by Caroline Leach | Aug 6, 2016 | Marketing & Analytics
Data is the raw material of the information age.
So says Alec Ross in his book The Industries of the Future.
An expert on innovation, Ross draws parallels between land being the raw material of the agricultural age and iron being the raw material of the he industrial age.
Essentially, big data will touch every aspects of our lives. “Big data,” he says, “is transitioning from a tool primarily for targeted advertising to an instrument with profound applications for diverse corporate sectors and for addressing chronic societal problems.”
Here are a few of his predictions:
- During the next decade, big data will enable people to converse in not just one another language but dozens. While I won’t give up on my Spanish studies anytime soon, it’s good to know that data-based help is on the way.
- As the world’s population grows, so does the need for more food. “Precision agriculture” enabled by big data will help solve this problem.
- Smarter financial systems can be powered by big data. It was surprising, and even a little shocking, to read how antiquated many banking systems still are today.
An important caution is to understand the limits of big data and the critical interplay between machine and mind. This comes in the form of spurious correlations that may result from ever larger and bigger data sets. “Not all the trends it finds are rooted in reality,” he says.
The solution? Including error bars with data analysis predictions. Error bars are “visual representations of how likely a prediction is to be an error rooted in spurious correlation.”
In addition to peering into the future of big data, Ross gives two great tips for “the most important job you will ever have.” How does he define that? Parenting.
What can parents do to help their children be ready to embrace the future?
Ross frames it in terms of languages. The first language is globalism. “Ironically,” he writes, “in a world growing more virtual, it has never been more important to get as many ink stamps in your passport as possible.”
And even though big data may eventually make the need to learn other languages obsolete, it’s wise to learn another language beyond English. The most practical choices, not surprisingly, are Spanish and Mandarin.
The other language to learn is technology. “If big data, genomics, cyber, and robotics are among the high-growth industries of the future,” Ross says, “then the people who will make their livings in these industries need to be fluent in the coding languages behind them.”
Other benefits come with understanding technology. Ross cites fellow pundits who tout the ability to better see patterns and to think in new and different ways. Studying technology is a valuable way to sharpen your critical thinking skills.
One of Ross’ points that I was happiest to see came in the introduction. Because his book explores competitiveness, he delves into the driving force behind competitive countries and businesses being the development of people.
He takes it a critical step further. “And there is no greater indicator of an innovative culture than the empowerment of women. Fully integrating and empowering women economically and politically is the most important step that a country or company can take to strengthen its competitiveness.”
Well said, Alec Ross.
by Caroline Leach | Feb 27, 2016 | Change, Learning, Marketing & Analytics
Does what we say to ourselves influence how much, how fast and how well we can learn new things?
Absolutely, says Erika Andersen, the author of the forthcoming book Be Bad First.
She outlines 4 key mental tools in her Harvard Business Review article, Learning to Learn. They are aspiration, self-awareness, curiosity and vulnerability.
Aspiration. Andersen says “great learners can raise their aspiration level.” How? By focusing on the benefits of what you’ll learn, rather than on the challenges in the learning process. A good question to ask is “What would my future look like if I learned this?”
Self-awareness. This is about seeking feedback and taking action on it. Good questions to ask yourself about feedback are “Is this accurate?” “What facts do I have to support it?” and “How do I compare with my peers?”
Curiosity. Andersen writes that “curiosity is what makes us try something until we can do it it, or think about something until we understand it.”
If you’re not interested in a new subject, Anderson advocates changing your self-talk to ask why others find the subject so interesting.
As a person interested in words, ideas and influence, my curiosity is helping me find where those interests intersect with analytics and big data.
In starting to read Tom Davenport‘s Big Data @ Work, I became more curious about how organizations of the future will better focus on the collaboration and communications activities of their people.
This led me to a footnote that took me to another book called Social Physics. This is defined as “analyzing patterns of human experience and idea exchange within the digital bread crumbs we all leave behind us as we move through the world.”
Now I’m truly fascinated and thinking about the connections with another book I read last year, The Reputation Economy. This is about how individuals can shape their digital footprint at a time when your reputation can dictate the kind of life you’ll live and what opportunities may be available to you.
