THE
DASHBOARD Tr idant ’s Q u a r t erly M a gaz i n e | I s s ue 0 2 D e c
Data-Driven Learning
The Rise of Analytics in Higher Education
IBM Planning Analytics Everything you need to know
The University of Tasmania
Client Feature
CFO’s Seek a Single Source of Truth Powering Data-Driven Business Transformation with Adaptive insights
A Woman in Data Insights on Tableau, Las Vegas and Life from Eva Murray
Zac Anstee: Triathlete Meet the Tritons
Hamba Kahle. (Go well)
I
n late October, I had the fortune of attending the IBM Insight event in Las Vegas, and yes, this time around I’m prepared to share with you what I experienced. When a technology giant like IBM acknowledges the impact of open source platforms like Hadoop, R and Spark, we know things are changing quickly. In fact, IBM is encouraging its customers and business partners to develop solutions that combine the best of IBM and open source. So what does this mean for you? The answer is: access to unbelievable computing power and analytical processing accessed as-a-service with consumption-based pricing, all running on a cloud near you. Organisations no longer have to “own it all”, which means less energy spent on building internal capability and capacity, and added focus on driving specific business results. I also left the Las Vegas event with a number of new additions to my lexicon; “the data whisperer”, “dark data” and yet another acronym “S.M.A.C” which stands for Social, Mobile, Analytics and Cloud. My personal favourite though was Wine4.me; check it out to see how machine learning meets sommelier.
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It would be remiss of me to not mention all the great work that has gone into making this edition of The Dashboard. It’s a wonderful collection of content, client and personal stories that will inform you and connect you to our team. The photo collage is the result of a spontaneous need by many of our staff to celebrate place. On behalf of our wonderful team here at Tridant I would like to wish you a festive time over the Christmas break. It’s a great opportunity to spend time with family, friends and pets...even be a little courageous and get off the grid for a bit. Hamba Kahle.
Alec Jeffery Director, Tridant
Page 01 | Editorial
The University of Tasmania
Client Feature Page 14
Meet the Tritons | Page 12
Page 08
Tridant Blogs Page 17
Eva Murray | Page 18
CFO’s Photo Gallery Page 22
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DASHBOARD
A Woman in Data
Zac Anstee IBM Planning Analytics
THE
Seek a Single Source of Truth Page 03
Analytics in Higher Education
Events
Page 26
Page 04
Newsroom
Page 25
Page 02 | Menu
Global Survey Reveals
CFO’s Seek a Single Source of Truth
to Power Business Transformation
Article originally published on http://www.adaptiveinsights.com/newsroom/press/global-survey-reveals-cfos-seek-single-source-of-truth-to-power-data-driven-business
On the 21st of October, Adaptive Insights unveiled its CFO Indicator Q3 2015 report benchmarking chief financial officers’ (CFOs’) perspectives on their evolving roles as they lead business transformation across their organizations in an increasingly data-driven world. The global survey of 435 CFOs focused on data analytics trends, business collaboration strategies, top financial mistakes most companies make, and 2016 plans and predictions. This quarter’s CFO Indicator reveals that today’s CFOs desire data integrity and a single source of truth to drive accurate insights and actionable business transformation. While CFOs predict the amount of data they manage will greatly increase by 2020, they face significant data challenges with respect to the accuracy and timeliness of data. The majority of CFOs reported that keeping data siloed (69%) and having inaccurate data for forecasting and planning (40%) were among the top financial mistakes most companies make. To combat the data divide across departments, CFOs are prioritizing more holistic and collaborative planning and analysis, partnering with key C-suite executives to deliver aggregate views of critical business information and working most closely with the COO (66%), head of HR (34%), and CIO (30%). “Faced with a challenging macroeconomic environment and the need to provide a more holistic view of the business, CFOs are increasingly becoming the ‘knowledge executive’ in the organization,” said Tom Bogan, CEO, Adaptive Insights. “As both the volume and sources of data increase, CFOs are working across departments, driving toward a single source of truth that gives them a more consistent, comprehensive view of the organization in real time. This view will ultimately provide more accurate business insights and inform more effective business strategy.”
Read Full Article Here
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Click to view Infographic
Learn More about Adaptive Insights
Page 03 | CFO’s Seek a Single Source of Truth
The Business of Higher Education
Data-Driven
Learning
The Rise of Analytics in Higher Education
“Many express the fear that higher education is becoming a business, and that analytics are a harbinger of that change. Data, isn’t a threat however, in fact it provides a basis for better decision-making.” Jacqueline Bischel1 Business organisations have been storing and analyzing large volumes of data since the advent of data warehouse systems in the early 1990’s, so it is no surprise that in more recent times, the higher education sector has begun to adopt practices to ensure organizational success at all levels, due to arising economic, political and social challenges, such as declining government funding, declining support from business and private sectors, growing regulatory demands for transparency and accountability, declining admission due to increasing tuition, upsurge in high school dropouts and increasing operational costs. In a recent paper, Ben Daniel2 notes that corporate-academic partnerships are increasing, and corporations require higher education institutions to demonstrate an effort to develop and utilize technologies that support research outputs and knowledge transfer commercialization.
