Transforming Insight Podcast

We're excited to welcome IMA associate Debra Walmsley, and Jana Prahl, Insight leader at Savage X Fenty, who share their experiences and expertise. 

We discuss the art of crafting a compelling brand identity for your Insight team. Learn how building a brand board can help articulate your collective vision and establish your team as trusted advisers and innovative thinkers. Discover the power of marketing skills to position your team effectively internally, and see how identifying milestone projects can showcase your team's unique contributions, solidifying your reputation as key players within the company.

Our guests provide inspiration by showcasing real-world examples of successful initiatives, such as transforming customer feedback into powerful visual stories that resonate with leadership. These initiatives highlight the significance of embedding insights into the hearts and minds of organisational colleagues. By focusing on both "headspace" and "heart space," your Insight team can become a formidable force for change, driving effectiveness and impact within corporate structures. Tune in to discover actionable ideas and inspiration for elevating your Insight team's presence and impact.

Please listen to find out more!

Topics Discussed

• Improving an Insight team's branding (03:35)
• Consistent branding and reporting best practices (15:04) 
• Building a strong Insights team (19:39) 
• Elevating an Insights team through customer exposure (24:20) 
• Impact of Heart-centred customer engagement (29:37) 

Highlights

• “When we talked about this topic at the Insight forums last year, we decided that the answer to that big question was often to be found in our approach to three smaller questions. The first was what position does your insight team occupy in your organisation's hearts, minds and decision-making processes?” (01:49)
• “But there are two other ways of improving your insight team's profile which are more linked to insights day-to-day activities. The first relates to the best practice territory that the IMA refers to as Insight influence. Most progressive Insight leaders would agree that their teams can't succeed without improving their ability to drive decisions.” (05.46)
• “I suggested to people that they do an exercise which is building a brand board. It's something that I've done in a few companies that I've worked in and it's worked really well to really get people to explore that whole concept of what does this team stands for, what's it like to work within the team, how does it look and feel to people and also what do stakeholders think about the team?” (10.57)
• “I remember someone coming up later to me saying that it was like a museum for them, like all they wanted to do was go around the office and read each quote from each of our customers that said something to us and so got a lot of positive feedback, and it was just a way for us to bring the voice of the customer a little bit more closely in an unconventional way.”(22.29)

This is episode 65 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening. 

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

All rights reserved.   

Sandra discusses her journey at ASOS, highlighting the importance of establishing a cohesive purpose when integrating diverse analytics and Insight teams. 

Amanda (Wig) sheds light on how insight can drive business growth and help achieve revenue targets. We emphasize that without a clear purpose, insight teams risk becoming fragmented and struggling to demonstrate their value, which is crucial for securing budget and resources.

We discuss strategic prioritisation, resource management, and innovative approaches like the "stop, start, continue" method to redefine team roles. 

This year our podcasts will focus on the "Insight Leaders Playbook," an exciting initiative aimed at helping Insight leaders to become truly transformational.

Please listen to find out more!

Topics Discussed

• Transforming Data for Revenue Growth (03:17)
• Strategic Choices in Insight Teams (12:27)
• Involving Business Leadership in Decision-Making (19:36)
• Insightful Ambition in Business Transformation (25:15)
• Proving Value and Making Choices (29:37)

Highlights

• “They're data experts, they're communicators, they're analysts. Obviously there's so many things that they need to do and I think if you don't sort of focus the team on what they should be doing, or at least where you plan to get them to. You run the risk of them working across all kinds of things and often things that don't necessarily add the most strategic value, because they're insight people” (05:05)
• “I think one of the things I've realised actually as a consultant is there's a lot of businesses where leaders don't value it as a function actually, and I think I was quite fortunate and quite lucky. But the reason I suppose they say you create your own luck was because I linked everything back to revenue and delivering, so you know, on an objective.” (08.30)
• “There were two things that really helped my team and I thought I think I mean I'm really open and I think it's really important to let your team play a huge role in this so that they're happy and they come out the other side happy too, but also so that they understand their role or their purpose within the overall purpose and what they're delivering” (15.12)
• The John Barnes rap is perfect. I mean I'm not going to rap it for you, but I have it in front of me that I could read it if you'd like me to, the first line is perfect. You've got to hold and give, but do it at the right time. You can be slow or fast, but you must get to the line which picks up on Sandra's point about changing priorities. You need to be adaptable and flexible. They'll always hit you and hurt you, defend and attack.”(21.30)

This is episode 64 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening. 

