Heart, Soul & Data

While we each may lean a little bit (or a lot bit) towards more heart-centered or more cerebral in how we think and process decisions, both approaches are valid and even necessary for success with data in nonprofits. Today we talk with Blaire Hamelehle, a senior analyst and manger with a knack for "marrying quantitative and qualitative data to uncover compelling stories about our communities." 

Blaire Hamelehle serves as the senior data analyst and data manager for TNTP, an education nonprofit reimagining teaching. She supports clients and teams to conduct and tell meaningful stories about research and educational evaluation efforts. She holds a masters in Public Administration from the University of Denver and a bachelors in psychology from the American University. 

Designing an impactful data product isn't just about the data - in fact, it's mostly NOT about the data. It's about the people at the heart of the endeavor. Join me for a conversation about human-centered design with Brian O'Neill from Designing for Analytics, a consulting company that focuses on creating data products people will actually use. Brian is also the host of the acclaimed Experiencing Data podcast.

You can reach Brian on LinkedIn, follow him on Twitter at @rhythmspice, and join his mailing list. He also hosts a bi-annual seminar Designing Human-Centered Data Products, which runs in March and September.

More about Brian: 

Brian T. O'Neill is the Founder and Principal of Designing for Analytics, an independent consultancy helping data product leaders use design-driven innovation to improve the UX of their ML and analytics applications. A jazz and classical percussionist by training, Brian has also been a product designer and consultant for over 25 years helping companies like DellEMC, Tripadvisor, Fidelity, NetApp, Roche, Abbvie, and the City of Los Angeles. Brian has spoken internationally at multiple O'Reilly conferences, the International Institute for Analytics Symposium, Predictive Analytics World, and Boston College. Brian also hosts the five-star podcast, Experiencing Data, where he digs into the brains of leading voices at the intersection of design, ML/AI, analytics and data product management. Brian also authored the Designing for Analytics Self-Assessment Guide, teaches a seminar called Designing Human-Centered Data Products and was published in O'Reilly Media's 97 Things About Ethics in Data Science Everyone Should Know. Having helped launch several successful enterprise startups including Apptopia and Dispatch.me, today Brian also advises student entrepreneurs in MIT's Sandbox Innovation Fund.

Outside the worlds of data and design, Brian also maintains a career as a professional musician in Boston and beyond. He has performed with The Who, national Broadway musicals, at Carnegie Hall and The Kennedy Center, and even played disco in Donna Summer's band. If you listen carefully, you might hear his own ensemble's music in your local tiki bar or one of 7,000 Starbucks worldwide. Follow Brian on Twitter (@rhythmspice), or via his Insights Mailing List at https://designingforanalytics.com/list.

Data are useful for determining and implementing impactful communications strategies. Hear success stories from communications expert Jessica Montana on how she uses data to identify her key audiences, measure a nonprofit's ability to reach those audiences, and tweak the communication plan to continually improve.

Today's episode explores a complex kind of data - crime data. We speak with veteran crime analyst Debra Piehl. 

Data literacy is a skill we all need. But the particular flavor will vary based on your data usage, your current level of data knowledge, and your mindset around data. David Marco from EWSolutions shares insights from his years teaching data literacy to organizations of all kinds. 

David Marco is the founder and president of EWSolutions, a data management consultancy based in Chicago. Be sure to check out the EWSolution YouTube channel, and find Dr. Marco on LinkedIn. The EWSolutions training repository, DataManagementU, also hosts dozens of articles and on-emand webinar recordings. 

Health equity and social determinants of health are hot topics in many spaces today, but do they really mean? How can we use data respectfully and effectively to tackle these huge challenges? My guest today offers a nuanced, thoughtful, and practical approach to balancing data with a human-centered focus. 

Essey Yirdaw is the director of data analytics at the Colorado Hospital Association. Essey received her Master’s degree from Colorado School of Public Health in 2015 in Health Systems, Management and Policy. Before coming to work at Colorado Hospital Association, Essey worked for over six years at the University of Colorado where she served in several capacities in the Department of Medicine, from program manager to division administrator – most recently working as program manager for the School of Medicine. Essey is most passionate about using data to help health care providers improve patient outcomes in an equitable, quality driven manner.

"The scientific method is objective. The application of the scientific method is NOT objective," says today's guest, Heather Krause of We All Count. This is the heart of data equity, the concept that unexamined, unconscious decisions we make around data, analytics, and science can have unequal impacts and even result in inaccurate or misleading findings. It isn't about getting rid of data or giving up on science. Data equity is about strengthening our science and our data by becoming conscious and transparent with the decisions at every level - and opening the door to the possibility of different decisions.

She has built an extraordinary company around her passionate mission of bringing our unconscious decisions into the light. We All Count offers training, support, and resources to anyone looking to improve their data equity.

