Michael Howton dot com

New updates

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 15 Apr 2015 20:43:00 +0000

I find what I think are a lot of great articles. I am going to start posting them here to share. Here is my list for today. I hope you enjoy reading. I should probably put these into categories, not that I will have something for every category each day.

Tech News and Info:

The Factless Fact table. Kimball is of course the master of dimensional databases.
http://www.kimballgroup.com/1996/09/factless-fact-tables/

How your day starts with Quantum Physics
http://www.forbes.com/sites/chadorzel/2015/04/15/how-your-morning-starts-with-quantum-physics/

Popular News:

Political (I used to be much more into politics but not so much anymore):

A managers guide to understanding business intelligence. 7 steps to success.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 01 May 2012 07:10:00 +0000

Data Analytics, Business Intelligence, operation analytics, reporting system and KPI’s. No matter what you call it, the idea is to understand your data and to leverage data to help make informed business decisions. The task can be and often is daunting but it is doable.

The seven steps.

1. Process flow. First you need to have a general understanding of the business process flow. This can be a simple flow or complex but every process has a flow with inputs and out puts.
While working at BYU as an assistant network architect I had the opportunity to develop a five year network migration plan and researched and wrote the section on network monitoring and health. The first task in starting this process was to understand the underlying platform, its connectors and the inputs and outputs. To help with this I diagramed a large network map to visualize the various components and connectors. With any business process a map can and should be created to give insight into the flow of the process. Once the process has been mapped out the next step is to collect data.

2. Questions. Understanding the questions you want to ask. In the last 20 years of working with business managers, systems and data the most crucial step is to know what to ask. You might think that you need to have the data, the reporting system, the analytics horse power and everything else in place before you can ask questions, but in-fact you would be wrong or at least very frustrated when you turn the system on the first time. Questions are key to any reporting and analytics system. Its so important that this started out as step 4 then I moved it to 3 and now its number 2. I am considering moving it to number 1. You need to write a list of questions you have about your processes. Make it a list of 50, then add on another 50 or more until you are satisfied. When you hand this list over to your developer or consultant they will look at you strangely and probably think, “this person is crazy, they want the imposable” but don’t worry. When you sit down with them in a room and walk through each one of the item, don’t spend more than a minute on each one, they will quickly understand what you want and their minds will start to turn. Note: if you don’t see the turning going on in their mind find someone else to work with, you have the wrong person. There are at least three very good reasons to write the list, it will help you define what you think you need, it will focus the developer and when you are all done if the system doesn’t have a way to answer question number 38 you can renegotiate.

3. Collecting data is both easy and difficult. In today’s technologically rich world data is being collected every second. In fact, a large portion of the data collected today is thrown out, often the most important part of the data for any organization that wants to improve. Have you ever asked a question in a meeting and gotten the response “the system doesn’t track that information” or something to that effect. Often it’s not that the system can’t track the data but no one thought about adding in that 30 second change to the code that would have provided that critical missing piece of data. If fact, I was on a call the other day when I was discussing the possibility of collecting a piece of data to segment out certain customers and was told, that data is not stored in the reporting system. So while on the call, I pulled up the reporting database and looked at the data table and found that the column for collecting the data was actually in the database so I blurted out “the column is in the table”. The response was that during the development process someone decided not to add the code to populate the field. To fully leverage the collecting data stage, just say yes whenever someone says, “which pieced of data do you want to collect”. And please ignore the complaints about, “there is not enough storage”, “it will slow down the processing”, and the big one “it will take too much time to do the work”. It is true that it will take more time but when put it into perspective the time is minimal. It might add an additional eight hours of coding (probably only 15 minutes) but in the future that piece of data may help reduce labor hours 100 fold or more, probably more. The risk reward ratio can truly be fantastic. So collect the data.

4. Short section on where to store the data. There are two types of data in my world, production data or transactional data stored in your production systems and reporting data. Reporting data should be stored on a separate server and should be formatted to optimize reporting.

5. Getting to the data. The next step in the process is to pull some data. The availability of systems on the market to help you understand your data can be overwhelming but don’t be. You can spend $0 using a free database system and a free reporting system downloaded from the web (they actually work quite well) to tens of millions of dollars for a complex “over the top” system with every bell and whistle including the ERP, iPhone graphs and automated outbound reminder phone calls to customers. I’ve used both and many in between. Buy what you need. I have worked in small organizations with limited budgets where the business has hired someone with web programming and SQL query skills to write a series of reports to track daily performance and I have worked in an organization that had a team the size of a small company dedicated to supporting a multimillion dollar reporting package. In both cases the management team was only served when the system could answer the most pressing questions on that day.
Note: SQL is the language used to pull data out of a database or in other words, the language used to ask the data questions and if written correctly, provide an answer.
To get to the point pick a system that is affordable for you.