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

All rights reserved.   

Ultimately what you put in your playbook is for you to decide. But James’s suggestion is that we all use a 9 P framework. How do we decide which to look at first?

The English-born, American author Simon Sinek says we should always start with why.

So the 1st P in the Insight leader’s playbook is for Purpose.

The way you define why Insight exists in your organisation, and the roles it could play, will provide you with a reference point for every other aspect of Insight transformation.

Please listen to find out more!

Topics Discussed

• Why does your Insight team exist? (1.51)
• The corporate eco-system (3.50)
• Insight team resources (6.39)
• Insight team performance (8.22)
• Do you need an Insight strategy (10.37)
• Ambitious, relevant and motivational (12.44)

This is episode 63 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening. 

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

All rights reserved.   

A framework that could work very well in combination with the 9 Ps of the Insight leader’s playbook which were described in episode 61, and which will form the spine of the Transforming Insight podcast this year.

But also a framework that might help you effect change in other aspects of life as well. Who knows? Ignore it if you don’t like it, feel free to borrow it or adapt it if you do!

Please listen to find out more!

Topics Discussed

• An unintended episode (0.46)
• A story about personal change (1.41)
• 5 key steps of personal change (6.09)
• The ADDER checklist (8.43)
• Simple first steps (9.31)

This is episode 62 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening. 

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

All rights reserved.   

Organisations can only make sustainable, profitable changes if they take better decisions. Not just on occasion, but across the board, when senior managers get together to discuss strategy, new product development, new delivery channels, new service enhancements, pricing, marketing and customer communications.

These decisions need to be based on individual insights and on big-picture, joined-up customer knowledge.

But we all know that if we want Insight to transform our organisations and their performance, we first have to transform our Insight teams and their impact. 

For 20 years, leaders have met at the Insight forums to discuss how we might move our teams from being reactive, service providers, to proactive shapers of big strategic decisions.

But it’s one thing to observe what successful Insight teams do, and imagine the benefit our organisation might feel if our own team played a more prominent role. It’s quite another to find the time, energy and inspiration to lead that transformation. 

The reality is that most of us could work seven days a week just responding to emails, running our current research projects, answering database queries, agreeing priorities with stakeholders. Then changing our plans as new issues emerge. 

If we want to work on our Insight teams rather than just in them, I think senior managers need to write their own Insight leader’s playbook. 

The over-arching theme of our Transforming Insight podcast this year will be what this playbook might look like, and the nine critical aspects we should all address.

Please listen to find out more!

Topics Discussed

• A wonderful opportunity (1.19)
• The best time ever to work in Insight (4.31)
• A rather big problem (7.49)
• It will only get worse (10.49)
• Becoming transformational Insight leaders (13.02)
• The importance of writing things down (16.07)
• The 9 Ps of the Insight leader’s playbook (17.49)

This is episode 61 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening. 

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

All rights reserved.   

But by the end of 2020, it was becoming clear that in many organisations, the lockdowns and the disruption they caused to normal living and purchasing behaviour had presented Insight teams with a moment in the spotlight. 

For some this was built off the back of having already enjoyed quite a high profile, but for many the uncertainty that senior managers were feeling in 2020 and 2021 elevated the position of the Insight team as never before.

What’s happened since? James is joined by IMA colleague Lisa Dutton to bring us up to date.

Please listen to find out more!

Topics Discussed

• Insight in the spotlight (1.54)
• Adjusting to life after the lockdowns (5.33)
• Lots of busy Insight teams (8.41)
• Generative AI and its impact (11.00)
• Beyond AI, attention on analytics (12.56)
• Collaborating with stakeholders (19.49)

This is episode 60 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening. 

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

All rights reserved.   

In this episode, we discuss the ambitious strategies driving McDonald's UK and Ireland's customer engagement, Fainareti underscores the critical blend of consumer and business insights. Her team’s ability to speak both the language of the consumer and the business is key to breaking down barriers and fostering impactful decision-making. The conversation highlights how McDonald's lean head office structure enhances communication and collaboration, making it possible to translate insights into actionable commercial strategies. She shares her insights on the importance of training and hands-on experience in building a solid commercial foundation for insight teams.

