Three Lessons ‘Jaws’ Offers Retail Analytics
This summer marks the 40thanniversary of “Jaws,” the landmark movie that turned summertime into a season of blockbuster films, made Steven Spielberg a household name and still causes many people to think twice before taking a dip in the ocean.
In honor of the enduring legacy of Capt. Quint, Chief Brody, Hooper and of course Bruce the shark, here are three lessons “Jaws” offers retail analytics professionals.
Don’t forget the humans
With the rush toward automation, optimization and other “-ations” that effectively replace human judgment and input with computer analytics, it is easy to assume that human experience and instinct are obsolete. This is a mistake.
In “Jaws,” it takes the experience and instinct of oceanographer Matt Hooper to realize it is in fact a great white shark terrorizing Amity Island. Then, veteran fisherman and shark hunter Capt. Quint uses his knowhow to find where the shark is lurking. Even though technology plays a key role in defeating the shark (more on that momentarily), Hooper and Quint’s personal insight is vital to identifying and locating the problem.
Similarly, even though today’s business intelligence solutions can process and analyze volumes of data at speeds no human could approach, personal instinct and experience is still vital in retail analytics. Once automated data analysis reveals previously undiscovered retail business patterns, human intelligence goes a long way toward discovering why those patterns exist and how to eliminate or duplicate them, as circumstances dictate.
Trust in technology
Trusting in technology does not negate the previous piece of advice to remember humans, but complements it. In “Jaws,” the not-altogether-stable Quint destroys the ship’s radio system, preventing any assistance from the Coast Guard so he can have the glory of defeating the shark all to himself. If you’ve seen the movie, you know how Quint ends up.
Human experience is a crucial component of analytics, but technology still ensures success. Personal bias, ego, and other variables that affect human judgment are notably absent from computer analytics. When Brody finally does kill the shark, he does so by exploding a scuba tank in its mouth, a decidedly higher tech solution than the 19th-century harpoons Quint had been using.
The right team gets it done
The three-man team who ultimately eliminated the shark threat at the end of “Jaws” was a group of very different personalities who didn’t always see eye-to-eye. Quint was irascible and old-fashioned, Hooper was excitable and academic, and Brody was pragmatic and level-headed. Each contributed something unique to the team, and their combined skillsets solved a major problem none of them could have tackled alone.
Similarly, retailers should ensure that their analytics teams include individuals with a variety of skillsets, backgrounds and personalities. This well-rounded approach ensures that whatever issue comes their way, the right personnel are on hand to resolve it using advanced tools.
For further illustration, consider this quote from Staples CIO Tom Conophy about how he assembles an IT department, delivered at a recent MIT event.
“Some parts of the IT function are performed in a very heads-down, traditional way,” said Conophy. “They’re not performed by the ‘killer instinct’ types. But we’re also getting a subset of innovators who are more competitive and interact with their business colleagues more.”