Any good reporting/analytics team in a company must have a foundation.  Whether the reporting/analytics team is in Marketing, Sales, Finance, or Customer Service, documentation is the foundation by which companies operate and communicate.

Without documentation there is no:

• foundation to build reports
• no defnition of data
• no way of effectively communicating concepts
• evolution of data understanding
• reporting

For each employee working at a company, we have a responsibility to maintain documentation.  When the Business Systems team comes knocking with their questions of how your part of the business operates, you will be ready.

If you are presenting sales figures to the executive team, you NEED to have an understanding of what your figures include and don't include.  It is your responsibility to understand your part of the business.

Even the janitor requires documentation.  What's the sequence to cleaning the offices, how often do the desks and keyboards get wiped down, to how often they need to order toilet paper, maintaining an office for busy employees depends on documentation!

So, where is YOU documentation?

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

via aricintraining.com

The second installment of a series discussing metrics pertinent for a triathlon training dashboard. In this installment, we answer the question, "Is the athlete investing enough time each day to achieve their goals?"

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

As a Founder of a new start-up, I am faced with creating a business for the 21st Century.  For the last 100 years, businesses have evolved with technology (Salesforce).  Those that have not, get hacked away until they tumble (Borders). 

So, as I launch my own LLC, I must take note of what will carry my company through to the 22nd century.  Here are some ideas:

• Customer Centric - the product is all about helping the customer solve a challenge long before they even knew they were challenged.  The product responds to the customer.
• Data belongs to the customer - Unlike some social media sites that consume data and resell it, I firmly believe that the owner of the data is the individual that inputs it.  By delivering totally custom access to their data where and when they want it, I will empower my customer.
• Social - Everyone and everything must be connected in some way. Allow the customer to create public and private groups and interact in real time however they choose. 
• Ease of use - Make it just so simple to use, they have no other choice.  
• Consumer to Business Communication - Make it darn easy for customers to submit feedback and interact with employees.  From surveys to conferences, leverage every opportunity to be in contact with not just customers, but consumers in general. 

These are just some of things that a 21st century business MUST DO.  As a customer or a business owner, what other things should successful businesses do?  

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Reflecting back on my career I can appreciate the value of a customer centric organization. Not only are customer centric organizations aligned around the customer, but they typically embolden the employee with value and the ability to make decisions.

Successful organizations are those that embrace business as an ongoing conversation that involves customers, employees and a larger ecosystem. Think of successful business as a conference room where management sits at the head of the table, customers on one side and employees on the other. The dialog must be chaperoned by all parties with listening and development of dialog constantly at the core. The ecosystem enters from time to time in the form of external speakers who discuss larger topics pertinent to the business.

Sure the conference room changes over time as do the players, but the conversation must always be ongoing and open. It is like being on a trip and exploring local establishments including restaurants, shops, and even people's homes.  It is a journey of collaboration, communication and life.

Is your customer experience a journey?

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

via bonkersworld.net

What a great way to illustrate the structure of companies. Some are clean like Amazon and others are complicated and busy like Google.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Just like water entering a sink and then finding its way down the drain, your *aaS (SaaS, IaaS, PaaS) business will likely always have customers leaving and sales coming in.

While it doesn't really matter too much (at least in the context of this post) whether water coming out of the faucet at high rate or low rate, what does matter is the size of the leak at the bottom... the water going out.

First of all, is the drain wide open?  If it is, your company is doing more to drive customers away than you are to acquire them.  Figure out an effective customer insights strategy and close that drain! Setup effective surveys, reporting, and a churn action committee to address the reasons why your customers are leaving.

The drain will leak. No matter what you do, you will always have a customer cancel due to death or other reasons outside your control.  Do you know how much your sink leaks?  Again an effective system of capturing data and listening to customers is important.

But, you can go one step further by simply investing in a dedicated analytics team.  Let them model churn and build predict future customers who are likely to churn. During this process, they will identify the key drivers of churn and the company can then build a proactive strategy to engaging and saving the customers that prevent your growth.

Before you know it, that sink is a little small for the water you've collected, so you have to upgrade to a bigger sink.  Just make sure you don't buy a bigger drain with it.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Life would be boring without bullies around to kick you ass!  Think about it, without bullies, gnarly goals, and other pain points, we would not:

1. Be lifted outside our comfort zone and grow into a different person
2. See the crap that we typically avoid
3. Learn from the experience

Speaking from personal experience from a recent meeting where some ass got kicked, it is a brilliant thing.  It really makes you take a step back and think about how you got into the ass kicked position in the first place.  But in the end, a good old ass kicking is a huge learning experience.  I almost look forward to the next one!