Heather Krause, PStat, is a data scientist with 20+ years in the field. She’s a cross-sector thought leader in data equity issues. She works on government, social sector, education, and corporate data projects. Her first company Datassist Inc. works globally with national governments, trans-national corporations, and the largest players in the NGO space. Her cutting-edge approach to project design, data collection, analysis, reporting and visualization have placed her in high demand as a project lead, a crisis consultant and a speaker on the subject of data equity. 

How Heather would put it: "I’m someone with the curse of having seen too much and the privilege of getting to do something about it. If you’re like me, you might not put too much stock in degrees and institutions and awards when it comes to equity. The best thing I can say about myself is that I really, really care about data and I really really care about people. I want my kids (and my dogs) to live in a world where they’re not afraid of data, where they feel like their data is valued and most importantly that they themselves are valued. It breaks my heart to hear stories where data isn’t solving problems but is causing injustice."

Nonprofits can benefit hugely from YouTube, but knowing what data to use to measure your progress and impact can be overwhelming. Itai Nusbaum from the nonprofit PocketTeacher and the consulting company YouTuber's Toolkit, shares his concise framework for which metrics to look at, how to interpret what you see, and how to respond. Check out the shownotes at www.heartsouldata.com/ep-25/ to see a handy graphic that breaks down the metrics we discuss in this episode.

Itai Nusbaum, founder of both YouTuber’s Toolkit and PocketTeacher, single-handedly created an unparalleled YouTube-based educational video company that currently serves over 10% of all high school students in his country. In addition to this work, Itaialso created YouTuber’s Tookit, a consulting company in which he expertly navigates companies through the complicated maze of online video presence. Connect with Itai at www.yt-tk.com or download his ebook to learn more!

Picking the right financial metrics for your nonprofit is like choosing your navigation points for sailing a ship: you don't need to track everything, but you do need to track points that will help you get to your desired destination. Nonprofits aren't the same as for-profit companies, and that's why they need a different set of financial metrics. This episode with Dr. Elizabeth Searing leverages her combined research and "real world" work to chart out four key domains of financial metrics every nonprofit should track, and how they can be used to keep your finger on the pulse of your organization's wellbeing. 

Dr. Elizabeth Searing is an Assistant Professor of Public and Nonprofit Management at the University of Texas at Dallas. Dr. Searing’s primary research focus is the financial management of nonprofit and social enterprise organizations, but she also conducts work on comparative social economy and the role of social and psychological factors in economic development and policy effectiveness. She is associate editor and an editorial board member of the journal Nonprofit Management & Leadership and an editorial advisory board member of Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting and Financial Management (JPBAFM). Prof. Searing has published over a dozen articles and is also an editor of two books: Practicing Professional Ethics in Economics and Public Policy (with D. Searing) and The Social Enterprise Zoo: A Guide to Perplexed Entrepreneurs, Philanthropists, Investors and Policymakers (with D. Young and C. Brewer). Immediately prior to her time in Texas, she was an Assistant Professor of Public Administration and Policy at the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy, University at Albany (SUNY); she is also the former Director of the Institute of Nonprofit Leadership and Community Development at the University at Albany.

There are many methods for data analysis, but we often focus on technical methods. Veena Pankaj of Innovation Network joins me to discuss another approach – participatory data analysis. In this method, the “sensemaking” or interpretation phase of data analysis doesn’t take place in a black box (or the analyst’s cubicle…) in isolation. Instead, key stakeholders and frontline participants in the project are invited to view the data and results, and provide their own insights and interpretation.

This inclusive method has so many benefits that we explore in this episode. Whether you’re new to participatory data analysis, or new to evaluation all together, you’ll learn what a sensemaking session looks like, tools you can leverage to facilitate better discussions, why you really should make this part of your portfolio, and how to get started.

Veena Pankaj is a nonprofit leader with extensive experience in mixed-methods evaluation consulting and philanthropy. As the Director of Innovation Network, she works closely with funders and nonprofits to answer questions about program design, implementation, and impact. Veena is a fierce advocate of participatory learning and evaluation practices that center people and relationships. She offers a learning orientation that draws on a combination of principles from emergent learning and participatory evaluation to engage stakeholders in collaborative learning engagements designed to promote shared sensemaking and advance collective learning. Her experience ranges across topical areas such as health equity, civic engagement, and social justice. Veena received her MA in Social Science from the University of Chicago and her BA in Sociology from the University of Virginia. She has also completed a certification in organization development through Georgetown University, received a master certification in Emergent Learning in January 2020, and received an Associate Diversity Coach certification in August 2021.

Find and follow Veena on LinkedIn or on Twitter at @VeenaPankaj!