BI tools change by the minute, so have you ever considered outsourcing your data visualization needs in the future? Maybe you should, especially if you don’t have proper in-house skill sets. Don’t risk your reputation because users can’t unsee a bad data visualization.

Today’s guest is long-term BI Brainz customer Mustafa Mustafa, senior director of IT at Ferrara Candy Company. Mustafa transformed Ferrara Candy into a forward-thinking and innovative company. He discusses the pros and cons of outsourcing data visualization by choosing the right partners.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• [04:13] Key Quote: Users cannot unsee a bad data visualization. - Mico Yuk
• [11:20] Mustafa’s background in learning Mico's BI Framework and dashboard strategies.
• [20:45] Should data visualization be outsourced? Consider customer cases and challenges, such as communication, common sense, and strategy to share information.
• For full show notes, and the links mentioned visit: https://bibrainz.com/podcast/40

Sponsor

This exciting season of AOF is sponsored by our BI Data Storytelling Mastery Accelerator 3-Day Live workshop. Our second one is coming up on Jan 28-30 and registration is open! Join us and consider upgrading to be a VIP (we have tons of bonuses planned). Many BI teams are still struggling to deliver consistent, high-engaging analytics their users love. At the end of three days, you'll leave with the tools, techniques, and resources you need to engage your users. Register today!

Enjoyed the Show? 

Please leave us a review on iTunes.

When it comes to effective presentations and engaging an audience, what questions should you ask to tell your story about data? It’s time to take action and learn!

Nancy Duarte joins me as today’s guest to discuss her new book, DataStory: Explain Data and Inspire Action Through Story. Some of you may already know Nancy from her 2012 TED Talk titled, The Secret Structure of Great Talks.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• [08:10] Inspiration behind DataStory: Normal people need help with data, too.
• [09:10] Key Quote: Data had been slowing us down, instead of speeding us up. We didn’t have a mechanism to communicate data - Nancy Duarte
• [09:27] Key Quote: Data is becoming a very common communication language that didn’t have a real clear wrapper around it about how to frame it.- Nancy Duarte
• For full show notes, his book give away, and the links mentioned visit: https://bibrainz.com/podcast/39

Sponsor

The next BI Data Storytelling Mastery Accelerator 3-Day Live workshop will be held in January 2020. Many BI teams are still struggling to deliver consistent, high-engaging analytics their users love. At the end of three days, you’ll leave with a clear BI delivery action plan. Register today!

Do you know what skill sets you're going to need in the next three years to stay relevant in the BI (business intelligence) industry? Don’t wait for the BI bubble to pop!

When I met Jen Underwood, she was one of Microsoft’s first Power BI product managers and an undeniable voice of reason in the BI industry through her blogs and other insightful posts online. I always admired her technical aptitude and was not surprised that she went on to work at cool startups like DataRobot and now Aible. In this exciting episode, Jen breaks down what you need to know and do to be viable and relevant in the BI market in 2020 and beyond! Let's just say, it's definitely not what you're doing today. Tune in, and level up!

In this episode, you'll learn:

• [02:58] Jen’s CV: Marketing degree and love for data leads to 20+ years in BI industry.
• [05:17] Key Quote: I knew that I fell in love with programming and all that. But I didn’t have the patience to extend my college years. - Jen Underwood
• [06:41] Fear of Failure: Jen’s only option was to succeed during her homeless period.
• For full show notes, his book give away, and the links mentioned visit: https://bibrainz.com/podcast/38

Sponsor

This exciting season of AOF is sponsored by our BI Data Storytelling Mastery Accelerator 3-Day Live workshop. Our second one is coming up on Jan 28-30 and registration is open! Join us and consider upgrading to be a VIP (we have tons of bonuses planned). Many BI teams are still struggling to deliver consistent, high-engaging analytics their users love. At the end of three days, you'll leave with the tools, techniques, and resources you need to engage your users. Register today!

Enjoyed the Show? 

Please leave us a review on iTunes.

What problems do you have with key performance indicators (KPIs)? Are they actionable or not? How do you measure them?

Today, I’m sharing a session that I did that was rated #1 at the Real Business Intelligence event at MIT back in 2017. It's called "Secrets to building actionable KPIs". Specifically, I discuss three of the more well-known and commonly used methods: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timebound (SMART) Goals, Wildly Important Goals (WIGs), and Objectives and Key Results (OKRs).

In this episode, you'll learn:

• [02:19] Are KPIs and metrics the same? Do you track KPIs? Metrics? Core competencies?
• [02:44] Key Quote: Living in KPI land, there’s a lot of measurements, but you discover that not all measurements are created equal. - Mico Yuk
• [04:02] KPI Problem #1: Too many KPIs; focus on tracking 3-5, no more than 10.
• For full show notes, his book give away, and the links mentioned visit: https://bibrainz.com/podcast/37

Sponsor

This exciting season of AoF is sponsored by our BI Data Storytelling Mastery Accelerator 3-Day Live workshop. Our next workshop on January 28-30, 2020 is now open for registration at a special early bird rate! Consider upgrading to the VIP option for extras including access to our online course. Many BI teams are still struggling to deliver consistent, high-engaging analytics their users love. At the end of three days, you’ll leave with a clear BI delivery action plan. Register today!