Continued >
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Page 04 | Data-Driven Learning
However, there is a substantial difference between the kinds of metrics and indicators that are meant to measure students and consumers information needs. Unlike businesses that may ask questions like, “who are my loyal customers?” or “what type of customer is likely to increase his/her spending?”3 higher education institutions are concerned with addressing questions about retention, admissions, fund-raising and operational efficiency, and therefore may ask questions such as, “which students are least likely to drop out?” or “which alumni are likely to make large donations?”
Click to View Infographic
The Benefits of Utilising Analytics Analytics is viewed as something relatively new in the realm of higher education. Some view it as a “buzzword”, perceiving the investment in analytics as non-essential to their institutions’ progress, however, a strategic investment with clear objectives can help in advancing areas such as resource allocation, student success and finance. Analytics are used mostly in the areas of enrollment management, student progress and institutional finance and budgeting, but potential areas may include:
• Instructional management • Central IT • Student Learning • Progress of Strategic plan • Alumni/advancement • Research administration • Library • Cost to Complete Degree The Dashboard | Issue 2
• Human resources • Facilities • Faculty promotion and tenure • Faculty teaching and performance • Procurement • Faculty Research Performance
This figure demonstrates requirements in place for analytics amongst a focus group consisting of IT professionals and business analysts working in Higher Education 1
One of the most favorable uses of analytics in education is to help students learn more effectively, and ultimately graduate. Reports can be developed to reveal patterns, trends and exceptions indicating, for example, course strengths and weaknesses, aligning resources with student need, and tracking student progress. Continued > Watch a Video demonstrating how Text Mining can help decrease student attrition.
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Triggers can also be developed to send a note to a teacher, indicating that a student is at risk of failure, the goal being to improve student performance and to demonstrate the accountability of the institution4. Other uses include:
• • • • • • • • •
Understanding student demographics and behaviors Optimising use of resources Recruiting students Creating data transparency/sharing/federation Demonstrating higher educations effectiveness/efficiency Improving administrative services Containing/lowering costs of education Improving faculty performance Reducing administrative costs
7 Tips for a Successful Anaytics Project6 1. Map out strategy and planning
3. Invest in people over tools
Let the questions, rather than the data at hand, drive the efforts. Identify individuals, map out process and reporting and communicating results.
4. Don’t wait for perfection
2. Look for an early win Enrollment management, cost reduction or resource optimization are good initial analytics projects that, if successful, can convince decision makers to invest in further resources, and establish the value of analytics.
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Hire and train
The experience of developing analytics initiatives will result in progress on both fronts.
5. Partnerships and communication are key Involve all parties from the departments who will be affected.
Can we afford not to? One of the perceived barriers to adopting analytics is affordability. The costs of project implementation, plus hiring and training the right people can seem daunting, however, there are many compelling reasons to make the investment as listed in the previous section. Cost also becomes less of an issue when senior leadership agrees that analytics is a priority, and part of the strategic plan – especially when it is demonstrated how the use of analytics can help reduce costs or streamline processes1. Advisory service firm, Eduventures5 illustrates the importance of meeting student enrollment targets, and the potential losses that may occur by not adopting an analytics program, with the following scenario (example reflects tuition fees in USD): “A private non-profit institution misses its fall start by 10 students. At average student tuition of $28,500 per year, 10 students reflect a $285,000 deficit in that year. Extrapolated over the six years it takes many students to graduate, this seemingly minor miss of 10 students equates to $1,710,000 in lost revenue” Therefore the question changes from “can we afford a higher education analytics program?” to “can we afford to not have one?” Further Reading: 6. Plan for infrastructure that supports analytics use across the institution 7. Plan the support function
1. Bischel, Jacqueline. Analytics in Higher Education: Benefits, Barriers, Progress and Recommendations (Research Project). Louisville, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, August 2012, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar 2. Ben Daniel, Big Data and Analytics in Higher Education: Opportunities and Challenges. British Journal of Educational Technology, vol 46, no 5, 2015 http://www.readcube.com/articles/10.1111%2Fbjet.12230 3. Luan, IBM, Managing the Business of Education (white paper), 2009, http://www. techrepublic.com/whitepapers/managing-thebusiness-of-education-uniting-the-mission-ofeducation-with-the-mission-of-the-marketplace/1689899.) 4. Learning Analytics – an overview. For CAUL Learning and Teaching Advisory Committee By Ralph Kiel 2012 5. Predictive Analytics in Higher Education: Data-Driven Decision-Making for the Student Life-Cycle, Jan 2013, http://www.eduventures.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/ Eduventures_Predictive_Analytics_White_Paper1.pdf 6. Thomas H. Davenport, Jeanne G Harris, and Robert Morison, Analytics at Work: Smarter Decisions, Better Results (Boston: Harvard Business Press, 2010), 19.
