Building Analytics Teams: Harnessing analytics and artificial intelligence for business improvement - Softcover

Thompson, John K.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1800203160 ISBN 13: 9781800203167

Publisher: Packt Publishing, 2020

Synopsis

Master the skills necessary to hire and manage a team of highly skilled individuals to design, build, and implement applications and systems based on advanced analytics and AI

Key Features

• Learn to create an operationally effective advanced analytics team in a corporate environment
• Select and undertake projects that have a high probability of success and deliver the improved top and bottom-line results
• Understand how to create relationships with executives, senior managers, peers, and subject matter experts that lead to team collaboration, increased funding, and long-term success for you and your team

Book Description

In Building Analytics Teams, John K. Thompson, with his 30+ years of experience and expertise, illustrates the fundamental concepts of building and managing a high-performance analytics team, including what to do, who to hire, projects to undertake, and what to avoid in the journey of building an analytically sound team. The core processes in creating an effective analytics team and the importance of the business decision-making life cycle are explored to help achieve initial and sustainable success.

The book demonstrates the various traits of a successful and high-performing analytics team and then delineates the path to achieve this with insights on the mindset, advanced analytics models, and predictions based on data analytics. It also emphasizes the significance of the macro and micro processes required to evolve in response to rapidly changing business needs.

The book dives into the methods and practices of managing, developing, and leading an analytics team. Once you've brought the team up to speed, the book explains how to govern executive expectations and select winning projects.

By the end of this book, you will have acquired the knowledge to create an effective business analytics team and develop a production environment that delivers ongoing operational improvements for your organization.

What you will learn

• Avoid organizational and technological pitfalls of moving from a defined project to a production environment
• Enable team members to focus on higher-value work and tasks
• Build Advanced Analytics and Artificial Intelligence (AA&AI) functions in an organization
• Outsource certain projects to competent and capable third parties
• Support the operational areas that intend to invest in business intelligence, descriptive statistics, and small-scale predictive analytics
• Analyze the operational area, the processes, the data, and the organizational resistance

Who this book is for

This book is for senior executives, senior and junior managers, and those who are working as part of a team that is accountable for designing, building, delivering and ensuring business success through advanced analytics and artificial intelligence systems and applications. At least 5 to 10 years of experience in driving your organization to a higher level of efficiency will be helpful.

Table of Contents

1. An Overview of Successful and High-Performing Analytics Teams
2. Building an Analytics Team
3. Managing and Growing an Analytics Team
4. Leadership for Analytics Teams
5. Managing Executive Expectations
6. Ensuring Engagement with Business Professionals
7. Selecting Winning Projects
8. Operationalizing Analytics - How to Move from Projects to Production
9. Managing the New Analytical Ecosystem
10. The Future of Analytics - What Will We See Next?

About this title

About the Author

John K. Thompson is an international technology executive with over 30 years of experience in the business intelligence and advanced analytics fields. Currently, John is responsible for the global Advanced Analytics and Artificial Intelligence team and efforts at CSL Behring.

Prior to CSL, John was an Executive Partner at Gartner, where he was a management consultant for market-leading companies in the areas of digital transformation, data monetization, and advanced analytics. Before Gartner, John was responsible for the advanced analytics business unit of the Dell Software Group.

John is co-author of the bestselling book Analytics: How to Win with Intelligence, which debuted on Amazon as the #1 new book in Analytics in 2017. Analytics: How to Win with Intelligence is a book that guides non-technical executives through the journey of building an analytics team, funding initiatives, and driving change in business operations through data and applied analytical applications.

From the Back Cover

"Successful analytics require a multifaceted set of tasks in a well-managed process, and Thompson knows how to make it work. His deep experience comes through on every page." --Thomas H. Davenport, Distinguished Professor, Babson College and Research Fellow, MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy, Author of Competing on Analytics and The AI Advantage

"John's deep expertise and real-world experience adds depth to this excellent book. The focus on best practices is essential to the success of leaders in advanced analytics." --Judith Hurwitz, President & CEO Hurwitz & Associates

"John's book is the most detailed, real-world "roadmap" I've read for organizations that want to become analytics-driven." --Bill Schmarzo, Chief Innovation Officer, Hitachi Ventara

"With this book, executive leaders and analytics teams will be guided to develop sustained, strategic, and even revolutionary advantage from massive data flows through Advanced Analytics and AI centers of excellence." --Kirk Borne, Principal Data Scientist, Data Science Fellow, and Executive Advisor at Booz Allen Hamilton

John K. Thompson, with his 30+ years of experience and expertise, illustrates the fundamental concepts of building and managing a high performance analytics team, including what to do, who to hire, projects to undertake, and what to avoid in the journey of building an analytically sound team. The core processes in creating an effective analytics team and the importance of the business decision-making lifecycle are explored to help achieve initial and sustainable success.

The book demonstrates the various traits of a successful and high-performing analytics team and then delineates the path to achieve this with insights on the mindset, advanced analytics models, and predictions based on data analytics. It also emphasizes the significance of the macro and micro processes required to evolve in response to rapidly changing business needs.

The book dives into the methods and practices of managing, developing, and leading an analytics team. Once you've brought the team up to speed, the book explains how to govern executive expectations and select winning projects.

By the end of this book, you will have acquired the knowledge to create an effective business analytics team and develop a production environment that delivers ongoing operational improvements for your organization.

From the Inside Flap

This book is intended for senior executives, senior and junior managers, and those that are working as part of a team that is accountable for designing, building, delivering and ensuring business (functional and operational) success through advanced analytics and artificial intelligence systems, models and applications.
One of the primary objectives of this book is to illustrate all relevant operational aspects of a successful advanced analytics team in a corporate environment. The book provides guidance in the process of investing in and building and managing an analytics team, leadership,technology and related corporate functions.
The experience and expertise of the author through 33+ years of involvement in the field is used to demonstrate what do to and what to avoid in the journey of transforming a business and individual functions through data, advanced analytics, artificial intelligence,simulation, and optimization.
After reading the book,executives, managers and advanced analytics team members will be able to -secure the appropriate executive sponsorship and support, sufficient funding, create an effective advanced analytics team, select projects that have a high probability of success, undertake those projects and be aware of, and avoid,the organizational and technological pitfalls of moving from a defined project to a production environment that delivers on-going operational improvements on a daily basis.

Edition details

• Publisher: Packt Publishing
• Publication date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1800203160
• ISBN 13: 9781800203167
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 394