Analytic Buyer’s Guide — Technique
Understanding the Five T’s needed for Analytic Success
So you have identified the right team, with the right technology, to build the right tools, with a firm understanding of time? Great just one more component to worry about — technique. It is a critical step and one that non-analysts are least equipped to deal with. Technique matters.
Analytics Is A Craft
You can debate art, accept science, but remember craft. No one does this well by instinct. You may hire an Analyst by Nature but mistakes in this game are harsh and costly. You want to hire the most experienced talent possible at the best cost. But even that can lead you astray…
Remember analysts are both toolmakers and teachers. You need someone with top flight skills in both areas and that doesn’t even touch the science. If I had a one basis point commission on the salary of every “propeller head” hired who “oddly” never worked out, I could buy Bill Gates and Warren Buffet… twice! You want a practical, productive, and instructive professional.
It Is Also A Science
Science is discipline. Period. Many people get infatuated with hypotheses and statistics, with probabilities and machine learning — stop buying the hype! All that stuff is great and useful when used properly — but a distraction of epic and costly proportions when not. Don’t buy the hype — you can’t afford it!
Science is a process and a method. You may have heard of it? It started with Aristotle and got a double dose of Bacon. It is great, in a lab. Outside a laboratory environment it is still great — when used properly. Many forms of new science deal with the limits and application of the scientific method.
Alas, It Is Also An Art
Do not be fooled by those who see nothing wrong with “The Art of Analytics”. Nowhere else is discipline and science more important! There are specific techniques for innovating in science. Some are good. Some are grey. And some should never be allowed in the building… much less paid for.
You will be far more likely to get this wrong if you are in the “no time” camp. Fire drills and timelines force innovation. They make you more willing to overlook or completely miss questionable analytic practices. Unscrupulous analysts will prey on your fears by using your natural bias against you. If I had a one basis point commission here, I could buy the world.
If you can’t slow down, you need to be incredibly wary and especially critical of technique. Better still, invest in analytics now and avoid the pitfalls. Not the firedrills — they will come. But having a strong relationship with a solid ASP in advance of them, will allow you to rest assured that their technique is up to the task.
Want to invest now? We can help. Or if you are in need of the right technique for a tough situation — we can handle that too.
Thanks for reading!