Vulnerability. This is about the scary prospect of “being bad at something for weeks or months; feeling awkward and slow; having to ask ‘dumb’ questions; and needing step-by-step guidance again and again.”
The cure? Changing what you say to yourself. Andersen suggests that instead of saying “I’m terrible at this,” replace it with, “I’m making beginner mistakes, but I’ll get better.”
As I’m pursuing my own learning project and getting up to speed in a new role, I reminded myself of trying out for a sports team in high school.
When I showed up for the first practice before tryouts, I almost didn’t come back the next day. I felt uncoordinated, self-conscious and silly. But I made myself come back the next day. And the next.
And happily, I made the team. But what if I’d given up that first day? What if I’d allowed myself to believe that I was terrible and had no hope of getting better?
There are very few things we can’t learn if we tell ourselves we can. And if we encourage ourselves with positive thoughts. And remind ourselves that others don’t notice our mistakes as much as we might think.
I have to tell myself that frequently as I walk into yet another figurative wall by mistake. Oops. That hurt. Did anyone notice my mistake?
But the important thing is the dust yourself off. To keep moving forward. And to avoid making the same mistake twice.
What’s a good way to do that? By being kind to yourself. Encourage yourself. Have faith that with grit and perseverance, you can do what you set out to do.
One day this month I came home and a friend from a community group had left a thank-you card and a book on my doorstep. The book is “The Power of Kindness.” It’s about “the unexpected benefits of leading a compassionate life.”
And while the main focus of the book is on being kind to others, there is power in being just as kind to ourselves.
That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t set aspirational goals and have high standards for ourselves. But it does mean encouraging ourselves and asking how we could do better next time.
In addition to my learning journey in data and analytics, I’ve written in this blog about learning stand-up paddle boarding and learning yoga. My goal this summer is to combine the two.
Today I went paddle boarding and tomorrow I’ll take a yoga class. The benefit to both is a kind of zen that helps me be kinder to myself and to others.
It pulls me out of the moment-to-moment frenzy of everyday life and puts me in a meditative state. A reflective state. A refreshed state.
All the better to keep learning.
by Caroline Leach | Jan 3, 2016 | Marketing & Analytics
What are good questions to ask about new research?
That was the question I had as I revisited Keeping Up With the Quants: Your Guide to Understanding + Using Analytics.
Written by Tom Davenport and Jinho Kim, this is a book I read a few years ago when I led our company’s employee engagement survey strategy.
Working closely with our partner, Towers Watson, I was learning a lot. Yet I wanted to better understand the underlying analytics.
As I moved into a new role and have embarked on a learning project, I’ve revisited the book.
It includes a great list of questions that leaders should ask about analytics projects. They’re summarized from marketing and strategy professor Liam Fahey‘s article in Strategy and Leadership.
Here they are:
Overall questions:
- What business issue or need is the analytics work intended to inform? (This reminds me of the McKinsey & Company question, what problem are we solving for?)
- What are the core insights relevant to understanding the business issue and its context?
- How can I leverage these insights in the work I do?
- How do the insights affect decisions confronting us now?
- How do the insights help shape emerging and future decisions?
Questions for preliminary findings:
- What is surprising about this finding?
- Can further analysis be done to strengthen or refute the finding?
- Should others be involved to challenge this emerging finding?
- Is there a significant insight emerging here?
- If the thinking holds up, how should it affect my thinking on this or other topics or issues?
Questions for new insights:
- What is new to each insight?
- What was the old understanding?
- How significant is the difference?
- What is the reasoning or “argument” that connects the data set to the insight?
Questions after insights have been delivered:
- Who was/is involved in shaping the new understanding?
- How might they have influenced the outcome?
- What might be the principal difference across individuals or units?
In our ever busier and faster world, I also ask myself what the one key takeaway and implication is from the research. How would I summarize the insights in a sentence or a tweet?
In addition, I ask myself if I truly understand the work. If not, it’s time for more questions.
After seeing the movie The Big Short this weekend about the 2008-09 financial crisis, I wish more people had asked a lot more questions.
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