The All Analytics Podcast

Join InformationWeek and AllAnalytics Radio as we welcome top quantitative recruitment expert, Linda Burtch. She is founder and managing director of the quantitative executive recruitment firm, Burtchworks, and has worked in the space for decades. Burtch shares her advice for quantitative professionals looking to keep their careers on track -- and properly paid -- in 2018 and beyond.

Why are some retailers outperforming the competition? What secrets do the top Omnichannel retailers share? Join AllAnalytics Radio as we welcome retail experts Brian Kilcourse and Paula Rosenblum to share the results of their research on how some retailers are outperforming the market, even in today's tough environment. Kilcourse and Rosenblum are analysts at RSR Research, specializing in insights and advice for the retail industry. Learn what factors you should focus on to make your business one of those overperformers.

Lean Analytics author Alistair Croll joins AllAnalytics radio on Monday, Nov. 27 at 1 pm ET/10 am PT. In the 4 years since Lean Analytics was first published, the book has helped companies determine their business models and growth stages and identify the One Metric That Matters. Following this path can help companies reduce risk and move faster in product development and customer satisfaction, following the Lean Startup methodology.

Lean Analytics grows out of another book, Lean Startup, which spells out a methodology for organizations to reduce risk and improve product development by creating a minimum viable product and then engaging in iterative product development that incorporates customer feedback. A number of companies have implemented this methodology, including Intuit, GE, and Dropbox.

Building on that idea, the book Lean Analytics helps organizations measure their progress and make better decisions along the way. A preface to the book describes it this way:

"Lean Startup helps you structure your progress and identify the riskiest part of your business, then learn about it quickly so you can adapt. Lean Analytics is used to measure that progress helping you ask the most important questions and get clear answers quickly."

Croll is a frequent speaker at industry conferences around the world on the topic of analytics and lean startups.

In this show we'll talk about:

• What is Lean Analytics and why do you need it
• What companies are using Lean Analytics, and how does it work for them
• What has changed in the field of analytics since the book first hit the market 4 years ago
• What mistakes and best practices are there for Lean Analytics

What do black holes, hedge funds, and glaucoma have in common? They are all subjects that Intel Chief Data Scientist Bob Rogers has worked on over the course of a long career in data and analytics. And they are all examples of the varied problems where advanced analytics can be applied.

These days Rogers brings his experience with data science, AI, machine learning, and related technologies to a broad range of applications as he helps enterprises with work on their big important projects. It's part of a program in place at Intel to help spread the knowledge and implementation of advanced analytics to businesses and other organizations.

AllAnalytics Radio welcomes Bob Rogers as our guest on Wednesday, Nov. 1 at 1 pm ET/10 am PT. We're excited to hear about what he's working on today. We are going to ask him about AI, Machine Learning, and talk about some projects that apply these technologies to solve some of society's problems.

As Intel Chief Data Scientist, Rogers has a unique view into the issues, challenges, and trends across multiple industry verticals when it comes to these technologies.

We'll ask him about the trends he sees in the field, the most interesting projects he has encountered, and some of the mistakes he has seen as organizations work to implement these technologies.

We'll also ask him for his recommendations on how to tackle these problems. What are the best practices? What are good choices for initial big-impact projects?

Students of data science who are entering universities tend to have two things in common. First, they excel at and/or love math. They are mathematicians. Second, they have a passion for fixing a particular problem. Maybe they think younger students could be able to do better in school. Maybe they are looking for a cure for a particular disease. Maybe they see issues with financial reporting that they know they could fix if only they had skills and tools.

Now consider the people who did not pursue a degree in data science. They have other careers. But they still want to be able to use data and analytics to help solve problems. These people are so-called Citizen Data Scientists. It's not a formal job title. These people may have other titles, such as sales representative, marketing director, social media associate, or something else. Data may not even be an official part of their job descriptions.

But they want to use data to make a difference. Maybe they have taken some data or statistics-related courses here or there. Maybe they use their analytics skills in their jobs, and maybe they use them in a hobby or some other way. They are not full-time data scientists. But they are passionate about solving a problem, asking the right questions, and finding answers.  They care and are willing to learn and work.

These individuals can bridge the gap between mainstream self-service analytics by business users and the advanced analytics techniques of data scientists, according to market research firm Gartner.

Citizen data scientists in an enterprise organization can strengthen the commitment to analytics adoption. These individuals possess the domain knowledge so that they know the right questions to ask. And these individuals are already embedded within functional departments of the organization. They are on the front lines, dealing with the every day challenges that analytical insights can help influence and resolve.

On Thursday, Oct. 26, at 1 pm ET, All Analytics Radio will assemble a panel of our expert bloggers to talk about citizen data scientists. We'll discuss who they are and how they can help. Are you a citizen data scientist? Do you want to reach out to potential citizen data scientists inside your organization in order to strengthen your organization's data analytics practice? Then you won't want to miss this show.

Among the industries disrupted by the internet and growth of the internet, retail and entertainment are two of the big ones.

