According to several news reports[1] yesterday, traffic is down at Target due to the recent data breach. Some of this is due to consumer backlash. People are simply mad at Target. They believe that Target did not do a sufficient job of protecting their data. That’s somewhat reasonable. However, there is another group that believes …
Read more “Betting on Target is probably safer than betting in Vegas”
One of the first tasks I had when starting my own business was getting insurance. Having worked in a corporate environment where I had access to great planning resources (including a personal financial advisor), I had a pretty good idea of what I needed. I went to a local agent and told him what I …
With snowy weather hitting most of the country this week, I thought it might be a good time to “dig” this one back out.———————————————————————————————Originally published on December 26, 2009Winter has definitely arrived across the country. People from coast to coast are digging out of some hefty snow.As my dogs and I try to navigate around …
The other day my son and I were walking through the mall. As we rounded a corner, he pointed across the mall and said, “There is a candy store over there.” I said, “OK, thanks for letting me know” and kept walking. I knew that he wasn’t just trying to educate me on the retail …
People often ask me for tips on determining what data to gather and report. My answer is simple. Don’t start with the data. When you start by focusing on the data, you often wind up with too much data or data that don’t really help you make a decision. Instead of thinking about what data …
If you’ve found my content on Rethinking Data helpful, you can now sign up for my Rethinking Data Tip of the Day. I will be posting new tips each day organized around The Eight Rules of Rethinking Data. Sign up by following @rethinkingdata on Twitter or connect with me (Bradley Kolar) on LinkedIn.
Early on, most new, popular trends or ideas face some backlash as people try to work them out and make sense of them. Data and Big Data are no different. Leaders are being pushed to be more data-driven. Some are pushing back as they try to figure out how (or if) they fit into this …
Several years ago I made a recommendation to a client regarding how to design a website. The client’s development team pushed back. They said that they never saw a website built using that approach and that my idea wouldn’t work. Or, if it did work, it would take a lot longer to implement than their …
Read more “Don’t let your expertise get in the way of your understanding”
My neighbors have an interesting note taped inside their mailbox. It reads, “Attention Letter Carrier: Please double check addresses for accuracy.” They didn’t put that note there. Their current mail carrier’s supervisor did. My neighbors had called the post office to complain that they were receiving a lot of other people’s mail. Their problem wasn’t …
Take a look at your newly promoted leaders (or your old leaders for that matter). How many of them have big BUTs? Now wait, before you close this in disgust or forward it to your HR department, read it carefully, I said “BUTs”, not “BUTTs”. We all see leaders or leadership candidates with big BUTs …