Data and Decisions - How much they have to be related ?
“If executives need lots of data before they feel comfortable making a
decision, chances are they will not act until it is way too late. Don’t
get me wrong, data are extremely valuable. It’s just that, if we insist
on too much data, we will often miss significant changes on the
horizon. This isn’t just about analysis paralysis; it’s much more
insidious.
(snip)
… To avoid being blind-sided, we need to pay
equal attention to stories and train ourselves to detect patterns in
the stories, even if the data supporting the stories remains
fragmentary. Stories are generally our first indicators that something
really interesting is about to happen; something that data will only
reveal to us in full force much, much later.”
–John Hagel,
writing on what he calls “the greatest obstacles standing in the way of
executives as they seek to create and capture more value for their
stakeholders.”
(via Susan)