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All of us join in saying
Thank You
and in wishing you a Happy Holiday and prosperous New Year! The Dashboard | Issue 2
Page 07 | Seasons Greetings!
Everything you need to know about
IBM Planning Analytics Tridant’s Solutions Director, James Wakefield, discusses new features and improvements, and gives an honest and informed assessment of IBM Planning Analytics.
T
here has been a big build up to this release, from the beta versions, through to the announcements at IBM Insight 2015. One thing is for sure; this release is especially significant, as it represents the moment in time when IBM let go of the TM1 brand. One controversial aspect of this release is the name, “IBM Planning Analytics”. Personally, I don’t mind that the TM1 name is dropping, but it’s a shame that the name now implies that IBM Planning Analytics is only for use in Planning. TM1 has been the most powerful and flexible modelling engine available in the market place for the last 20 years, and is used for hundreds of solution types across almost every industry vertical. It’s important to
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remember that IBM Planning Analytics is still “powered by TM1”, and has the same level of modeling and flexibility to build a solution for any industry or Line of Business. At Tridant we are big believers in Software as a Service (SaaS) and the benefits it can bring to businesses. In fact, Tridant was the first Business Partner to bring TM1 Cloud to Australia and Singapore. TM1 Cloud was effectively the 1st release of TM1 as a SaaS offering, where pricing was on a per user, per month basis. However, there were some key aspects of the offering missing that have now been addressed in Planning Analytics. Think of Planning Analytics as “TM1 Cloud 2.0”.
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e b u o y ? S d l a u a o S w a So why ted in TM1 as interes As mentioned, a key aspect of SaaS is turning TM1 from a capex investment into opex, on a subscription per user, per month. The other big cost in any BI/Planning offering is the maintenance of the environment and the upgrades. Under a SaaS model, your environment and upgrades are all included in the price, so you no longer need to wait for the latest and greatest features. Sometimes organisations can hold concerns over data sovereignty, and need their data to remain within their country, which is where the IBM datacentres in Melbourne and Sydney can help. IBM Planning Analytics will be available as part of IBM’s “Bridge to Cloud” program. If you are an existing IBM Cognos TM1 customer on current IBM licensing and support, IBM will allow you to run your on premise TM1 in parallel to Planning Analytics. There will be a small uplift in your maintenance payment for that year, but it represents a great opportunity to discover the numerous benefits of adopting SaaS. If after the end of the 12 months you want to stay on premise with your TM1, then you can nominate to do that.
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7
Key Features of IBM Planning Analytics
Page 09 |IBM Planning Analytics
1. Secure Hybrid Data Integration Something that was lacking in the original TM1 Cloud option was the ability to integrate your on premise data into your TM1 Cloud model securely and automated. The option was to use flat files via ftp and automate via Cognos Command Centre, but if, as a customer you did “Bridge to Cloud”, then you don’t want to spend days changing your TIs from ODBC to flat file with ftp. In IBM Planning Analytics you will automatically get the Bluemix Secure Gateway from IBM. This is great news for customers wanting to “Bridge to Cloud” and new customers wanting to integrate on-premise data into IBM Planning Analytics. Bluemix Secure Gateway will enable you to use ODBC to your on-premise datasource and thus automate data loads into your Planning Analytics cubes. The other advantage is you will be able to use Drill Through to enable drilling to Transactions in source systems. Normally Bluemix Secure Gateway would be a cost but it’s all included in your subscription to IBM Planning Analytics. In TM1 Cloud you would need to pay extra for Cognos Command Centre and Cognos Integration Server but under IBM Planning Analytics these are included. These two products have been hidden away for too long in IBM, due to strange pricing models, and the fact they are now available under Planning Analytics offers so much to customers.
Cognos Command Centre looks like a boring file transfer system on the
sticker, but it’s so much more. You can use it to perform alerts while checking TM1 log file or have it fire multiple TI’s via TM1Execute.exe and wait till they all finish before firing a different batch (learn more).
Cognos Integration Server is used to perform extracts from Oracle Essbase or Oracle HFM or even transfer data from one TM1 server to another (learn more).
