2. Definition
The exploration and dissection of datafor the purpose of
actionablediscovery.
The quest to manipulate (and create new perspectives on) numeric (and non-
numeric) information in an effort to find a nugget of insight that could
inspire an ideaor approach previously untried or, if already
attempted, enhance it.
data-Curious
?
3. Anatomy
A dichotomy of two key personas.
Marchers and Explorers, both valuable in their own right, but
exponentially more impactful when blended in approach and behavior.
The movement of Marchers is, by definition, repetitive, never veering
from a highly-disciplined and predictable path; the movement of
Explorers is, by definition, random, non-directed and exploratory.
If data were a field, Marchers would navigate it in a linear path,
cutting a straight line through it to a pre-determined end-point;
Explorers would wander through it, alternately moving forward,
sideways, perhaps stopping for a time to lift up a rock, never knowing
where the end-point in their journey occurs…until it does.
data-Curious
?
4. Relevance
Against the backdrop of a plethora of data to wade through and “play with”, marketers
face the real danger of data-fatigue, a form of complacency that snuffs out the drive to
dig deeper (and potentially, innovation itself), especially if we expect only a few on our
team to pursue this goal and espouse this approach.
To combat this, we need to challenge ALL team members to embrace the potential of
data-curiosity, not comfortably abdicate it to the “numbers guys”.
While the “quants” on a team can mentor, challenge and inform our collective pursuit of
“insight-through-data”, it is the charge of ALL of us to pursue the answers to questions
like “What If?” and “Why Not?” when presented week after week
with the myriad of quantitative and qualitative data-views that are critical to our success.
data-Curious
?
