Internal or external people for an analytics team?

1. The Hub and Spoke Model
Internal or external people
for an analytics team?
Alban Gérôme
@albangerome
MeasureCamp Amsterdam
21 April 2018

3. Single version of the truth

4. Single version of the truth
• The company implemented analytics as a self-serve solution

5. Single version of the truth
• The company implemented analytics as a self-serve solution
• Soon after two managers compare analytics data and their
data does not match

6. Single version of the truth
• The company implemented analytics as a self-serve solution
• Soon after two managers compare analytics data and their
data does not match
• The company decides to create an analytics team to provider
a single version of the truth

8. Internal only

9. Internal only
• Early attempts were found as too disconnected from the business
reality to make any significant impact

10. Internal only
• Early attempts were found as too disconnected from the business
reality to make any significant impact
• Analytics vendors made a point that their solutions were easy enough
to operate by internal staff

11. Internal only
• Early attempts were found as too disconnected from the business
reality to make any significant impact
• Analytics vendors made a point that their solutions were easy enough
to operate by internal staff. A dedicated team would become experts

12. Internal only
• Early attempts were found as too disconnected from the business
reality to make any significant impact
• Analytics vendors made a point that their solutions were easy enough
to operate by internal staff. A dedicated team would become experts
• The analytics tool is harder to learn than initially advertised and
requires training

14. External hires

15. External hires
• The team manager has no analytics experience but has been in the
company

16. External hires
• The team manager has no analytics experience but has been in the
company or that field for several years

17. External hires
• The team manager has no analytics experience but has been in the
company or that field for several years
• External hires are

18. External hires
• The team manager has no analytics experience but has been in the
company or that field for several years
• External hires are
• Rare

19. External hires
• The team manager has no analytics experience but has been in the
company or that field for several years
• External hires are
• Rare
• Expensive

20. External hires
• The team manager has no analytics experience but has been in the
company or that field for several years
• External hires are
• Rare
• Expensive
• Hard to retain

22. Internal or External?

23. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals

24. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals
• Strong internal network

25. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals
• Strong internal network
• Cheaper

26. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals
• Strong internal network
• Cheaper
• Easier to retain

27. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals
• Strong internal network
• Cheaper
• Easier to retain
That’s what an Analytics
team from internal
people gives you

28. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals
• Strong internal network
• Cheaper
• Easier to retain
That’s what an Analytics
team from internal
people gives you
• Data-literate

29. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals
• Strong internal network
• Cheaper
• Easier to retain
That’s what an Analytics
team from internal
people gives you
• Data-literate
• Data-driven

30. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals
• Strong internal network
• Cheaper
• Easier to retain
That’s what an Analytics
team from internal
people gives you
• Data-literate
• Data-driven
• Analytics tool experts

31. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals
• Strong internal network
• Cheaper
• Easier to retain
That’s what an Analytics
team from internal
people gives you
• Data-literate
• Data-driven
• Analytics tool experts
• Objectivity

32. Internal or External?
• Aligned with the
business goals
• Strong internal network
• Cheaper
• Easier to retain
That’s what an Analytics
team from internal
people gives you
• Data-literate
• Data-driven
• Analytics tool experts
• Objectivity
That’s what an Analytics
team from external hires
gives you

34. Both internal and external

35. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts

36. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts
• Focused on answering
business questions

37. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts
• Focused on answering
business questions
• Running tests

38. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts
• Focused on answering
business questions
• Running tests
• Making
recommendations

39. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts
• Focused on answering
business questions
• Running tests
• Making
recommendations
That’s the analytics hub

40. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts
• Focused on answering
business questions
• Running tests
• Making
recommendations
That’s the analytics hub
• Internal people promoted
junior part-time analysts

41. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts
• Focused on answering
business questions
• Running tests
• Making
recommendations
That’s the analytics hub
• Internal people promoted
junior part-time analysts
• Monitor the metrics

42. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts
• Focused on answering
business questions
• Running tests
• Making
recommendations
That’s the analytics hub
• Internal people promoted
junior part-time analysts
• Monitor the metrics
• Do the
daily/weekly/monthly
reports

43. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts
• Focused on answering
business questions
• Running tests
• Making
recommendations
That’s the analytics hub
• Internal people promoted
junior part-time analysts
• Monitor the metrics
• Do the
daily/weekly/monthly
reports
• Soundboard for the hub

44. Both internal and external
• A team of external
experts
• Focused on answering
business questions
• Running tests
• Making
recommendations
That’s the analytics hub
• Internal people promoted
junior part-time analysts
• Monitor the metrics
• Do the
daily/weekly/monthly
reports
• Soundboard for the hub
They are the spokes

46. Guardians of data quality?

47. Guardians of data quality?
• A dedicated analytics team can set automated alerts

48. Guardians of data quality?
• A dedicated analytics team can set automated alerts. Anything
beyond this is neither practical nor realistic

49. Guardians of data quality?
• A dedicated analytics team can set automated alerts. Anything
beyond this is neither practical nor realistic
• With a hub and spoke model, the embedded junior analysts can
monitor the relevant subset of metrics for their team

50. Guardians of data quality?
• A dedicated analytics team can set automated alerts. Anything
beyond this is neither practical nor realistic
• With a hub and spoke model, the embedded junior analysts can
monitor the relevant subset of metrics for their team
A major reporting outage will result in several junior analysts reporting
the outage to the hub

51. Guardians of data quality?
• A dedicated analytics team can set automated alerts. Anything
beyond this is neither practical nor realistic
• With a hub and spoke model, the embedded junior analysts can
monitor the relevant subset of metrics for their team
A major reporting outage will result in several junior analysts reporting
the outage to the hub. They are like canaries in the coalmine for the
hub

53. Rotating

54. Rotating
• External hires in the analytics hub lack domain knowledge

55. Rotating
• External hires in the analytics hub lack domain knowledge
• Their recommendations may not align with the business

56. Rotating
• External hires in the analytics hub lack domain knowledge
• Their recommendations may not align with the business
Get the new hires for the analytics hub to spend time in
another team and make them rotate between other teams

58. Skin in the game

59. Skin in the game
• The junior analysts monitor the metrics that impact their team

60. Skin in the game
• The junior analysts monitor the metrics that impact their team, and
inform the hub if they spot any reporting outage or any other issue

61. Skin in the game
• The junior analysts monitor the metrics that impact their team, and
inform the hub if they spot any reporting outage or any other issue
• When the teams realise how much time and little value goes into
their own reporting, they might just become more data-driven

63. Pedalling in row

64. Pedalling in row
• Analytics experts are allowed to be data-driven and provide
actionable insight aligned to the business goal

65. Pedalling in row
• Analytics experts are allowed to be data-driven and provide
actionable insight aligned to the business goal
• The teams needing reporting and engaging in data-cherry picking can
use their own resources to do so and perhaps not for much longer

66. Pedalling in row
• Analytics experts are allowed to be data-driven and provide
actionable insight aligned to the business goal
• The teams needing reporting and engaging in data-cherry picking can
use their own resources to do so and perhaps not for much longer
• Data quality improves, reporting outages get caught faster

67. Pedalling in row
• Analytics experts are allowed to be data-driven and provide
actionable insight aligned to the business goal
• The teams needing reporting and engaging in data-cherry picking can
use their own resources to do so and perhaps not for much longer
• Data quality improves, reporting outages get caught faster
• Data literacy improves in the spokes and spread from there

69. Dankuwel!
http://www.albangerome.com
@albangerome