In the final segments, Fainareti emphasizes the shift towards storytelling-driven approaches within insights teams, urging leaders to cultivate commercial acumen and engaging communication. Her advice for aspiring Insight leaders focuses on understanding business priorities and presenting insights in compelling narratives, ensuring that insights aren't just heard, but also acted upon. Join us for this enlightening conversation that intertwines curiosity, influence, and the art of storytelling in the ever-evolving world of consumer insights.

Topics Discussed

• Evolving Consumer Insight Team at McDonald’s - (06:36) 
• Breaking Down boundaries - (11:03) 
• Lean Processes in Head Office Operations - (15:09) 
• Global Standardization and Local Flexibility - (17:59) 
• Advice for Insight Leaders to Succeed - (24:57) 

Highlights

• “I'm very fortunate to have this job and to work for a company like McDonald's. What our job entails is really to be the voice of the customer in the business, making sure that the decisions we're making, the course of actions we take in the business, is really done with the customer at the heart of these decision”(03:46)
• “I guess my ambition for my team so we are consumer insight experts, so we spend a lot of our time speaking to customers. My ambition is that my team are as fluent in terms of standing up and presenting the sales and commercial data as our business insights colleagues are.” (10:49)
• “There's certainly a push and desire from both the center, the global team and the local teams to standardize the way we look at things, so the way we work, to insight. So there are certain products, or insight products, if you like, that will be globally consistent and quite often the global team will own the methodology of those, but they will.” (17:49)
• “I don't think AI will ever replace necessarily the human and the added value that you bring, but I think it will require us to keep proving the added value that we bring and in a way I find it's quite exciting because if it can liberate from the mundane tasks that we don't want to do and really focus our efforts on the things that we do want to do, which is like joining the dots,” (21:30)
• “You know we're always looking. We're a big business and you know we're always looking at best practice and new methodologies and you know what it is that we can that perhaps is more traditional, that you know things have moved on, that we can switch off and how we can modernize both, I guess, some of the methodology but also some of the ways that we provide the insight, serve the insight back to the business as well.” (23:59)
• “Be curious, so don't stop at the facts. Go deeper to really understand what is going on and you know what other insight we might have that may help us develop hypothesis or corroborate that kind of insight that we've uncovered.” (25:41)

This is episode 59 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please hit subscribe - and thank you for listening. 

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

All rights reserved             

If we routinely estimate the size of the prize before we prioritise projects, and then record the value delivered by the business and other departments’ estimate of Insight’s contribution after they’re completed, we can elevate everyone’s appreciation of our work.

And that’s invaluable when we want to argue for more resources - or when we need to make the case for keeping those we have.

To help explore this topic, James is joined by Jane Woolley. Jane is a former Insight leader at the London Underground and BMRB International, and now a senior adviser at the IMA and their lead on Insight commercial thinking and return on investment.

Please listen to find out more!

Topics Discussed

• Is insight discretionary? (
• The Insight valuation process (5.07)
• Asking others for their view of Insight’s contribution (8.09)
• A pleasant surprise for IMA members (11.07)
• The importance of commercial curiosity (15.01)
• Common challenges faced (18.24)
• ROI in the public sector and charity sector (22.32)

This is episode 58 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening. 

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

All rights reserved.   

Having explored the importance of building commercial foundations for our work in episode 52 and getting into the habit of estimating the size of the prize, we now need to think about how we can apply our new commercial understanding.

I think there are 3 key aspects to this:

1. What we do: use value to prioritise our research and analysis activity
2. How we do it: using a commercial context at each stage of our work, and ultimately identifying new value opportunities for our company
3. What we have done: record the value opportunities we have identified and those that have been actioned

To help me explore this topic, I’m joined by Parveen Bdesha, a former Insight consultant at eBay and Insight leader at News UK, and now one of the IMA’s professional Insight advisers.

Please listen to find out more!

