They are important. Yet, with unfailing regularity, Analytics Projects fail to reach their potential. If there is so much promise, why is there so little realization of that potential?
I have been thinking of this for a very, very long time now. The views here are entirely personal.
- User Behavior Led Delivery
Here's the thing: Not everyone consumes Analytics the same way. Some people love Infographics, some others like creative visualizations, some others love DIY slice and dice capability, and some others just want the bullet points on their blackberry. If you want users to use analytics, we have to make it easy for them to do it - by enabling consumption in a format of their choice.
When we do requirement gathering discussions around Analytics Projects, we talk about KPIs, we talk about modules, data sets.
We need to identify key users, and then ask them, "How do you normally like to see data? On a financial site, do you see the graphs, or do you prefer to read the tables? Do you look at infographics in a newspaper, or do you read the story? Do you want your business critical information in 5 bullet points when you start for work, or do you like to do your own slice and dice?" Previous patterns of usage will predict preferred mode of consumption way better than "Demo and Ask". We should focus on existing patterns of use and predict from there.
- Adoption, not Implementation as Closure Criteria
The success of any technology product is not in its implementation. It is in adoption. Budgets drive implementation. Adoption drives RoI. As CFOs become more important parts of the IT equation in organisations, questions around RoI are bound to appear. The IT teams and business teams can only prepare for those questions in one way - by planning for RoI ab initio, instead of retro fitting numbers or perceived business benefits. We start an Analytics Project with needs analysis, and we close it with Adoption. Not Implementation. In Agile, there is a concept called "Done Done". We are not "Done Done" until we are actually doing things differently.
- Flexibility and Mutual Respect
There is one thing I have learnt the hard way. That awesome phrase "Single Version of Truth" that business leaders love? Its also the phrase that business execution teams dread. Business is dynamic. Very, very dynamic. Usually, while reporting, there are last minute changes that need to be made to make the report accurate. Not because the system transactions have been inaccurately recorded, but because there is a lag time to things, and a lead time, that simply cannot be captured in the system. Its real. Its not everywhere, but its real.
While doing the implementation, identify these "dynamic" spots and plan for them. Also, please make an effort to assure the team that the management is aware of this dynamism and respects it. That way, you will get a lot more acceptance from the execution / data generation team. That acceptance is vital to the future accuracy of the Dashboard numbers.
This article is contributed by Nidhi Arora, Co-Founder and Director at Topgain Consulting Pvt. Ltd.
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