Enjoyed the Show? 

Please leave us a review on iTunes.

Today’s guest is the talented and intelligent Lillian Pierson. Lillian is a Data Science Instagram rock star with 600K+ followers across social media. Currently, she is the data science instructor for multiple courses on LinkedIn Learning, as well as an author, entrepreneur, coach and social media genius.

In this new BI Masterclass, Lillian is going to teach you how to build a solid enterprise-wide data strategy that scales. Stay tuned to get Lillian’s best tips for social media, data strategies, and collecting data for use cases

In this episode, you'll learn:

• [10:07] The definition of enterprise-wide data strategy and who it is for
• [11:35] Lillian’s “Aha” moment and her two different types of clients
• [13:21] Key Quote: “What is the point of all this big data talk? The point is that they generate business value from that new knowledge.” - Lillian Pierson
• For full show notes, his book give away, and the links mentioned visit: https://bibrainz.com/podcast/36

Sponsor

This exciting season of AOF is sponsored by our BI Data Storytelling Mastery Accelerator 3-Day Live workshop. Our second one is coming up on Jan 28-30 and registration is open!  At the end of three days, you'll leave with the tools, techniques, and resources you need to engage your users. Register today!

Enjoyed the Show? 

Please leave us a review on iTunes

Today’s guest is no stranger to most of you. Ryan Goodman is a BI rock star and my former AoF co-host. Currently, he’s the Head of Analytics at a super cool startup turned ongoing profitable and growing financial services company.

Ryan’s going to teach us how to create an analytics playbook using the BI Dashboard Formula (BIDF) methodology. An analytics strategy playbook encapsulates and executes all the elements of people, technology, and process. Stay tuned to get Ryan’s playbook template!

In this episode, you'll learn:

• [06:40] BI Whisperer: Bridging the gap between technology and business analysts.
• [08:20] Disconnecting from being a business owner back into driving customer analytics.
• [09:16] Key Quote: Everyone is data driven...what that means, and what it should mean. - Ryan Goodman
• For full show notes, his book give away, and the links mentioned visit: https://bibrainz.com/podcast/35

Sponsor

This exciting season of AOF is sponsored by our BI Data Storytelling Mastery Accelerator 3-Day Live workshop. Our second one is coming up on Jan 28-30 and registration is open! Join us and consider upgrading to be a VIP (we have tons of bonuses planned). Many BI teams are still struggling to deliver consistent, high-engaging analytics their users love. At the end of three days, you'll leave with the tools, techniques, and resources you need to engage your users. Register today!

Enjoyed the Show? 

Please leave us a review on iTunes.

Guess what? I missed you! After focusing on making our first BI Data Storytelling Accelerator - 3-day live workshop a major success, I’m back! Registration is now open for the next workshop on January 28-30, 2020. It’s the hottest thing since fried rice!

Today, I talk to the amazing Alberto Cairo, author of How Charts Lie. He’s an AoF alumni, who was on my very first AoF podcast episode where we were the first to announce The Functional Art (one of the most well-known books in our industry). Stay tuned to the end for an insane book giveaway you won’t find anywhere else!

In this episode, you'll learn:

• [12:00] Learn why Alberto warns: “Be aware of what some people call the Curse of Knowledge.”
• [19:11] Key Quote: A visualization can only be worth a 1,000 words if we know how to read it. - Alberto Cairo
• [21:41] Key ways to overcome biases: Steps to read a visual. Read the title, message, and patterns
• For full show notes, his book give away, and the links mentioned visit: https://bibrainz.com/podcast/34

Sponsor

This exciting season of AOF is sponsored by our BI Data Storytelling Mastery Accelerator 3-Day Live workshop. Our second one is coming up on Jan 28-30 and registration is open! Join us and consider upgrading to be a VIP (we have tons of bonuses planned). Many BI teams are still struggling to deliver consistent, high-engaging analytics their users love. At the end of three days, you'll leave with the tools, techniques, and resources you need to engage your users. Register today!

Enjoyed the Show? 

Please leave us a review on iTunes.

How can one of my students go from a BI startup to a Big five acquisition? By using our BI Dashboard Formula (BIDF) methodology.

This week, I’m talking to Andrew Mackay, co-founder of former Dubai based BI startup Team base, now director of digital services at PwC Middle East. I met Andrew six years ago when he registered for our online BI Dashboard Formula methodology online course, as he was seeking to differentiate his BI offerings in the middle east. This inspiring conversation outlines both his reasons for using BIDF, how he operationalized it and how it led to his recent acquisition by PwC. There is so much to be learned from his focus and use of the BIDF methodology! Enjoy!

What did you think of my very first solo podcast? If you haven’t listened to it yet, go to Analytics on Fire - 31: My Top BI User Adoption Hacks (Part 1).

Today is Part 2, where I wrap up my list of top BI User Adoption hacks to help you be successful. Use adoption is the only KPI that BI teams should be focused on IMO. Enjoy and I'd love your feedback!

I’m so nervous that my armpits are sweating! But I’m trying something new and different. Solo podcasts focused on topics that you voted you need help with. 

Today’s topic is, My Top 10 BI User Adoption Hacks (Part 1). User adoption is a problem that most BI teams experience regardless of how great our dashboards perform or look, so I created a checklist of items that should evoke action.