The TM1 Rest API has massively opened the possibilities for data integration. One product complimentary to TM1 on premise and IBM Planning Analytics in the Cloud, is IBM Cast Iron. Let me be clear that Cast Iron is currently an additional license fee, but it’s a beautiful product for its simplicity in integrating systems via APIs. The ability to integrate on premise ERPs or “Born in the Cloud” datasources like Salesforce, Netsuite and Workday all become possible for IBM Planning Analytics
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2. Planning Analytics Workspace IBM Planning Analytics introduces the Planning Analytics Workspace, which gives you a flexible, rich, interactive front end to your cubes and templates. Taking the best bit of Watson Analytics front end, it allows you to do:
Natural language search and discovery i.e. imagine the equivalent of Googling for a TM1 view name. Multi-Tab layout without being confined to Excel as a publication mechanism. Synchronization of all objects via parameters. Collaboration and “Pin to Share” All of the above allows for the best of both worlds with Excel/TM1Web still available for publishing but also Cube Views, BI charts, informational text etc.
3. Excel Integration Finance Users LOVE Microsoft Excel: it’s a fact and it isn’t going to change anytime soon. IBM Planning Analytics comes with rights to IBM Cognos Analysis for Excel (Cafe). An important point is that the version of Cafe included in IBM Planning Analytics is 10.3. This means that Planning Analytics is ahead of TM1 on premise! This is typical in SaaS solutions where capability and integration can move faster than on premise software. Cafe 10.3 is important because it represents a turning point in TM1 end users having all the capability needed in Cafe and no longer needing Perspectives. The “Big 3” new capabilities in Cafe 10.3 are:
The support of DBRW formulas. The support of action buttons. The ability to publish sheets to Application and therefore TM1web. Cafe is lighting fast, even over a WAN, and now it supports the majority of Perspective functions it will be easy for migrations.
Page 10 | IBM Planning Analytics
4. Advanced Analytics
7. Cloud Operations
By now, most people should be aware of Watson Analytics, and most likely have available the Personal or Professional edition. Included in IBM Planning Analytics is effectively Watson Analytics over your cubes. This brings some very powerful capability to your user base including:
IBM has a dedicated Cloud Operations team surrounding IBM Planning Analytics. Their role is to do the boring IT management aspects like:
The ability to upload external data, including Twitter and incorporate it into dashboards.
Software Upgrades
Natural language search across your data.
Monitoring
Story-Telling capability. Statistical Analysis and forecasting.
5. Strategy Management KPIs are an important aspect of Financial Performance Management. In Planning Analytics you will have access to the Scorecarding features of TM1 including:
Status and Trend in cell graphics Strategy Maps Cause and Effect Analysis
6. Management Reporting Included with IBM Planning Analytics is IBM Cognos 10.2.2 for reporting. It’s important to note the version number because it’s NOT IBM Cognos Analytics. There will be a release of IBM Cognos Analytics before the end of 2015, but don’t expect to see that in IBM Planning Analytics until around mid-year 2016. The other thing to be careful with is that you can only use Cognos 10.2.2 for reporting against Planning Analytics cubes i.e. you can’t point the Cognos BI 10.2.2 included with Planning Analytics against another database. Having said all that, it’s great to have Cognos BI available for producing Active Reports, Mobile dashboards, bursting and access to all the cool visualizations in the RAVE charting engine.
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Data Backups Disaster Recovery
You will still have access to operations console to monitor the server and the ability to start/stop servers.
Conclusion IBM Planning Analytics represents a turning point for the TM1 product. We wait patiently for the administration capability of TM1 to be fully web based and not via RDP, but it’s a huge leap forward across the data integration and front end user experience. The concepts of SaaS, Hybrid Cloud, APIs, DevOps etc are now mainstream, and IBM is providing all the parts of the puzzle, you just need an IBM Premier Business Partner who understands it all to put the jigsaw puzzle pieces together with you.
James Wakefield Solutions Director, Tridant 1300 737 141 james.wakefield@tridant.com.au www.tridant.com.au
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s n o t i r T et the
e e t s n A c Za
Me
Q&A
Zac Anstee is the quintessential athlete. Not only is he scoring major goals as the head of Tridant’s Business Intelligence unit, he’s also an accomplished triathlete, who has run, cycled and swum in various events across Australia, including the famously grueling Ironman event.
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Zac, you’re obviously mad. Why all this running around, when there are perfectly good couches to sit on, and pastries to eat? Good question; on a long ride or run I sometimes ask myself that very thing. I’m always up for a challenge and the sport of triathlon provides me with a lot of variety in training, along with much self-satisfaction when hitting goals. But most importantly it allows me to have long guilt-free sessions on the couch, eating pastries.
