10.23.06
Focus & Execute
I generally don’t read business books when they are first published. I had a boss who would change strategies & objectives based on whichever book he had just completed. So I became bitter and cynical about the genre. I wait a few years to see which books stand the test of time.
Recently, I finished Lou Gerstner’s Why Can’t Elephants Dance? — his rendition of the IBM turnaround. Gerstner provided an overview of the process. Folks looking for gory details will be disappointed. Two themes emerged: 1) hire the right people for the job & get rid of the wrong people immediately and 2) focus & execute.
Focus & execute requires you to develop your strategy & objectives and then put forth maximum effort into enacting said strategy & objectives. F&E also says if that strategy or those objectives aren’t working, even after a good faith effort in execution, then change your strategy & objectives. No sense going down with the ship.
Next up on the reading list is Larry Bossidy’s Execution. We’ll see how he and Lou converge and diverge. On the main point, I suspect they converge: business is all about execution. You can have a great product or service, but if you can’t deliver it to the customer, what’s the point?
Posted by Samantha.
10.14.06
Analyzing Affect & Language in Focus Groups
I recently attended a webinar presented by Itracks (www.itracks.com) about their Qualmetrix service, which analyzes focus groups transcripts for emotional dimensions. Essentially assessing the strength/weakness of participants’ feelings as expressed through language. Cool, yes. Useful, absolutely.
Itracks uses the Affect Circumplex Model from Dcypher (http://dcyphergroup.com/). Using the Dictionary of Affect in Language, Dcypher created the Affect Circumplex Model “to measure and differentiate discrete emotional states.” The model appears below:
The pleasant/unpleasant axis represents evaluative thoughts; excited/passive stands for action; imagery reflects how well the memory retains the thought. The Dcypher website explains the science much more clearly.
How the product works via Itracks is that you can upload your focus group transcripts into the Itracks interface and then run reports against those transcripts. Results are downloadable into Excel and appear numerically and graphically.
The real value of the product is that it attempts to provide a neutral analytical tool to help researchers assess customers’ true interest level in a product/service. A person may say he/she is interested in a new feature for a cell phone. By analyzing the language used, a market researcher can determine if the person is passionate enough to buy a new phone based on that new feature or simply thinks the new feature would be nice to have.
Posted by Samantha
10.07.06
Itracks: The Next Gen Focus Group
The Internet has been a boon for market researchers, enabling them to instantly and easily interact with customers. The key to successful interactions is the tool being used to collect the data. The more intuitive the better. Itracks Bulletin Board Focus Groups are an elegant, simple solution for online focus groups.
Itracks (www.itracks.com) offers a web interface that allows your moderator to post a series of questions and to monitor responses. Respondents can log on according to their schedules and post comments of all lengths. The top half of the screen may display product information, a website, or any type of graphic that you want respondents to review. Questions appear on the bottom left of the screen, and responses are entered on the bottom middle of the screen.
Moderators can adjust questions as they review responses in real time. Results can be downloaded at any time. Responses can also be analyzed for an emotional quotient.
Itracks will recruit respondents for either the online bulletin board or phone surveys, if needed. The company has a list of partner moderators if you don’t have your own moderator.
The pricing is quite moderate, and the set up time is minimal. For small and medium-sized businesses, the Itracks Bulletin Board Focus Group provides you with the tools and service that large companies regard as de rigeur.
Posted by Samantha.
10.03.06
What Do You Think About Content Management Vendors & Their Products?
We would like to invite you to participate in our Enterprise Content Management survey (http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=850352514114), which focuses on the drivers for both 1) the initial decision to purchase an ECM system(s) and 2) the selection of a particular vendor(s). You do not need to currently be using an enterprise content management/email management/document management/web content management/information management system to take the survey.
Tell us what you think about vendors and content management technology. What you like or don’t like? The results will be released as a white paper in October, in conjunction with our appearance at The Market Research Event (www.themarketresearchevent.com). At the end of the survey, you can sign up to receive an advance copy of the white paper.
Thanks in advance for participating!
Posted by Samantha
