Watson Analytics at IBM World of Watson Conference

When I say IBM, you say … cutting edge machine learning? When they sponsored my trip to the 2016 World of Watson conference as a perk of my involvement in the IBM Predictioneers Social Influencer Program, I wasn’t totally sure what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised with how advanced Watson and Watson Analytics

Analytics Jobs at Startups and How to Find Them

Since I started mentoring with Springboard, I’ve been reflecting on how the students might go about finding analytics jobs, and what exactly someone means when they say that they want to find a job with a startup. “Startup” means many things to many people. How big is too big to be considered a startup? There’s

Lean Analytics: The one metric that matters

In a data-driven organization, setting metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) help drive your business forward. While knowing various metrics about your business can help you in different ways, I’m a big proponent of the Lean Analytics concept of One Metric That Matters (OMTM). A savvy entrepreneur (and hopefully, the entire team) will know at

Quick Hits: The Hard Thing About Hard Things – War and Peace in Business

The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers There are a bunch of business books that I want to read – and this one’s been on my list for a while, but they’re relatively expensive. But, I rediscovered the library! So I can read it for free. While

Data driven decisions – 4 ways an analyst can help

As the data person at a small, data-driven company, you can get roped in to measuring things in fields that aren’t your speciality. Sales, marketing, content, UX / product, growth, finance, and more all have measurable aspects that you might be called upon to analyze. This is great for you and the company, since you

5 Presentation Tips for Data Analysts – Data Storytelling

When you’re working in analytics, telling a story can be as important as the actual data behind it. Your analytical insights are only as good as the actions that you can take from them, and persuasive presentations are at the core of convincing business people to act. I realize that sounds cliche, but it’s true.

What’s It Like Working at a Startup? It’s a Roller Coaster.

What’s it like working at a startup? My answer – it’s a roller coaster. Sometimes it’s amazing. Sometimes, it sucks. If you think that a startup is where you want to work (or even moreso, if you think you want to found one) I hope you’re ready. Things in the business change day to day

When you fail to manage expectations on a freelance contract…

Not every contract you have is going to go perfectly – even if you deliver what you promised. In August, I had my first freelance contract that I consider a failure. The client ended work early, and wasn’t satisfied. I’ve spent a while reflecting to see what I can learn from the experience. Goal: Increase