You recently spent some time over in Tasmania on various projects. Where are the best places to spend outdoors there, running or cycling? Unfortunately I haven’t been able to bring the bike over, so it’s usually a mix of running and swimming whilst travelling for work. I’m a regular at the Hobart aquatic center, and also the St. Michelle’s school who open their pool to the public in the mornings. Runningwise, in Hobart there is a great 15km loop, starting off at Macquarie St in the city heading out towards Mt. Wellington past the Cascade Brewery winding your way uphill. Take a hard left down Huon Rd for a fast descent back into town and swing past Sash Café for the best coffee in Hobart. Also Wellington Park is endless, and a demanding trek to the top of Cathedral Rock makes for a great unwind after work and a 360 degree view. Most beautiful is in Launceston for a trail run through the First Basin Gorge which is stunning. Amazing to think all of this is on peoples door step in Tasmania.
Page 12 | Zac Anstee
What is the most difficult event you’ve competed in, and why?
Who inspires you the most?
The Ironman Melbourne Triathlon (3.8km swim, 180km I have a few, but first and foremost is my bike, 42.2km run) in March this year. I trained so hard for this wife, Amanda. She inspired me to get off the event, and it was all consuming with up to 25hrs of training per couch (and pastries) and find positive actions in my week. You become a master of managing time whilst trying to balance life, such as triathlons. This year Amanda ran North Face a demanding job, family and friends, as well as the load and fatigue 100km, Australia’s toughest 100km run through the Blue which comes with the training. Getting to the start line is a big part of it Mountains, and 4 months later ran another 100km race at and I was so proud of myself to be lining up with a thousand other athletes Angelsea coming in at 12hrs 25mins and 3rd in her category. race morning. The day didn’t go as planned though, and after a good How can I not be inspired by that? Also my coach, Craig swim and ride, my knee decided it had enough during the marathon, and Percival who is an amazing athlete and person, who early What is the reduced my pace to a slow run/walk. I had to dig deep just to keep going next year, will be taking on 8 Ironman in 8 states and key to maintaining a and block out the pain and disappointment of what was happening. territories, in 8 days. He keeps teaching and proving healthy work/life balance? Breaking things down into the most vital and smallest pieces became to me our bodies are wonderful playgrounds a fundamental tool, whether that be to make it to the next and that we have no limits. The key is to enjoy what you do. When telephone pole, ensure to eat and hydrate, or to make my wife life gets super busy, time management What is the proud that I made it through adversity. It was the both is everything and spending a few minutes most rewarding thing the toughest and most rewarding day of my life. each day planning on how your going to about working at Tridant? If you had all the time in the world, what would you do?
Lots of R&R: Riding and Running.
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stitch it all together, is a good practice to master. Having said that I must admit to rarely feeling as though everything is in balance at one given time, I just do my best make it all work as well as I can.
Being amongst the most talented people in our industry. I’m surrounded by a large group of individuals who naturally live and breathe what we do, and there is no problem which is unsolvable or challenge which can’t be mastered. I learnt very early on in my career that you must surround yourself with people who are as driven as you, and smarter than yourself. By doing so you can constantly learn, grow, and become better at your work than if you were alone.
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The
University Tasmania of
The university worked with Tridant to build a solution that integrates financial and operational data, models the revised organization structure, and forecasts key trends and presents metrics via intuitive dashboards.
Client Feature The University of Tasmania (known colloquially as UTas) was founded in 1890, and thus, falls under the category of a “Sandstone University”; a tertiary education institution founded during Australia’s colonial era from between 1788 – 1901. Since it’s founding, UTas has produced a list of notable alumni such as Christine Milne, Former Leader of the Australian Greens, Musician Courtney Barnett (recently nominated for a Grammy Award), Author Richard Flanagan (winner of the 2014 Man Booker Prize), and former marketing executive, Mary Donaldson (most famously known for the extraordinary feat of picking up the Crown Prince of Denmark in a Sydney pub and magically turning into a princess).
Continued >
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Page 14 | Client Feature
It’s largest and most populous campus, Sandy Bay, sits between the estuary of the River Derwent, and is overshadowed by Hobart’s iconic Mount Wellington. Although it is far from the largest Australian university, and dwarfed, for example, by the Monash University Clayton Campus in Melbourne (so large that it has it’s own suburb and postcode), it is certainly one of the most charming and picturesque.
Antarctic Studies enjoys a privileged partnership with CSIRO and The Australian Antarctic Division, garnering Grade 5 scores (above world average) for Oceanography, Geology and Ecology.
From the upper levels of the Morris Miller Library, students are able to gaze longingly across the sports oval at the yachts moored in the bay, or catch a glimpse of houses stacked on the foothills leading up to Mount Wellington. The view is frankly dangerous for students with a tendency towards daydreaming*
The University’s reputation is growing rapidly due to a combination of factors. In 2014, Utas ranked in the top 2% of Universities worldwide, and in recent times, six UTas academics were given citations in the Australian Awards for University Teaching – the highest number for any Australian University. In addition to this, the Institute of Marine and
It also doesn’t hurt that the campus is located in laid-back, scenic Hobart, whose peak “hour” traffic lasts for a total of about five or ten minutes. I am told by UTas’ Associate Director of Institutional Performance, Julie Morrison, that twenty minutes is considered a long commute in Hobart, a fact that makes my seven-kilometre, half-an-hour morning commute through inner-eastern Melbourne seem all the more absurd, and grounds for relocation to Tasmania.