6. Talent. The system you buy is not as important as the people you hire to write the questions. If you have been in business long you probably already know this to be true. I would like to run through the list of available talent:

Level i. This is your basic level SQL programmer. They can pull a simple SQL statement out of a database and put it into Excel. Level i’s usually have no formal training but are great in a small organization. It may be a good idea to have mid level managers learn this skill.

Level ii. Advanced SQL programmers with training in one or more reporting applications. These guys are great at writing reports but require very good documentation in order to deliver what you expect. In the past few years India has trained a large number of Level ii resources.

Level iii. Advanced SQL programmers with training in multiple reporting platforms, custom programming skills and most importantly the ability to both understand the questions you need answered and how and where to pull the data themselves and how to direct others in pulling the data.

Level iv. This next level is a bit of a jump and many level iii’s don’t connect the dots to level iv but it is real. A Level iv can do and has done the previous levels but also has an understanding and the ability to use statistics to truly understand and answer your questions. The unfortunate thing is there are very few level iv’s in the market place. The good news is you can pair a level iii with a statistics major (maybe even an intern, maybe) and get a Level iv by grouping talent. You may be thinking to yourself, I can just stick with a level iii and we will be fine. I used to think so too. The issue is that I have seen more mistakes made by managers who interpret the data from a level iii incorrectly and as a result mis-spent countless hours and 100’s of thousands of dollars trying to fix the wrong thing. I’m not exaggerating, I have seen it time and again. The manager gets the data, says “a-ha!” look at that pink, there is way too much pink and its costing so much money but when a regression or sample-T test or whichever statistical measurement is appropriate its discovered that the real opportunity is with blue. There was a reason for the statistics class I took in my undergrad degree and a reason why it was included in my MBA curriculum at Kellogg. More importantly it is why Nielsen is able to generate over $5 billion a year in revenue. Statistics matter and if used correctly will produce results!
Get good talent.

The final step. Believe. Okay what does that mean? It means you and your management team and your employees all need to believe the data. Numbers don’t lie and contrary to popular belief, statistics don’t lie. If your team does not believe in the data you have wasted your time and your company’s money. Everyone needs some level of training to know how to use the system and to understand the data. Training has to be constant; a one-time push will not have the desired effect. In a typical installation I have to train every new hire and I have to retrain everyone else about once a year. It’s not that it’s hard to understand and the training doesn’t have to be long or intense, people just need to be reminded and helped through the process. You will find that people, trained or not, will come up with all kinds of ways to misuse the information or forget what this or that means. I chalk it up to being human, which is not a bad thing. Well trained employees will believe and they will use the data and they will find ways to become more efficient and your team will succeed.

Graduation Day

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 23:01:00 +0000

On 12/10/2011 I graduated from the Kellogg School of Business with a Masters in Business Administration. I loved it! The best people, the best professors, the best school and the best program I could have hoped for. On 12/15/2011 my graduating class photo was published in the Wall Street Journal.

Evaluating good leaders

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:30:00 +0000

This is a video from WSJ.com interviewing the CEO of American Express.
What AmEx's Ken Chenault Looks for in Hires

Buffett, Gates and Blankfein

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:01:00 +0000

I have read two very good articles this week and wanted to share. They are about investing and business so beware. The first was a town hall meeting with Bill Gates and Warren Buffett at Columbia University. The second was an article by John Arlidge about Goldman Sachs.

Here are some memorable quotes from the Town Hall:

"projecting out into the years ahead ... are we making the right investments, are we gaining on the competition, are we making it a little bit harder for people to replace what we're doing?"
- Gates

"the best systems are ones where you have good short-term metrics, great accounting, looking at profits, looking at risk and willing to do things long-term"
- Gates

"run this business like it's the only business that your family can own for the next 100 years. You can't sell it. ... Measure it by whether the moat around that business, what gives it competitive advantage over time has widened or narrowed. ... If the reason for doing something is everybody else if doing it, it's not good enough. If you have to use that as a reason, forget it"
- Buffett

Full transcript http://www.cnbc.com/id/33901003/

Insights from the Goldman Article
Inspect
"Staff rigorously price ... the bank's assets every day, down to the last cent, and forensically examine daily profit and loss. This helps the bank to see market trends clearly and early and, it believes, to manage risk better than most other banks. 'We think we make better decisions' says Beshel"

Work harder than everyone else
"you have to work harder than the average bear ... 'it's a 24/7 culture, When you're needed, you're here. and if you're needed and you're not answering your phone, you won't be needed very long"

Learn all you can
"You are programmed at an early stage to go out more than the other guy, to see more people - clients, hedge funds or private equity guys ... brain pick. You ask what's their best trade. How do they see the market? You offer something in return, but you always come back with something."

