Need to break down resistance to model-driven decision making?

By Karina Babcock, Director Corporate Marketing, Domino on May 14, 2019 in Perspective

Join us at Rev 2 to hear Allstate’s Eric Huls discuss how he’s driven data science innovation in a conservative industry

How often do you face resistance from business staff and end-users when it comes to data and analytics? Many data science leaders say a lot of their most important work starts well before model development begins; because while there may be a lot of excitement for data science there’s also a lot of skepticism from business and end-users.

It’s not surprising for business leaders to question the value of a model-driven, the accuracy of model outputs, or even the applicability of data science recommendations. After all, often their in-depth industry knowledge and close customer relationships, honed from years in the trenches, have successfully guided their companies’ past growth. Organizational silos and traditional performance measurement systems regularly complicate matters by placing a business team’s spotlight on short-term goals ahead of longer-term opportunities.

When your data science teams share new opportunities and ideas with business teams do they hear comments like:

• “We’ve built our success doing things this way; why change?”
• “These models don’t reflect what our experience tells us.”
• “I know what’s best for my business unit.”
• “I don’t need you to focus on this larger problem; I just need data to back up this decision.”

If the answer is yes, consider attending Eric Huls’ Rev 2 presentation in New York next week. Eric, chief data and analytics officer at Allstate, one of the largest U.S. insurers, will be digging into the topic of change and sharing his team’s strategies for shifting company culture to embrace models throughout all aspects of their business.

Eric has a great perspective on the issue, especially when it comes to driving innovation in large and conservative companies (which are arguably among the most challenging of landscapes when it comes to end-user resistance). When Eric joined Allstate 19 years ago as an actuarial pricing analyst, the company used analytics primarily to predict risk and inform rates. Now, nearly two decades later, Eric leads a team of more than 300 people, building data and analytics solutions to create millions of targeted digital media impressions, process tens of thousands of claims, produce tens of thousands of quotes, and predict thousands of decision-making actions throughout every part of the organization, from products, sales, operations, marketing, and claims.

How did Eric achieve his success? Join us at Rev 2 on Thursday, May 23 in New York to hear Eric speak.

You’ll learn:

• What stops established companies from fully adopting analytics
• The right and wrong way to drive analytic adoption and disrupt long-held beliefs
• Tips to rebuild a company’s culture with analytics at its core
• Why creating a purpose-driven data and analytics team is important and how Eric has made his team a powerful presence across Allstate

This year’s conference, which will be May 23-24 in New York, features more than 60 industry leaders sharing insights into the biggest challenges in data science today—from scaling models and building model-driven cultures to ensuring responsible AI, with sessions customized for both practitioners and leaders.

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