*But don’t worry; they eventually gain underpaid jobs in content marketing. The Dashboard | Issue 2
Page 15 | Client Feature
Julie has worked at UTas for over a decade, in various operational roles, and has a rich professional background in Finance and Accounting across New Zealand, the UK, Ireland and Australia.
A Case Study of Tridant’s engagement with UTas will be coming soon.
Her engagement with Tridant stretches back nearly a year, when she was given funding approval for a Business Intelligence (BI) project. Her tender was responded to by Michael Taylor, who is now Tridant’s Director of Professional Services, (on a plane to Las Vegas for an IBM conference) and the rest is history.
In the meantime, please take a look at our newest case studies involving our engagements with The University of Adelaide and The University of South Australia.
The university worked with Tridant to build a solution that integrates financial and operational data, models the revised organization structure, and forecasts key trends and presents metrics via intuitive dashboards. Julie and various departmental stakeholders at UTas, now have a 360-degree view of their student and operational data, presented in intuitive, quick and collaborative dashboards that adhere to design principles of data communication and industry best practice; a key point of difference between Tridant and its competitors.
“Tridant have guided me down this path… all the advice they have given me has been outstanding. It is certainly consistent with contemporary practice. [I] couldn’t have gotten it off the ground without their help and guidance.” Julie Morrison
Associate Director of Institutional Performance, University of Tasmania
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The University of South Australia
The University of Adelaide
Dilan J. Gunawardana Digital Content Specialist 1300 737 141 dilan.gunawardana@tridant.com.au www.tridant.com.au Page 16 | Client Feature
September
Tridant Blogs
Ian Koegelenberg: Advanced Analytics & Visualisation Practice Lead 3rd September 2015
October IBM Watson Analytics: What Now? 7th October 2015
JDE Customers: look to IBM for Cost Savings & Technical Support 14th September 2015 Tableau 9.1 is available now 16th September 2015
The Key to Smarter Business Processes: IBM Blueworks Live 13th October 2015 Tridant Opens its Doors 15th October 2015
5 Things we love about Tableau 9.1 21st September 2015
Text Mining: Insights Beyond Numbers
28th September 2015
6 Tips to Maintain your Cognos Content Store Database 29th September 2015
November
IBM Expands Data Discovery and Power of Watson Analytics 19th October 2015 Expanding on Expand 20th October 2015
A CFO’s Journey - How I used Utilisation Measurement to Lift Productivity 5% 21st October 2015 4 Common Data Challenges Facing Marketing 27th October 2015
Everything you needs to know about IBM Planning Analytics: Part 1 18th November 2015
December
7 Key Features of IBM Planning Analytics
23rd November 2015
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The Annual Budget is holding back your Aged Care Organisation 1st December 2015 Page 17 | Blogs
A
Woman Data in
Written by Eva Murray
“If you don’t ask, you don’t get, and we have to stop assuming that other people can read our minds.”
Eva Murray is Tridant’s resident Tableau guru, who is passionate about all things data. Recently, she attained one of the first Tableau Server Trainer accreditations outside the US, and was one of the first females in the world to achieve this. As she works in a male-dominated field, she understands the many hurdles women face in reaching their goals in tech and datadriven industries. In this article, Eva discusses her career so far, describes the many lessons she has learnt, and offers some tips for women (and men) to fulfil their potential.
I
n late October this year, I had the chance to hang out with a massive 11,000 data and Tableau aficionados in Las Vegas for the annual Tableau Conference (TC15). It was right up my alley. I made new friends, developed new ideas and learned a whole lot. While I was wary of Sin City at first, I decided to embrace this as a special opportunity, and just say ‘Yes’. Suffice to say, there was nothing left on my ‘Vegas Bucket List’ when I boarded the flight back home to Sydney. During TC15 I met so many other like-minded, tech-loving women who are thriving in this industry, and who embrace the professional challenges that come their way. Of course we noticed that there were many more men than women at the conference, and yes, being a woman in a tech company is often still the exception rather than the norm, but it was nevertheless encouraging to see so many passionate female tech professionals there. They are highly motivated, driven, and tech savvy, and striving to make changes for their organisations and the industry. They are also very effective at connecting with other professionals through business events and social media and are growing their networks for their own and their peers’ benefits.