Work as a team
"then you feed it to colleagues who go to work trying to use the information to make money. It's a team effort" "we're in this together"

Develop systems that drive your values
"You can have a great career in banking as an individual, but it won't be here. The system weeds out those who can't play nicely with others"

Recruit the best talent you can find
"Most applicants are interviewed at least 20 times before they are made an offer and some more than 30 times."

Pay the best talent very very well
"Sachs isn't nicknamed 'Goldmine Sachs' for nothing. Some 953 employees got bonuses of at least $1 million in 2008"

Article http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article6907681.ece?token=null&offset=0&page=1

To Think

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:25:00 +0000

I heard or read a great statement the other day, "I want to think things I have never thought before."

You must obey: Unwritten laws of technology

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 19:35:00 +0000

Here is a great list of all the reasons why your computer, cell and gadget never work like they should.

Law 1: For every fix that a Windows Update patches, the update will break two more things on your PC. — Darren Gladstone, PC World

Law 1: For every fix that a Windows Update patches, the update will break two more things on your PC. — Darren Gladstone, PC World

Law 2: The likelihood that Windows will automatically install time-sucking critical updates is directly proportional to your need to get your PC started. — Steve Fox, PC World

Law 3: The hard drive always fails just before you were going to back it up. — Denise Paolucci, Dreamwidth Studios via Help A Reporter Out (HARO)

Law 4: Your data will get corrupted just before you plug in your new backup external drive. —Darren Gladstone, PC World

Law 5: Your backup plan is only as good as your last successful restore. — Michael Fisher, ElephantDrive.com via HARO

Law 6: The number of USB ports on your Mac will always be one less than you need at any given time. — Blair Hanley Frank, Macworld

Law 7: Feeling time pressure to make a computer fix quickly will cause you to take longer. —David Marshak, via PC World Facebook page

Law 8: If you close the PC case with screws before testing, it won't work. If you test before closing, it will. — Harry Liebman via HARO

There are more: click the link to read the whole story.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32393717/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets//

I got the flu

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 17:28:00 +0000

So I got, what feels like, the flu yesterday. Painful muscle aches, intestinal cramps, fever, cold sweats. Today I am feeling much better but still sick. My mother-in-law is visiting and she had the same thing 4 days ago. I'll have to wait to see who else in the family gets it. I did not go in to get tested for flu or swine flu, it's not that bad.

Santelli goes to Washington and the Chicago Tea party. Must Watch!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 04:24:00 +0000

Rick Santelli has been a new man for CNBC for 15 years. He hit a nerve this week when he attacked the presidents housing plan.

Here is the White House reply to Santelli.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEZB4taSEoA&eurl=http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=44565&feature=player_embedded

Here is Santelli's reply back. This thing is heating up.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1041856849&play=1

White House hits back again. This is one of the worst atacks on the press.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1041856849&play=1

Here is some more.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1040944991&play=1

Are you concerned about Foreclosure?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 14:11:00 +0000

This website is dedicated to providing people with the knowledge and tools needed to fight foreclosure. Very good resource. http://livinglies.wordpress.com/

Vegetable Shortage

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 18:44:00 +0000

You just might have to grow your own tomatoes this year as thousands of acres of farmland go fallow this spring due to California's continued drought.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28808767/

Hedge-funders are bullish on Gold, Guns and inflatable Lifeboats

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 21:45:00 +0000

It is interesting to see how even the wealthest people in the world are concerned enough to by Gold, Guns and Inflatable Lifeboats (to leave Manhattan) these days.

The New Paranoia: Hedge-Funders Are Bullish on Gold, Guns, and Inflatable Lifeboats - NewYorkTimes
http://nymag.com/news/features/all-new/53372/

Model railroad

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 22:09:00 +0000

I picked up a HO model train layout on craigslist.org for free. It is from the 70's and has a few issues but does work. I pulled the trains I have been collecting for the last 25 years.

