Randy Bartlett - A Practitioner’s Guide to Business Analytics

Copyright 2013 by Randy Bartlett. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

ISBN 978-0-07-180760-9

MHID 0-07-180760-8

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Dedicated to Wei Cynthia Huang BartlettWife

&

Patricia Patty Rita Stalzer BartlettMother

(19442005)

Contents

Big Data

Information Technology and Business Analytics

The Need for a Business Analytics Strategy

The Complete Business Analytics Team

Bad News and Good News

PART I The Strategic LandscapeChapters 1 to 6

PART II Statistical QDR: Three Pillars for Best Statistical PracticeChapters 7 to 9

PART III Data CSM: Three Building Blocks for Supporting AnalyticsChapters 10 to 12

Notes

Leadership and Analytics

Specialization

Delegating Decisions

Incentives

The Financial Meltdown of 20072008: Failures in Analytics

Fannie Mae: Next to the Bomb Blast

The Great Pharmaceutical Sales-Force Arms Race by Tom T.J. Scott

Inside the Statistical UndergroundAdjustment Factors for the Pharmaceutical Arms Race by Brian Wynne

Proving GroundsModel Review at The Associates/Citigroup

Predicting Fraud in Accounting: What Analytics-Based Accounting Has Brought to Bare by Hakan Gogtas, Ph.D.

Notes

Combining Industry Knowledge and Business Analytics

Critical Thinking

Act I: Framing the Business Problem

Act II: Executing the Data Analysis

Act III: Interpreting the Results

Act IV: Making Analytics-Based Decisions

Consequences (of Tragedy)

Act V: Reviewing and Preparing for Future Decisions

Plague: Information and Disinformation Overload

Pitfall: Overanalysis

Pitfall: Oversimplification

Syndrome: Deterministic Thinking

Syndrome: Overdependence on Industry Knowledge

Pitfall: Tunnel Thinking

Syndrome: Overconfident Fool Syndrome

Pitfall: Unpiloted Big Bang Launches

Notes

Left BrainRight Brain Cultural ClashEnter the Scientific Method

Denying the Serendipity of Statistics

Denying the SourcePlagiarism

Catalysts and Change

Two-Trick Pony

Cultural Imbalance

The Gemini Myths

Notes

Business QuantsDenizens of the Deep

Analytics Power Users

Business Analysts

Knowledge Workers

Integration Synergies

Technical Connectivity

Specialization

Teamwork

Technical Compatibility

Leadership and Management Skills

Business Savvy

Communication Skills

Training and Experience

On-Topic Leadership by Charlotte Sibley

Expert Leaders (ELs)Corporate Trump Cards

The Blood-Brain Barrier

Advantages of On-Topic Business Analytics Leaders

Management Types by David Young

Outsourcing Analytics

Dispersed or Local Groups

Central or Enterprise-Wide Groups

Hybrid: Outside + Local + Enterprise-Wide

Notes

Approach for Identifying Gaps in Analytics

Strategy

Protecting Intellectual Property

Process Mapping of Analytics Needs

Innovation: Identifying New Killer Apps

Scrutinizing the Inventory

Assigning Rigor and Deducing Resources

Leading and Organizing

Progress in Acculturating Analytics

Evaluating Decision-Making Capabilities

Evaluating Technical Coverage

Executing Best Statistical Practice

Constructing Effective Building Blocks

Business Analytics Maturity Model

Emphasis on Speed

Continual Improvement

Accelerating the OffenseFor Those Who Are Struggling

Notes

Blind Mans Russian Roulette Bluff

Leadership

Communication

Leadership and Communication Training

Statistical Mythodologies

The Benefits of Training

Academic Training

Post-Academic TrainingBest Statistical Practice

Training Through Review

The PSTAT (ASA) (Professional Statistician) ASAs New Accreditation by Ronald L. Wasserstein, Ph.D.

Professionalism

Notes

The Model Overfitting Problem

External Numbers

Juxtaposing Results

Data Splitting (Cross-Validation)

Resampling Techniques with Replacement

Standard Errors for Model-Based Group Differences: Bootstrapping to the Rescue by James W. Hardin, Ph.D.

Simulation/Stress Testing

Tools for Performance Measurement

Tests for Statistical Assumptions