Topics Discussed

• Using commercial thinking to prioritise Insight projects (2.17)
• Identifying commercial opportunities for our companies (4.45)
• Recording the value we have uncovered (7.39)
• The importance of commercial champions in Insight (8.42)
• Parveen Bdesha’s experience working on a strategy for ebay’s fashion vertical (10.06)
• The insight behind the launch of Times Radio (15.59)
• Finding proxies for Insight ROI (18.57)

This is episode 57 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

You won’t want to miss this! So please subscribe - and thank you for listening. 

About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

All rights reserved.   

In this episode, we examine the evolution of Google's approach to insights and prioritization, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Laura sheds light on how AI is being integrated into Google's processes, balancing immediate business needs with future requirements. Laura and Roy discuss the iterative process of aligning insights with global and product perspectives, and how AI is scaling insights, speeding up project timelines, and transforming traditional research methodologies.

In the final segments, we dive into the practical applications of AI within Google's Insight teams, including the development of an AI-powered Insights chatbot. This tool enhances desk research and decision-making processes by acting as a central repository for synthesizing answers from various sources. Laura and Roy explore the broader implications of AI adoption, how it could reshape team structures and the evolving landscape of Insight teams.

Topics Discussed

• Insight-Driven Organizations - (00:09) 
• AI Adoption and Insight Prioritization Evolution - (07:32) 
• AI Integration in Insight Teams - (14:06) 
• Evolution of Insight Teams - (25:07) 
• Insight Teams and AI Adoption - (29:48) 

Highlights

• “It wasn't by design, it was, as I think I'm sure most people's journeys take, a kind of windy path. So I actually started in marketing. I worked in music marketing, so quite different to where I am now interesting and analytical and creative force, that was felt like my home”(05:08)
• “We're 20% shooting ahead and thinking about what the business will need but don't realize they need yet, and that's always been quite a good rule of thumb, and that's another thing that's been part of the setup since we started as a team.” (10:27)
• “We have run training sessions and, you know, launches all to our stakeholders as well, and I think we've definitely found that there are some people who lean in harder and use it on a more regular basis, others who kind of would perhaps want us to bring the insights and have the discussion rather than go seek them out themselves, and I think that's kind of an interesting new discovery.” (16:03)
• “So qual at scale, I think is really really interesting. When we wouldn't have been able to interview a thousand people qualitatively and synthesize the output, it's just too much to be able to fathom. So AI techniques allow us to do that and that's fascinating and new that we wouldn't have been able to do before” (20:06)
• “so generative AI is very kind of text-based and at the moment, you know, the language is pretty, pretty good, but I'm assuming it can go even further and also we'll get better. Everybody will get better at writing prompts and how to use it. At the moment, you know there's a big difference between somebody writing a prompt that is, six words long in the way that you might use in a search term, to writing a proper prompt which is actually going to give you really interesting results.” (25:04)
• “I think one of the things that shocked me because I've obviously had the benefit of being agency side and client side I think one of the things that I really missed when I moved to client side was the amount that you get out and about when you're client side. You spend so much time in your company and I don't know if that's particularly healthy. I was so used to seeing different people from the agency side, I'd be in multiple different businesses.” (27:32)

This is episode 56 of the Transforming Insight podcast. 

If you have the ambition to transform your Insight team and the role it plays in your organisation, please tune in to future episodes. Not only will we explore the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams as outlined in the Transforming Insight book, we will also talk to senior corporate Insight leaders, delve into books that have inspired us, and discuss new best practice research carried out with the IMA’s corporate members.

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About James Wycherley, the author of Transforming Insight

James Wycherley was Director of Customer Insight and Analytics at Barclays from 2005 to 2015 when he became Chief Executive of the Insight Management Academy (IMA). A popular keynote speaker and acknowledged expert on Insight leadership, strategy, and communication, he is the author of the book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams, and over 35 IMA publications. He has provided thought leadership in the UK, Western Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, India, and the Middle East, and regularly hosts the IMA’s Insight forums - London, Manchester, UK Online and US Online.

The Insight Management Academy is the world’s leading authority on transforming Insight teams.

Resources: 

If you would like more information on any of the ideas discussed in this episode of the Transforming Insight podcast, please visit www.insight-management.org

Copies of James Wycherley’s book Transforming Insight: the 42 secrets of successful corporate Insight teams can be purchased direct from www.transforming-insight.com

Disclaimer

The Transforming Insight podcast is published by the Insight Management Academy and produced by Zorbiant.

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