HBR Guide to Data Analytics Basics for Managers (HBR Guide Series)

Most data comes in fragments. To be useful, these individual bits of information need to be put together into a coherent explanation of the business situation, which means integrating data into a “story.”

Most data comes in fragments. To be useful, these individual bits of information need to be put together into a coherent explanation of the business situation, which means integrating data into a “story.”

you need to combine the science of analytics with the art of intuition. Be a manager who knows the geeks, understands their formulas, helps improve their analytic processes, effectively interprets and communicates the findings to others, and makes better decisions as a result

Framing a problem—identifying it and understanding how others might have solved it in the past—is the most important stage of the analytical process for a consumer of big data

quants and the consumers of their data get much better results if they form deep, trusting ties that allow them to exchange information and ideas freely

When using big data to make big decisions, non-quants should focus on the first and the last steps of the process. The numbers people typically handle the details in the middle, but wise non-quants ask lots of questions along the way

“All models are wrong, but some are useful.”

every analytical model is built on assumptions that producers ought to explain and defend

We live in an era of big data. Whether you work in financial services, consumer goods, travel and transportation, or industrial products, analytics are becoming a competitive necessity for your organization

Data-driven decisions won’t come easily. But by understanding the basics of data analytics, you’ll be able to ask the right questions of data to pull the most useful information out of the numbers