I had the opportunity to hear Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer speak at the Executives Club of Chicago http://www.executivesclub.org/ today. His topic: “The Role of Innovation in Changing Economic Times.” One statement stood out from the rest. He said that when he asks CEOs what their number one challenge is, the response is overwhelmingly “I still can’t get the information I need about business performance.”
I wonder if Steve asked them “why?” And because this wasn’t just Steve and me, chewing the fat over a couple of Italian Beef sandwiches (sweet and hot peppers) and cold schooners of beer (okay, it got pretty steamy in Chicago today and a couple of cold ones sound fantastic right now), I didn’t have the opportunity to ask him. However, I have to think that the true challenge for these CEOs was getting the information they need to make better business decisions. Information is a foundation, and insight is an important step forward, but it’s not the ultimate goal. The goal is making better business decisions.
Information + Analysis = Insight
Information + Logic = Decisions
Having access to the right information is a requirement, of course. Having good analytical tools can help transform that information into insights. The second half of the challenge “to make better business decisions” is assumed, yet how you get from insight to decision is often ignored. It’s only when decision logic consistent and managed that businesses can make better business decisions.