Continued >
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Page 18 | A Woman in Data
On Being a Woman in Data As a women working in the technology industry, and more specifically data analytics and business intelligence, I have always enjoyed sharing my passion and enthusiasm for data and tech. Throughout my career so far, there have been a number of lessons I learnt and skills I developed, which helped me greatly, and I would like to share my insights for the benefit of others as they carve out their own path in this exciting industry. But first, allow me to backtrack a little and set the scene of how I got here, because, as with most things in life, it certainly wasn’t a straight path. I had access to the wondrous world of the Internet from the mid-90s when I started High School (thanks, Dad!) and owned a cell phone from when I was 14, but I would be lying if I called myself an early-adopter always at the cutting edge of technology; gadgets were pretty expensive then (and still are). I believe this early exposure sparked my interest in things other than ponies, pizza and movies. Fast forward a few years and I found myself studying Psychology, HR, Accounting and Commercial Law in Wellington, with my sights set on some sort of career in Human Capital. Thanks to my choice of Accounting (mainly due to the GFC hitting during my time at university), I came across the ‘Big 4’ and The Dashboard | Issue 2
Tableau Conference 2015 in Las Vegas
attended a presentation by Deloitte about their consulting firm.This was the first career-related ‘Aha!’ moment and I applied for a graduate role in their human capital (HC) consulting practice. While my application was successful, I found myself not in HC consulting, but rather in Technology Services, essentially at the other end of the spectrum, and most certainly quite far outside my comfort zone. Considering the global reputation and established capabilities of Deloitte, I decided to put my trust in them (they seemed to know what they were doing) and went for it. I established very effective and supportive relationships with my peers and managers and was able to quickly add value beyond client deliverables. This in turn resulted in new opportunities, including an extensive technical training in India, which was an outstanding experience. While most of these challenges really pushed me to learn quickly, adapt and
grow, I developed the courage to say yes to all of these opportunities that came my way. In hindsight, I recognised that being in Technology certainly came with unique and special opportunities in the form of projects and training, that do not exist to that extend in other industries. A search for warmer weather and ‘bigger things’ resulted in a move across the ditch, and in looking for a role in the finance industry in order to narrow down the subject matter I was dealing with and work on developing some specialist skills. Again, I found myself working for a great manager and leader who recognised my skills and capabilities, encouraged me to try out new technologies and, while being aware of my development areas, never doubted my ability to grow and learn.
Continued >
Page 19 | A Woman in Data
Having someone in your corner who not only believes in you, but also removes roadblocks so you can do your best work, and who speaks on your behalf when needed, was essential in nurturing my career and helping me gain more confidence even when I had to operate outside my comfort zone. During my time in the finance industry I came across Tableau, became a huge fan of the tool and subsequently shifted my focus more towards Data Analytics and Visualisation. With its very active online community or data-loving fans all around the world, I quickly connected with local users and Tableau software employees and attended a number of Tableau events, including the Melbourne based conference in March 2015. I had finally found my focus and my ‘professional passion’ and I wanted more. More Data, more Tableau. And I wanted to work with it every day.
The Dashboard | Issue 2
One of the first sessions at the Tableau Conference 2015, “Data+Women” featured a panel of prominent women who use data to build careers, serve communities and save lives. The take-home message? To inspire the next generation of young girls to become technology lovers and leaders in a field traditionally dominated by men. #datapluswomen
Which brings me to today, sitting at my desk at Tridant, whom I joined earlier this year as a consultant focusing on helping clients see and understand their data using Tableau, implementing the tool and teaching others how to use and make the most of it.
I have been fortunate in that I have never during my career experienced a situation where being a woman was an obstacle or used against me. More often than not, it has been embraced as an opportunity to bring a different perspective internally, and for our clients.
Again I have the benefit of a highly supportive management team, of people who were excited when I joined them. I’ve had a bunch of training opportunities over the last 6 months since I started here, as well as exciting and diverse projects in different industries and locations. My previous roles have led to this and I have ‘arrived’ with a suitcase full of tools and ideas, which now help me to contribute more to my role and the work environment.
Having become more confident over the years has helped me to become more assertive, a trait that is especially useful in a field where men still make up the majority of the workforce. Asking for the things I want, be it a training opportunity or a pay rise, hasn’t always been easy, but it sure is effective. If you don’t ask, you don’t get, and we have to stop assuming that other people can read our minds.
Continued > Page 20 | A Woman in Data
With all of this being said, I will leave you with the following tips, which I found invaluable in my career so far and which apply to other industries as well: Embrace new opportunities, especially if you’re still trying to figure out what you want to focus on in your career.
If something seems too difficult, consider saying yes anyway. You will most likely figure out a way to solve the problem, you will learn something along the way and you’re probably much more capable than you think.
Talk to those who are at a place in their life which you would like to reach for yourself. Ask them how they got there and create your own recipe for success.
Develop your technical skills, and keep learning and asking questions. The Dashboard | Issue 2
Ask for the things you want. Just ask, even if your voice shakes.
