Building an analytics team or a center of excellence

No fewer than four companies in Toronto looking to build analytics departments. I’m excited for them.

A few points of advice as they move forward:

• If you don’t like the truth, you’re not going to like analytics.

• Effective analytics is disruptive and prompts change.

• If you’re not open to changing, then there’s no point in being smarter. You’re better off being dumb.

• You’ll hit a trough of disillusionment, usually because too many of the wrong people in the organization are looking for too many of the wrong numbers, getting too frustrated that nothing is telling them anything (that they want to hear or see), and that there isn’t a transformation.

• Some organizations never get out of that trough and give up. Plan for that and don’t give up.

I wish them all the best and the luck as they try.