About the Metrics Geek

The Metrics Geek offers more than just pithy observation about metrics and measurement. Greg Brisendine (The Geek) is a Measurement Consultant offering strategic measurement services to Fortune 100 companies, small organizations, and everyone in between. Most organizations are awash in more data than they know what to do with and so lose sight of the fact that the purpose of collecting all that data is to take action toward continuous improvement. The Metrics Geek can help. Email the Geek for a free chat about next steps for you.

Evolution of a Geek

More than 20 years ago I worked for Florida Power & Light Company when those nice folks won the Deming Prize. Lessons were learned (many of them by me).

One of them, and the one that has lasted, was that the nature of linear time meant that “work” was  a series of relatively discreet steps and if I looked closely enough I could identify the steps and their relationship to each other. Once the relationships between work activities were identified, the measurable success criteria for each of those activities also became clear. This led to an understanding about the predictive measurement as a way toward continuous improvement.

Later, in career #2 (or 3, it’s tough to remember) I worked in a psychiatric hospital and learned how to “chart” on patients in the hospital. Psychiatrists and Psychologists taught me how to describe behavior in an objective fashion. No one “had attitude”, but instead would speak in an elevated volume, stomp away if challenged, and roll his eyes when given direction. By learning to be specific I learned better observation skills.

Present day…I’m on career number 7 or 8, but who’s counting? The combination of process-vision and objective observation means that I spend a good bit of time thinking about measurement.

  1. If we have statistics that show that people in some states are heavier than people in other states (on average), do airlines have higher jet fuel costs in the “fat” states? Would they be justified in charging more money if you fly out of one of these states?
  2. Are weather forecasts more highly correlated with actual weather since the introduction of radar? How much more?
  3. Does social media (Facebook, Twitter) contribute to better or worse communication between people? (hint: this one has more to do with the operational definition of communication than anything)