Are Your Businesses’ Analysts — Craftsmen or Fast Food Clerks?
How is that serving you?
There isn’t a right answer to this question, but there are quite a few wrong ones. Forgive me, but analysts tend to be better at pointing those out. Here is a little more perspective from our tasty metaphor.
Analysis is Organized Decision-Making with A Healthy Dose of Science
If hearing that, you still want a fast food clerk-style analyst — well, God help you because I don’t think that poor analyst really will.
It should be noted that MTO restaurants do a great job of organizing some very focused decision-making. If that appeals to you — great! Learn from Wawa (among the best) — get some solid technology (business intelligence).
Wawa deli workers don’t take orders — they just make great sandwiches. Fast food clerk-style order taking is not a job for a human, even if you give them a fun title like “Sandwich Artist”. This is doubly true for your businesses’ analytics team. Let them focus on the decisions!
But another way, process-oriented services have their value — mainly efficiency. Don’t undermine that efficiency by creating and maintaining highly manual processes or avoiding technology-based solutions. Recognize that process-oriented functions are often broken and undermined by changing needs and requests.
Craftsmanship Is No Excuse For Poor Prioritization or Returns
Sometimes you just want a sandwich. While a five star meal may be great, it tends to be a bit on the pricey side, too. Analytics is definitely a craft, but it is one that applies recursively. In other words — teaching others where to prioritize and generate returns while failing to prioritize and generate returns is hypocritical at best… bad practice … and really undermines your credibility.
Every problem is not the Sistine Chapel. A true analytic craftsman understands that and show mastery of their craft by applying the proper levels of priority and resource to opportunities based on their return and importance. They should also be prepared with the right ingredients, techniques, and understanding to deliver quality — quickly.
Customized and Hybrid Solutions Offer The Best of Both Worlds
If you chose to go the fast food route, you are trading quality for speed, variety for consistency. Hire a craftsmen and you will get quality but at cost. If those trade-offs work for you, you should be fine. Just hope things don’t change…
Hybrid models try to capture the best of both world’s. For example, many new restaurant models are plays on the MTO concept. They focus on craftsmen-like preparation, they keep tight menus, and then rely on a process and model to speed delivery and lower the costs. Plenty of similar concepts seem to be flourishing in high volume areas right now.
Other restaurants adopt a boutique, high-service model. They become destinations for diners looking for a great experience. They also know that their diners are likely eating elsewhere most other days of the week, month, or even year. And from a diner’s view point, that is the key — they customize their choice based on their needs at the moment.
Your business can chose either option. Style your operations based on niche needs or use a hybrid to address broader challenges. Even a blend of these two styles could work. But whatever arrangement you arrive at, you want craftsmanship and process-oriented delivery. If you feel like you only have one or the other, it is time to rethink the situation. Otherwise, you are assured to be disappointed.
Want a little help? It is what we do.
Thanks for reading!
