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Theme that emerged in this week’s email is data can be a crystal ball!
QUOTES
“If you start to look at alternative datasets, you can get a much better and more timely read off what’s really happening in the economy.”
“A lot of their (health systems) energy is going into the delivery of care itself versus building data and analytics efficiency, historically. Now that’s changing.”
News Articles
Podcasts
Cool Charts
Final Thoughts (Network Effects)
#1 – Marianne Curphy of Raconteur published Why predictive analytics could be a crystal ball for businesses. December 2022.
My Take: A crystal ball would be nice. Data can help. But as the article states clearly: it ain’t easy. Like anything else in the world of data, implementing a strategy to make better use of your data takes time and resources. I have consistently seen how it is important get some “early wins” and get people excited about the potential of using data to help. More complex is not always better.
#2 – Healthcare Brew’s Maia Anderson summarizes an interview she had with Jesse Cugliotta, the global industry go-to-market lead for healthcare and life sciences at Snowflake. Snowflake exec on how health systems should use their data. December 2022.
My Take: The effective use of healthcare data is just getting started. The privacy issues with healthcare data add a significant layer of complexity. Cugliotta makes the point that “A lot of their (health systems) energy is going into the delivery of care itself versus building data and analytics efficiency, historically. Now that’s changing.” What doesn’t get mentioned I this is one in the same. Data & analytics efficiency will drive better patient care & outcomes.
The other interesting idea is the ability to put unstructured data to better use. The example used is x-rays. We can now digitize x-rays and structure the images in a way that makes is easier and more effective to evaluate thousands of patients to identify commonalities and trends. Really cool & this practice creates mountains of new useful data!
BONUS: Anna Lyudvig of Traders Magazine published Market Participants Focus on Data. January 2023.
“If you start to look at alternative datasets, you can get a much better and more timely read off what’s really happening in the economy.” Peter Hafez of Ravenpack.
BONUS 2: A second Traders Magazine article Outlook 2023: Tim Lind, DTCC. January 2023.
“In 2023, we expect the demand for alternative data to continue to rise, particularly if volatile market conditions persist.”
#1 – Voice of the Data Economy interviewed Bruce Pon of the Ocean Protocol. December 2022.
My Take: I’m interested and follow Ocean because they sit at the intersection of data & crypto, two interests of mine. Ocean Protocol is a “decentralized web 3 protocol to give people tools to own and control their data”. The stated goal is to create a “free and open data economy”. Like much of crypto, it seems they are still working on product-market-fit for their goal of facilitating data sharing. It seems blockchain would be a good fit as data needs to have strong provenance & controlled access. Interesting to follow, but it is a slow process … takes decades!
Highlights (41-minute run time):
Minute 01:30 – interview begins, background on Bruce and the mission of Ocean Protocol
Minute 03:00 – the Ocean story & examples of success stories
Minute 06:30 – how is Ocean token & community reacting to 2022 crypto downturn?
Minute 10:00 – how is Ocean protocol & community positioned for crypto winter?
Minute 12:45 – discussion of FTX impact; impact on trust
Minute 16:20 – is VC money good for crypto?
Minute 19:30 – discussion of freedom of speech (not data related conversation)
Minute 22:30 – what is your (Bruce’s) vision of free data economy on web3?
Minute 25:30 – why should data scientists have interest in web 3? Web 3 solves issues around provenance, access, control, and improves access
Minute 30:00 – how has your audience changed over time? 2023 focus now is on use case driven products.
Minute 34:15 – has GDPR worked? Good cause but execution is not ideal
Minute 38:00 – what projects garner the most interest and are most likely to get grants
Related article: Ocean Shipyard forges ahead in 2023 with 2M $OCEAN in funding. January 2023.
“Shipyard’s emphasis on DeFi in 2023 underlines Ocean’s ongoing efforts to manifest data as a new asset class; an asset class that anyone can access, own and trade. By establishing data as an asset class Ocean aims to unlock and empower an open Data Economy that breaks down data silos and enables access to quality data for the creation of new value, new products, new innovations and even new markets.”
Sheridan Johns, Enterprise Lead at Ocean Protocol
Source: David Teten from Versatile VC published The Investment Manager of the Future. One year ago.
Theme is more formal use of data & data assets.
Source: Network Effects
Timely review of the importance of networking as I am in Miami this week for the BattleFin industry conference.
TL;DR
Network professionally with effort & intention. Add value to the group.
The building & maintaining of your professional network is an effort worth spending a lot of time & energy doing well.
The benefits of strong relationships will compound over time. Start early, be consistent, and be intentional.
There is a tendency in a professional setting to make every interaction transactional. This is short-term thinking. People will see through you if it is obvious that you are only interacting with them to get something for yourself.
"close relationships, more than money or fame, are what keep people happy throughout life."
Invest
Invest time & energy. Be in the room. Go to conferences. Reach out when there is no reason to reach out (“just checking in to see how things are going for you...”). Participate. Beware the dangers of LinkedIn. LinkedIn connections are interesting but a LinkedIn connection is not the same as a relationship.
Be Genuine
Care about people, not just what you think they might be able to do for you. Be genuinely happy when friends find a great opportunity or get a lucky break. There is no room for envy. Alternatively, if something negative happens, you should connect. I’ve lost jobs in the past, the people that care enough to reach out at that time are meaningful.
Add value
A good example is this Alt Data Weekly email. This is just a summary of what has been written or recorded in my professional industry. With consistency, people will look to you as a filter for what they should be reading. The side benefit is you keep your name in front of people on a regular basis. Plus the authors/podcast hosts you highlight appreciate your efforts to further distribute their work.
Follow up & follow through
Do what you say you will do. It is shocking how many people don’t follow through. At times, this can be hard. Sometimes you have to deliver bad news. Let them know. Things occasionally take longer than expected. Let them know. Don’t go silent.
Thank you
Last, but certainly not least … say “Thank you” … often.
I enjoy this weekly read for so many reasons, but I enjoyed your parting comments in this one. DWYSYWD is something that we speak about often at FP. Much appreciated John.