In the Paris Louvre resides one of the most famous portraits in civilization. Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is visited by nearly nine million tourists, art aficionados, historians, teachers, every year. Among those might be insurance professionals, who can find parallels to their own careers among the museum’s hallways. I recall trying to see the portrait during a springtime visit, twenty years ago. I left in disappointment. There must have been three hundred or more individuals pressing against each other, to catch a glimpse of that icon of western civilization, whose image they had seen hundreds of time, in books, film, re-creations. It also seemed an icon to my eyes – a computer icon, becaus
It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see." Henry David Thoreau Journal entry, August 5, 1851 Thoreau insisted that we “simplify, simplify” and the phrase has become nearly a worn-out rag of a cliché. A pity, because its timelessness is its genius. A hundred-seventy years after Walden was penned, we wonder: are his words anachronistic and unfulfilled or, rather, do we march to a different drum of simplicity? The data scientist holds the key. As Data Analytics leader, steeped in strategy or driving the operation, your discovery of customers' patterns, behaviors and needs is your advantage. The discipline of data analytics is not optimal without preparation and partnership, eng
“Why do you want to join the force?” “To protect the property and citizenry of –" “Ah, don't waste my time with that bull----” Jim Malone and Giuseppi Petri, The Untouchables (1987) A couple decades after he was Agent 007, Sean Connery assumed the role of a different agent -- the hard-knuckled and semi-jaded, Chicago beat cop, Jim Malone. The Untouchables chronicled federal agent Elliott Ness, who Malone helped build a team. Malone sought the right skills for the dangerous work but, moreover, he sought guys who would fit the culture: an edgy, “badass” culture. So in a standing interview by the police firing range, he asked 'Giuseppi Petri' why he wanted to be a cop. Having no patience f
Chances are you can easily remember times your home internet service connectivity went out, leaving you feeling inconvenienced and grumpy. Or you distinctly remember the times you lost power to your house, literally leaving you in the dark. But without a lot of prompting, you’ll likely have trouble remembering any specific events when your home utility service providers did something you want to applaud them for. Is this imbalance because these service providers only screw up and never do anything good? Of course not! It’s human nature to always remember bad things and have to be reminded of good things. This holds true for how people think of your IT organization. People will just naturally
