now at analytics@dmaiph.com or connect with me directly to learn how to get more analytics in your HR & Recruitment process so you can rise to the top in the ever quickening demand for top talent.

How High Is Too High? I Don’t Ever Want To Find Out

Somedays I ask myself, why am I never satisfied?

What caused me to be one always looking for ways to improve?

It can be a lonely place sometimes when you have your bar set higher then most people would even dare to reach for.

It can be a sad place when you realize you have gone as far as you can go with some people.

My life is full of instances where people just gave up on trying to follow me.

They choose a path more traveled and less difficult.

I can never do that.

Until my dying breath I will aim high.

I will not always reach that goal, but I will never have to look myself in the mirror and lie to myself about giving my best.

For giving my best is what I have always done and will always do.

I am stubborn in the belief that I can do anything and refuse to give up hope.

For those who choose to get left behind, I am sad you stopped reaching for the stars.

You settled for half way.

But not me. Never me. Its not possible for me too do what you do.

11393144_10153432064897425_1344991735431472090_n

Analytics Leadership – DMAIPH specializes in arming the Data-Driven Leader with the tools and techniques they need to build and empower an analytics centric organization. Analytics leadership requires a mastery of not just analytics skill, but also of nurturing an analytics culture. We have guided thousands of Filipino professionals to become better analytics leaders. Contact DMAIPH now at analytics@dmaiph.com or connect with me directly to discuss a uniquely tailored strategy to ensure you are the top of your game when it comes to Analytics Leadership.

Sustaining Excellence

Still super happy over the Golden State Warriors going the NBA Finals the past two years. Winning a title, setting the records for wins… The way they did it, was a marvel to watch.

They lead their division from the beginning and never looked back. That take a special group to be consistent day in and day out.

They won with a first year head coach. That’s saying something that things were set up so well, that a new leader was able to step in and excel.

They beat the team with the best player in the world. Role players stepped up and made a difference. They wore LeBron out in a way that he never saw coming.

Now can they be a dynasty? Can they repeat this success or was it just a one-time thing? We will find out this year with the much hoped for Warriors-Cavs Round 3.

When you look across the San Francisco Bay, you see a team that is a true dynasty. The San Francisco Giants have one 3 World Series titles in 5 years. They made the playoffs again last year and are always in the hunt.

11421572_751531328286130_17872014_n

Besides having many of the same characteristics of the Warriors, the Giants have been able to take things to the next level.

Like the Warriors, they have a lot of home grown talent. That’s a proven way to go in any medium.

The Giants also have true starts who are not as well-known as the stars on the team they have beaten. They are hard workers who give it their all time and again.

There are a lot of lesson business leaders can learn from watching the way these team succeed… perhaps a future blog post on that.

But for now, as a huge fan of both teams… as I celebrate once again… I can only hope that the Warriors can sustain excellence like the Giants have.

It’s a great time to be a sports fan in the Bay Area. Truly a home of excellence!

How do you measure excellence in your business?

Do you have a way to know what your “win-loss” record is?

Do you know where you stack up against the competition?

If you don’t, then you need analytics. The Warriors and the Giants have two of the biggest analytics teams in professional sports. They invest and it pays off.

How about you?

We can show you how to set up your analytics which will translate to a level of excellence you have never know before.

DMAIPH specializes in arming the Data-Driven Leader with the tools and techniques they need to build and empower an analytics centric organization. Analytics leadership requires a mastery of not just analytics skill, but also of nurturing an analytics culture. We have guided thousands of Filipino professionals to become better analytics leaders. Contact DMAIPH now at analytics@dmaiph.com or connect with me directly to discuss a uniquely tailored strategy to ensure you are the top of your game when it comes to Analytics Leadership.

em·pa·thy > the ability to understand and share the feelings of another

From Our Recent Customer Care Empathy Training for the DMAIPH team

em·pa·thy > the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.

Per Webster’s… Empathy is

…the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another of either the past or present without having the feelings, thoughts, and experience fully communicated in an objectively explicit manner.

Per Wikpedia…

Empathy is the capacity to understand what another person is experiencing from within the other person’s frame of reference, i.e., the capacity to place oneself in another’s shoes.

So any way you slice it, empathy is about feeling the pain of another in a way that helps ease some of that pain.

Empathy training is sorely lacking across the call center industry as this kind of soft skills training is taught like a technical skill. You can’t just lecture of empathy. You have to role play and write open ended scripts and practice it until its second nature.

If DMAI is to succeed, we need to have better the average empathy training. If we want to be a great company then we need to have best in class empathy training to make sure we are there for our customers.

Picture1

Analytics Leadership – DMAIPH specializes in arming the Data-Driven Leader with the tools and techniques they need to build and empower an analytics centric organization. Analytics leadership requires a mastery of not just analytics skill, but also of nurturing an analytics culture. We have guided thousands of Filipino professionals to become better analytics leaders. Contact DMAIPH now at analytics@dmaiph.com or connect with me directly to discuss a uniquely tailored strategy to ensure you are the top of your game when it comes to Analytics Leadership.