Changing Company Culture – Module 13

One of the things that draws me to GMI over the myriad of other companies that I’ve received offers from is the company culture. It is open, accepting, and encourages communication, growth, and learning. Honestly, I am proud to say that I am a GMI employee, and I absolutely love, (and am passionate about) what I do.

While GMI doesn't classify web analyst as an official role (they’re cast under the wider umbrella of software developer/analyst), I have no doubt that everyone involved – including our CIO Mike Martiny, and CMO Mark Addicks – are more than appreciable to what those people tell them. They are both incredibly receptive, forward thinking guys – and to them, every opinion matters.

Part of what makes our company culture function so well is that we are accepting of the data – and we measure almost everything. From the trending changes to the average age of the Lucky Charms buyer, to the happiness of our employees at work – everything is measured, constantly.

Throughout this course, I got a chance to see just how complex some of the things we measure really are, why we do them, and how that helps us become a better, more responsive organization.

Honestly, our company is so data driven, that I question whether there would be three things I could recommend. However – nothing is without improvement – so rather than recommend new measurements, here are three measurements / processes I might enhance:

    1.     Allow BU’s to count CI hours repeatedly rather than once a FY.

a.     For example, if I develop an automation process that saves the company 12,000 man-hours every year, I am only allowed to count that savings toward my BU’s CI once – and never again.

    

    2.     Inventory and measure our sever disk space and growth in such a way that we can automate the growth process.

    3.     Provide employees with evaluations both at mid-year, and years end in order to give them a sense of their objectives / current status.

In the end, I’m glad that GMI fosters data, openness, and collaboration – it’s part of what makes this company (and my job) great.

Hiring Analysts – Module 13

For this post, I chose a gentleman I know of through a friend at GMI named Earle Richards. Earle is a Digital Media Analyst for A&E, and he does what we’ve been discussing in this class for a living.

See Earle’s LinkedIn here:  http://www.linkedin.com/in/earlerichardsjr

As you can see, Earle has extensive experience in the field of Digital Marketing. He has served in both consultant and senior corporate roles, and has experience with Omniture, Cognos, and more.

Personally, I think Earle’s qualifications speak for themselves in many ways. To ensure that he would be a good fit for the position, I would both want to gauge his analytical thought processes by asking him questions that assess his ability to size up a situation – something like:  In situation X, what would you do and why?

Additionally, I would want to see if he had any implementation recommendations and why.

In the end, I feel that Earle would be an excellent candidate for the position based on his extensive experience, skills, and knowledge.

Web Analytics Jobs – Module 13

For this post, I chose a job posted on Monster.com with the company Vanguard – an investment management company.

You can find the full details of the job here:  http://jobview.monster.com/Web-Analytics-Implementation-Manager-digital-intelligence-Job-Malvern-PA-116722299.aspx

I chose this job because it seems as though it would allow the candidate to interact with the business, while maintaining a wealth of technical knowledge and prowess. (Much like my current job). I also liked the fact that the company doesn't list a myriad of platform specific skills – which could mean either 1.) They haven’t the slightest idea what to do in terms of analytics, or 2.) They’re open to suggestion and interpretation as to the best way to proceed.

Some of the qualifications (skills) mentioned in the job posting include:

    1.     Proficiency with Microsoft Office; experience with Business Objects, Cognos, SQL and SAS   preferable.

'   2.     Strong analytical skills coupled with the ability to form hypotheses and draw meaningful insights from disparate data sources.

    3.     Past experience with WebTrends, Adobe SiteCatalyst, IBM Coremetrics, Comscore Digital Analytix, Google Analytics or other simlar tools required. Proficiency with SQL, HTML and Javascript will be essential.

In order to make myself more attractive to this position, I would:

    1.     Cite my experience gained through interacting with the GMI employees that have helped me apply material from this course to real world projects – including introducing me to Adobe SC.

    

    2.     Cite my experience performing analytics for small businesses for the past several years.

    3.     Show off my analytical prowess by showing Vangard some of the automation processes I’ve created for GMI (process analysis requires you to know something end-to-end – an immensely valuable skill in any sort of implementation role.

All in all, I think this would be a great position for me – as I have much of the experience, many of the technical qualifications, and a definite level of interest. To be completely honest, though, I don't think I’ll be leaving GMI anytime soon (I love my job! J)