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

KISS = Keep It Simple Stupid

Complex things overwhelm.  Simple things are easy and build confidence. 

So why not take complex things and break them down into many easy simple things?

Losing weight isn't about one big thing.  Its about a number of small things that lead to the big thing, weight loss.

You don't replace a transmission in one big motion. You take a series of smaller steps to remove the transmission and then reinstall it.

You don't build a successful business overnight, you build a team, design a product, create a website, and build the business one step at a time.

KISS

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

via japanquakemap.com

I came across this on Reddit and can't believe how many quakes Japan has endured since last Friday. I am speechless...

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

via weatherspark.com

Came across this awesome new weather forecasting site that really lets the visualization geek get intimate with the weather forecast. WeatherSpark is in beta and uses historical weather to predict the weather going forward, offering not only a map, but charts to boot! Check it out.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Likewise, some of the smartest people I know do not give immediate answers.  Following the question being asked is a pause before they say anything.  The pause is not long, but you can tell by the quality of the answer that they took a moment to gather the words that increase the quality of the meeting and add tremendous value.

The next time you are in a meeting and asked a question, what are you going to do?  Blurt out a reaction or take the time to think, adding value?

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

via noteslate.com

Not sure if this really has a market, but it is a really intriguing concept. Sorta like Penultimate (http://www.cocoabox.com/) for iPad, but without the iPad cost.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

via ampercent.com

Interesting Infographic with a number of take aways. I really think this infographic could have been better laid out as it has too many lines, circles and the font is hard to read.

Still though:
1) Twitter is a better platform for getting brand followers to purchase.
2) Facebook users tend to be younger, the older Twitter users make less money.
3) Nearly half of Twitter users are in college.

Looking at these three points, I wonder if Twitter and Facebook profiles are reversed. I thought Facebook was the preferred college platform.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Respect is a powerful thing.  Yet, you don't get it just be showing up.  You get it by delivering a positive experience, by showing up consistently on time, and by speaking from the heart.

Sure, you can build through power, through coersion, and through bate and switch, but that building will come tumbling down.  Building with something other than respect is a doomed short-term strategy.  As soon as your competition or a new player comes on scene who is building respect, your base will erode quickly. 

Build with respect.  Offer a product or service with integrity, deliver with honor, and stand behind every word. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Visited the Coronado Butterfly Preserve on Saturday.  What an amazing experience seeing so many Monarch Butterflies in one place.

Check out a short video on Vimeo: http://www.vimeo.com/18894985

Also, take a look at my set on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/aricrmh/sets/72157625723158481/

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

For the weak at heart, early morning runs during the winter are often off the table.  It takes a certain kind of soul to brave the cold weather at an early hour and run your ass off.

But, for the strong at heart, early morning runs have a payoff.  See the pic below:

To get up and welcome the sun in such a beatiful paradise is the only way to start the day.

Cheers!

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Happy New Year!

It is with great pleasure that I say farewell to 2010 and greet 2011 with open arms.

2010 was a very exciting year for me:

1) I finished 5 sprint triathlons! Read more at http://aricintraining.com

2) I set the foundation for my triathlon training dashboard. More to come later.

3) I survived a near death experience thanks to being stung by a bee while riding my bike!

4) I am the author of one of the top not for profit flight simulator blogs in the world. Check it out: http://arealityofmyown.wordpress.com

5) I learned the value of what it means to be honest and sincere in a good friendship.

6) I was able to help a leading cloud computing company understand their business better with some creative analytics and visualizations.

7) learned that I still have a lot to learn.

8) Universal Studios Hollywood is a much smaller park than I expected.

9) I learned how wonderful it feels to have someone by your side through thick and thin.

10) I know that for all the wonderful changes that occurred during 2010, I know 2011 will have many more to come.

11) Learned that there is never a perfect answer to anything.

Overall, I think 2010 was a year of challenges that truly tested my devotion to achieving my goals. I know that I will only achieve them if I am consistent with my perseverance.

Cheers to an awesome 2011!

Permalink | Leave a comment  »