Surround yourself with supportive people and find someone who will speak up for you.
Bring your ideas to the table. Don’t be afraid to shake things up every now and then, suggest improvements and new methods. If they don’t get the warm welcome you’ve been hoping for, take on the feedback and take it from there. What’s the worst that can happen?
Help others. Don’t waste an opportunity to give other women (and men of course) a helping hand while you climb up your career ladder. Help them grow their talent and skills, because you never know when you may need to build a team of your own.
Be social. Go to industry events, ideally without a friend, so that you are more likely to meet new people and grow your network.
Be a team player and don’t be too proud to pick up the seemingly ‘menial’ tasks every now and then. A good leader notices your commitment.
Now over to you. What has been your personal experience regarding women in Tech? If you are a woman, what where the stepping stones and what were the stumbling blocks?
Eva Murray
Senior Consultant 1300 737 141 eva.murray@tridant.com.au Twitter: @trimydata Page 21 | A Woman in Data
Photo Gallery
Warren O’Keeffe
Our Tritons are fortunate to work across all states in Australia (plus ACT) and throughout Singapore. We recently exchanged a series of photos in an email chain, that demonstrated just how wide-ranging our clients are, and just how beautiful our places of work can be. There was a healthy dose of friendly rivalry, as we all tried to outdo each other, but it’s pretty clear that Jared Innes, with his stunning panoramas of Tasmania, was the clear winner *. *Results may be biased, as the writer recently visited Tasmania and had the time of his life.
Singapore
Nimrod Kuti
Nimrod Kuti
Nimrod Kuti
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Perth
Warren O’Keeffe
Page 22 | Gallery
Jared Innes
Dilan Gunawardana
Zac Anstee
Dilan Gunawardana
Tasmania The Dashboard | Issue 2
Jared Innes
Michael Taylor
Page 23 | Gallery
Russell Stuart
Eva Murray
Eva Murray
Russell Stuart
Sydney
The Dashboard | Issue 2
Eva Murray
Dao Stephenson
Page 24 | Gallery
Newsroom Partner Press Releases IBM Tableau
29 Oct | HostUs selects IBM Cloud to Drive Digital Transformation.
15 Oct | Premier of Victoria Officially Opens IBM Watson Client Experience Centre in Melbourne.
05 Nov | Tableau Reports Third Quarter 2015
24 Sept | GIG Radiology Reduces Diagnostic Image Review and Reporting by 45% with IBM Cloud.
29 Oct | Tableau Opens First Canadian Office
17 Sept | Localz wins IBM SmartCamp
Breakthrough Mobile App for Data Exploration.
Australia 2015 with innovative micro-location technology.
01 Sept | ANZ signs AU$450 million, five-year
strategic partnership with IBM.
25 Aug | Melbourne Spring Fashion Week
Styles Enhanced Digital Experiences for EventGoers Using IBM Marketing and Analytics Solutions.
20 Aug | IBM SmartCamp Australia 2015.
Financial Results.
in Vancouver.
20 Oct | Tableau Launches Vizable, A 19 Oct | Tableau Hosts 10,000 Data
Enthusiasts at Eighth Annual Conference.
05 Oct | Tableau Expands Analytics in the Cloud with AWS.
01 Oct | Tableau unveils new Asia Pacific
office in Singapore to mark Golden Jubilee.
28 Sept | Tableau Launches Free Software Program for Nonprofits.
Adaptive Insights Dec 02 | Global Investment Firm Saves Over
Oct 21 | Global Survey Reveals CFOs Seek
Nov 17 | Adaptive Insights Continues
Oct 21 | Adaptive Insights Drives Cloud CPM
Nov 16 |Adaptive Insights Named to Deloitte’s
Sept 22 | Adaptive Insights Recognized in
30 Days of FP&A Work Annually with Adaptive Insights. Momentum in Canada, Details Broad Partner Network. 2015 Technology Fast 500™ List for Fifth Consecutive Year.
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Single Source of Truth to Power Data-Driven Business Transformation.
in the Enterprise, Continues Upward Momentum with Record Q3 Performance.
2015 Gartner Critical Capabilities Report for Corporate Performance Management Suites.
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www.tridant.com.au
The Dashboard | Issue 02 - December 2015 Contributors: A Woman in Data: Eva Murray Meet the Tritons: Zac Anstee The Big Blue Titan: James WakeďŹ eld Photo Gallery: Jared Innes, Michael Taylor, Eva Murray, Warren O’Keeffe, Russell Stuart, Dao Stephenson, Nimrod Kuti & Dilan J. Gunawardana Edited & Designed by Dilan J. Gunawardana Special Thanks to Julie Morrison, Associate Director, Institutional Performance, Universty of Tasmania. Copyright 2015 Tridant | About Tridant
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