Retail has experienced countless online-only upstart companies that let consumers search for what they want and shop on price. And on the other side of the online upstarts are the giants like Amazon. It's turned what used to be a destination experience into a commodity transaction experience.

Similarly, the TV entertainment industry now has competitors in the form of streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and more.

QVC sits at the crossroads where the entertainment industry and the retail industry intersect. This online shopping channel has grown to much more over the years, with mobile and web channels in addition to its TV channel. And as so many in retail and entertainment are looking to leverage their data for insights, QVC is doing the same.

David O'Toole, Director of eCommerce, at this hybrid entertainment and retail company, will join AllAnalytics radio as our guest on Tuesday, September 26, at 2 pm ET/11 am PT to talk about the analytics experience at QVC.

O'Toole will tell us about why QVC has created a new real-time data collection and analysis program. Join us as we ask O'Toole:

• Why analytics are so important to the retail and entertainment success of QVC
• What unique challenges QVC faces as a retailer without physical stores
• Why real-time data is key to success for QVC
• And what lessons other retail and entertainment firms can learn from QVC's experience.

We hope you'll join us on Tuesday, September 26, at 2 pm ET/11 am PT for this fascinating view into the world of analytics at a fascinating company.

How do you transform and prepare a big organization to be ready for opportunity and success? Many companies are facing that challenge right now as they prepare to compete in a new era of analytics-driven business. And who knows better about a job like that than the CTO of the US. Megan Smith was the third Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of the US in the Obama Administration, and left the role this year. She joined a special edition of AllAnalytics Radio on Monday, September 18, to talk her experience transforming a large organization and more.

Smith calms those fears about everyone losing their jobs to automation and offers innovative ideas for growing a new generation of tech-savvy citizens. For more about Smith's presentations at SAS Analytics Experience, visit AllAnalytics.com

Privacy is on the docket today, but not in the usual way, where we focus on how to protect the data your company holds or our personal data. Our topic is the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR.

Don't think that because your company is based outside of Europe that it doesn't matter to you. There's a very good chance companies in the US, Canada and elsewhere will be subject to GDPR simply by holding data about EU citizens.

Failure to comply with GDPR could put your organization at risk for millions of dollars in penalties.

Our guest today is Todd Ruback, who is Chief Privacy Officer and Vice President of Legal Affairs at Evidon, which is a firm that helps other companies with data compliance efforts.

Todd will outline some of the things that you need to know about GDPR and how to prepare for its May 2018 kick off.

Welcome Todd. How are you today?

Before we get started, I have a note for the audience. You can share your own comments and questions for your peers and our guests in the text chat box appearing on the streaming audio page on All Analytics. If you enter a comment and you don't see it in a few seconds, please refresh your browser and it should appear.

Also I want to bring to your attention that we have additional resources related to GDPR on All Analytics.Com. Whether you are listening live on All Analytics or through the All Analytics Podcast on iTunes, you can access a directory of GDPR-related content by going to AllAnalytics.com/GDPR

Now, on with today's show.

As data and analytics have gained more attention as key components of successful modern businesses, it's not a surprise that we are seeing more c-level executives charged with driving analytics and data initiatives.

CEOs are recognizing the strategic importance of putting data at the center of the business, business decisions, and even communications with customers. And as firms now have more respect for the critical importance of their data, they also need executive-level workers to oversee the efforts.

Ambitious analytics pros looking to make their mark may want to consider the chief analytics officer job as a place they want to be in 5 or 10 years. But what are the day-to-day duties? What are the career paths from CAO?

To find out, we've invited Dun & Bradstreet CAO Nipa Basu to AllAnalytics radio to talk about her job, her duties, and what an CAO does every day. Consider it your opportunity to score an information interview with an insider who can answer your toughest questions about the job. And be sure to bring those questions to our live show on Wednesday, July 26 at 1 pm ET/10 am PT. You can register for the show now at this link.

In her role as CAO at Dun and Bradstreet, Basu not only oversees her own company's analytics strategy, but she also has an insider view into how CAOs work inside other companies.

She's served as CAO at a time when the role has risen in importance.

A study of 180 chief data officers and chief analytics officers by market research firm Gartner in in November 2016 found that CAOs and CDOs are more likely to report to the CEO than they are to anyone else (30%). The second most likely executive for them to report into was the CIO (16%).

(Gartner VP Mario Faria told me last year that the shift in CAOs reporting to CEOs from CIOs is moving at a much faster rate than Gartner had expected.)

CAOs and CDOs have increased in numbers, according to Gartner, from just 15 in 2010 to 1,400 in 2016.

And if your ambition extends beyond CAO, there's a path for you, too. Gartner predicts that 15% of successful CDOs and CAOs will move into other C-level positions, including CEOs, by 2020.

Amid a turbulent time for the news media and a groundbreaking time for the advancement of data analytics, Bloomberg is positioned to apply the benefits of AI and machine learning to news gathering, information gathering, and more. Bloomberg CTO and head of data science Gideon Mann joins All Analytics Radio. Mann's work touches a wide range of issues, from how data science can be used for news gathering and reporting and fact checking.