Mouthwash linked to cancer

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 14:29:00 +0000

Just when you thought it was safe to breath ... on others. The Australia's leading experts have found "sufficient evidence" that mouthwash can cause oral cancer.

http://www.news.com.au//dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,24896583-5001021,00.html

John Batchelor Predicts the next crash

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 22:30:00 +0000

John Batchelor predicts the next crashes to be first Cars, then New Papers, Retail and last of all Food. Farmers this year have planted less food this year even though we had a worldwide food shortage last year and continue to have one this year.

http://johnbatchelorshow.com/debrief/2009/01/de-brief---january-4-2009.php

The 'Super Banks' aren't so Super

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:03:00 +0000

The three new Super Banks, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and Wellsfargo now have more consolidated money and power than any institutions in US history and they are using that power to charge higher and higher fees. In fact, you could easily see $200 in fees for a single overdraft. Here is the situtaion, say you go shopping and you buy stuff from six different stores throughout the day, you know you went below zero in your account on the first transaction but no big deal, you can just move money into the account when you get home. Wrong! You just racked up $35 for each transaction. The new term is ‘fee-ed’ to death.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27441147/

700 Families foreclose each day in So. California

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:06:00 +0000

I found this very good video news report yesterday watching the News Hour. I was surprised by what people leave behind when they leave a foreclosed home. Some people leave everything and just walk out the door. Very sad but informative. Watch the video.

Click to view the video

Ron Paul on the bailout plan

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 14:17:00 +0000

Click to see Ron Pauls thoughts on the recent bail out plan.

I love the line, "if printing more money solved everyone's problems then why work. We could just print money"

Survivor - the TV Show

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 20:26:00 +0000

I am a fan of Survivor and although I have skipped a few show hear and there I mostly follow it. I found this article about what happens behind the camera and wanted to share it.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26726792/

Titanic (Global Economy) and deck chairs

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 14:29:00 +0000

This is a great blog post from Silvia Wadhwa. It's best if you read down to the video clip, start the video clip and continue reading as it plays.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/27043945

This Bailout won't be the last

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 13:19:00 +0000

To say that no on knew this wouldn't happen is just not correct. In 2003 Ron Paul a congressman from Texas gave the speech below outlining what would happen if the government continued to subsidize the housing market through Fredie and Fannie. Read below.

http://www.house.gov/paul/congrec/congrec2003/cr091003.htm

http://www.usnews.com/blogs/the-home-front/2008/09/19/ron-paul-this-bailout-wont-be-the-last.html

Bailout will cause a US Depression, Says Hennecke

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 15:00:00 +0000

The end result of the global economic slowdown may be the U.S. announcing national bankruptcy as the government cannot afford the bailouts that it promised and the market will not bail out the government, Martin Hennecke, senior manager of private clients at Tyche, told CNBC on Thursday.

Full Article below:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/26656750

New Blog Items

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:50:00 +0000

I found a couple of items to add to my blog page today. The first is an electoral college vote count based on recent surveys. It's good to know who how the '08 race is going. I enjoy politics and am always willing to share my thoughts. More than most people want to know...
The second is a way for you to add my blog to your favorate website. You can add it to Google, Bloglines, Netvibes, newsgator or myYahoo. I think it is a cool little tool.
I was very excited to see McCain pick such a great woman for his VP pick. Not sure that it is enough to win. Not sure I want him to win??? Even so, Have A Great Holiday Weekend and don't work too hard.

There is no insurance fund for FDIC...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 16:21:00 +0000

I found this to be a very interesting article. Basically, there is no more of a bailout insurance fund (FDIC) today than there was in 1901.:

http://www.thedeal.com/newsweekly/features/the-failure-option.php

Excerpt:
"The deposit insurance fund doesn't exist as a free-standing pool of money. Instead, it is a bookkeeping convention, like the Social Security Trust Fund.
The premiums banks pay to the fund are invested in U.S. Treasury bills, and, on paper, the fund grows with interest. In reality, the money is spent to help fund the federal budget. To cover the cost of the IndyMac bailout, the Department of the Treasury was forced to issue additional debt. Increased federal borrowing will also cover costs of future failures. Eventually, the industry as a whole must repay the federal government through higher annual premiums."

3D photo of yourself

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 22:33:00 +0000

This website is offering a very cool and free tool that lets you make 3d spaces from you pictures. Very cool.

http://mslabs-086.vo.llnwd.net/d5/oss/index.html