In many organizations digital analytics tends to be a heads-down effort, where we implement reporting, analyze data, and become engrossed in the details of analytics. While these activities are critical to the success of any digital analytics program, too much of a good thing can be a detriment to both an individual and an organization. By stepping outside the walls of your office and empowering your staff to do so as well, a world of learning opportunities becomes available.
Recently, I attended the DAA Symposium in Los Angeles, where I had the opportunity to meet with a number of vendors, practitioners, and new entrants to the field of digital analytics. The one thing that every attendee at the Symposium had in common was that each was there to learn. Learning about what others in the digital analytics industry are doing, learning what best practices are exploding onto the scene, and learning about which new technologies will make the digital data we collect and analyze more accessible and meaningful to our businesses.
If there’s one thing that I’ve learned through my years of consulting and practicing digital analytics, it’s that a “Learning Agenda” can help you to focus your efforts. While most will agree that learning is a top priority, few take the time to define exactly what it is they wish to learn, and how they plan to acquire that knowledge. You can become more efficient in your learning pursuits by simply taking the time to jot down a few things that you’d like to learn and identifying resources that can help you accomplish your goal. Learning can take many different forms, so organizing a list into categories may be a good place to start. For example, maybe you’d like to learn some basic principles about digital analytics so that you can effectively communicate to peers about what analytics can do for your business. Or, perhaps you want to learn how to utilize a specific digital analytics tool so that you can become more proficient at your job or expand your skillset. Maybe you’re grappling with a specific business analytics problem, and you want to learn how others in the field have solved it. You may even want to take your learning to a higher level by enrolling in a postgraduate degree program. Whatever, your learning pursuit, by taking the time to document what you’re trying to achieve you can transform a desire into a tangible activity.
The great thing about learning in the field of digital analytics is that there are a plethora of options available. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the resources available from the DAA when it comes to learning. As one of our strategic goals for 2014, we’ve prioritized professional development and learning at the top of our agenda. As such, you can find answers to many of your questions about digital analytics on the pages of the DAA website. Information about DAA Basecamps, ongoing education and certificate programs in analytics, upcoming events in digital analytics, and soon to be course listings of digital analytics programs are available. Further, the DAA Community pages offer a place to ask and answer questions about all things analytics. So, as you sit at your desk, mired in the details of analytics…take a moment and ask yourself…What’s on your learning agenda? I’d be willing to bet that the DAA has a resource that can help.
Sincerely,
John Lovett
DAA President