Welcome to Your World

This is an exciting time for business and management.

The rules are changing. Access to tools and information has made it easier for you to know more and respond faster.  No longer are you limited by your size, pedigree, title, technology or other constraints.  Information, tools and methods that were only available to a select group of individuals and organizations are now becoming more accessible.  You can connect with partners & customers, access and analyze competitive data, and tap into efficient resources in ways that only a few years ago may have seemed futuristic.

The rules are changing, being re-written by smarter customers and new competitors.  The current ride through your industry’s cycle probably feels different from previous cycles.  Your past experience, while still valuable, must be combined with new insights and execution nimbleness.

How exciting!  As business gets more complex, opportunities to win exist across all levels.  Entire industries & organizations are redefining what it means to build and manage partnerships, taking advantage of economies of scale.  Individuals are charting bold career-propelling paths by riding the wave of complexity.

Exciting!  Or maybe it’s more strange and risky than exciting.

For how can we make decisions when the old rules don’t apply?  How do we know what rules are still “good” and which ones need to be modified?  Can we rely on past experience, something that has worked well in the past?  How is it possible to understand the relevant interdependencies in this new world?  Data is cheap and vast, but how do we overcome volume with insight?  Has the complexities of today’s business surpassed our ability to make sound decisions?

This blog is a meant to be a resource for practitioners of business analytics. “Business Analytics” can mean a wide range of things. This blog will use the term as it pertains to solving complex business problems (more on “complexity” later).

Armed with the right tools and methods, there are many organizations and individuals who are taming the complexities of their ever-changing world. We may be familiar with the Amazons and the Googles, but there are plenty of other organizations, big and small, who are doing some amazing things.

We’ll cover stories, talk about tools, and provide some examples. Hopefully we’ll also provide some diversions along the way.

Welcome!