I’ve taken the model and adapted it to the analytical process and developing analytical skills.. Level 1 people are good at gathering data and reporting the facts.. Level 2 people are go
Trang 1What, So What and Now What:
the analytic process
By Chris Garson Copyright 2012 Chris Garson Smashwords Edition
What, So What and Now what Maybe you’ve heard this before, I certainly didn’t invent it I learned the technique twenty years ago while training to facilitate team building sessions We used metaphors to train, activities such as sitting back to back in pairs and describing geometric shapes for partners to draw, or team exercises in Lego construction The lessons were always about communication and understanding team strengths and weaknesses and we used What, So What, Now What in the debrief to make lessons apparent We’d begin the
debrief by asking the participants What had happened Once the observations were on the table, we followed with So What, an invitation to speculate on the exercise’s meaning, which set the stage for Now What, when we asked what
from the exercise could be taken back to the workplace
I wish I knew who did come up with What, So what and Now what so I could give them proper credit A quick Google search turned up many articles describing this debriefing technique as a tool for the experiential learning cycle often used for parenting and in teaching I’ve taken the model and adapted it to the
analytical process and developing analytical skills I’ve trained managers to assess analytical capabilities using the What, So What and Now What scale and
a quality assurance training program was developed based on these three
questions
Individuals can be at level 1, 2 or 3 analytical capability, as are specific jobs The trick is to match up the analytical capabilities of the individual with the needs of the job
Level 1 people are good at gathering data and reporting the facts
Level 2 people are good at statistics, theory and proof
Level 3 people are good at turning theory into decisions
In any business, people at all three skill levels are needed Those operating at a higher analytical level typically rely on data and speculation provided by the lower levels Assess your people’s analytical capabilities against this model and job needs If they’re stuck at What, help them get to So What If they’re stuck at So What, help them get to Now What You’ll be glad you did It will make your job easier, and you more effective, in the long run
Any set of good business practices includes reporting measures One goal of reporting is to detect process failures and identify areas ripe for improvement, but
Trang 2what if we’re measuring the wrong thing or reporting it the wrong way? The What, So What and Now What model is a good measuring stick to assess your reporting Here’s how to use this simple model to make sure you’re measuring and reporting effectively
For every table of data, every chart or graph, make sure you have answers to these three sets of questions:
1 – What happened? Is the data clearly labeled? Are units of measurement,
the time period, and data filters visible? Are the axis scaled effectively? Does the data, chart or graph tell a clear story of what happened?
2 – So what? Data by itself is mildly curious, but has no value until meaning is
attached What theories spring to mind explaining the results? Why does the data look this way? Can a process change explain a change in trend? Have external factors affected the result?
3 – Now what? At the end of the day, managers are paid to make decisions
What decisions will you make from the data? If the data doesn’t help you
answer this question, then you may not be measuring the right thing
Ask yourself these three questions for every piece of data you produce If you manage others, you can develop them by insisting that they adhere to this
standard If you do, I guarantee you’ll stop reporting some measures and
discover new things to measure
A tip – annotate each chart with a sentence or two capturing What, So What and
Now What for the information you’re presenting It’s simpler than you think For example, a chart showing dealership car sales by customer zip code might
include this annotation “Car sales on the east side climbed for the third month in
a row while the west side stayed flat We believe this is due to less west side TV ads running due to the cable company geographic penetration combined with the approach our advertising agency takes to purchasing Going forward, we
recommend changing the ad buys as follows ….” A few short sentences
following each chart increases the value of your reporting immensely