Albert Einstein’s famous words, “Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts,” offer a profound insight into the value of data. While the origin of this quote may be debatable, its message resonates with the challenges of the modern era. According to recent studies, the amount of data created in a single minute in 2023 far surpassed the amount of data created during Einstein’s entire life. The question then arises: how can we harness all this data to make better decisions? To that point, in a Forrester survey of more than a thousand US companies, 91% of them said that data-driven decision-making was important to their business, while only 57% said they actually used data to make decisions in their business. In a world where data is abundant, should we not be using it to its full potential? This disparity calls for a critical evaluation of how we approach decision-making and challenges us to consider the implications of not leveraging data to its fullest extent.

How do we bridge this gap? What do KPIs have to do with ROI? How can we move from being in “data denial” to being data driven? Why should IT professionals care about leveraging data to its fullest potential? These are the pressing questions that need answers in today’s world, and this session is ready to deliver. The four V’s of Big Data offer a relevant framework for understanding the magnitude of the data we are dealing with, but what about the cognitive biases that often stand in our way? We’ll explore three types of biases and how they can impede progress and innovation. Are qualitative and quantitative data really opposing forces, or can they work together for greater insight? Let’s capitalize on five best practices for driving business decisions with data, including how to LOOK, LINK, LISTEN, LEVERAGE, and LEARN. Discover how these practices can be a delight instead of a disaster, and ultimately, transform the way you think about data-driven decision-making.

Learning Objectives:  The participant/attendee will…

• Recognize how to leverage both qualitative data and quantitative data in driving business decision-making
• Identify three types of cognitive biases in big data and how they’re the enemy of opportunity
• Define five best practices for driving business decisions and key words for each one (look, link, listen, leverage, and learn)