Big Data

This phrase gets tossed around a lot today. Big data, at its core, describes large sets of data. What we hope to glean from this data is based on a simple idea, the more we know about a problem, the more likely we are to solve problems. This ultimately ends up looking like a great deal of complex analytics looking to better predict things, be it healthcare outcomes, purchasing habits, or even crime prevention. And while concerns exist about big data, those essentially revolve around concerns for privacy, discrimination, and security. But there is one more thing we should be concerned about.

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I recently finished reading an interesting book called Sensemaking. This book’s tagline is “The Power of the Humanities in the Age of the Algorithm” so clearly, this book is not going to be the largest fan of big data. Instead, this book looks at the idea of thick data.

Just as we discussed there are a variety of leadership styles that can work in various situations, there are different kinds of reasoning and they each have their own place. Deductive or algorithmic thinking is a way of thinking that is very logical, much like a math problem. The steps to getting a solution are clear and well defined. Any logical thinker can see the problem, approach it in this clear manner and come up with the same solution. Continue reading →

As many of us have experienced in the workforce, each manager has their own style of working. I have had managers who have big personalities who were quick to anger but you always knew where you stood. I have had managers who wanted to micromanage everything I did. I have had managers who largely stayed away from me so long as I got my work done.

But which of these styles is best?

To answer this, we will take a look back at a classic war film, Twelve O’Clock High. This 1949 black and white war movie follows the 918th bombing division. The film ultimately is a great look at two vastly different leadership styles. This group has fallen on hard times, with bad luck seemingly around every corner.

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Early in the film, we see Colonel Keith Davenport as a defeated man. Another disastrous mission has resulted in the death of some of his men and he chalks up the reason as bad luck. Davenport so deeply cares for his men that he comes up with reasons for men to not go on missions and has become indecisive for fear of making the wrong decision that results in the death of his men. His defeatist attitude has spread throughout the bombing division. Continue reading →