Thirty percent of people that make New Year’s Resolutions break them within a month. So if you’re smoking a cigarette, eating a Twinkie, or charging those Prada shoes to a maxed out credit card while reading this newsletter, rest assured you aren’t alone.

There is one resolution this year that I’m sticking with – contributing to the advancement of the digital analytics profession.

Recently, I co-authored an article with Corry Prohens titled, Top 10 Tips: Advance Your Career in Digital Analytics, where we outline a few ideas on professional development for digital analysts. I’m also speaking at eMetrics San Francisco on a panel titled Analytics Career Development.

For me, this topic is top of mind in 2012. That’s why when I saw the results of a recent survey showing that WAA members valued the WAA Career Center as one of the Top 3 member benefits, it caught my eye.

I wasn’t very familiar with the WAA Career Center so I checked it out. There are two great resources there that I’d encourage you to check out as well.

The first, Career Guidance for Digital Analytics Professionals, is a downloadable guide for learning more about the digital analytics profession. The topics covered include:

• The types of companies analysts can work for;
• Typical hierarchy and responsibilities for each role;
• Educational and skill set requirements, including the importance of emerging skill sets; and
• Advice for those looking to break into the field, be promoted or find a new opportunity.

The second resource is the WAA Job Bank. In the month of January alone there were over 30 analytics job listings. This isn’t the usual hodge-podge of tech/analyst jobs you find on mainstream job sites; rather, all of the listings were exactly the type of roles that we analysts seek (not to mention a few listings in attractive locations like London and NYC).

Sometimes in the general governance of the WAA I get too caught up in dealing with strategies, policies, and the organization’s finances. Checking out the Career Center was a nice reminder of the tangible benefits that come with my WAA membership.

Go check it out yourself. You may be surprised.

Good luck sticking to your resolutions, whatever they may be. I hope one of them is to continue advancing your career (and the profession at-large). Collectively we can make the WAA the platform for powering our careers (and the careers of those that follow us) ahead.

Peter Sanborn
President

As the New Year begins, I pledge to better myself by helping others more.

As the old year fades into the past, I pledge to help grow the industry by being more inclusive and broadening my reach.

As the daylight dwindles and then returns, I pledge to expand my vision to every marketing metric I can get my hands on, whether it’s web data, email data, social media data, mobile data and/or etc.

As I struggle to write “2012” instead of “2011”, I pledge to tell people I am in marketing analytics, digital analytics, even business analytics, rather than saying I am in web analytics.

As the WAA enters its seventh year, I pledge to encourage new people to join and current members to participate while continuing to recognize those who contribute so much.

As the “United Nations General Assembly has declared 2012 as the International Year of Cooperatives, highlighting the contribution of cooperatives to socio-economic development, in particular recognizing their impact on poverty reduction, employment generation and social integration” (Wikipedia), I pledge to help new people find jobs in marketing analytics and continue my social media activities to improve our common bond.

As 2012 has been designated Alan Turing Year in recognition of the centennial of his birth, I pledge to be more tolerant of all people and less tolerant of times that I sound more like a machine than a person.

As more senior executives recognize the value of customer data exploration and correlation, and consider multiple analytics alternatives, I pledge to embrace new ideas and methods rather than denunciate others for encroaching.

Oh!…and eat less and exercise more.

Can’t forget that.

Jim Sterne
Chair, WAA Board of Directors

This November, I was in Philadelphia for the Annual Retreat of the WAA Board and the Philadelphia Symposium. Early one evening I went for a jog through the city. It was one of those perfect East Coast autumn evenings; cool and crisp with seasonal foliage at its peak. I wasn’t paying much attention to my route when all of a sudden, I found myself in the middle of a campground.

Huh? Why are people camping in the middle of the city?

Then I heard a raspy bull horn and it dawned on me I had just run into the middle of the "Occupy Philadelphia" camp. Fortunately, I wasn’t wearing my "Go Bulls!" Merrill Lynch t-shirt and the occupiers were, in fact, quite friendly. So I politely grabbed some of their literature, wished them well, and off I went.

It wasn’t until the next day at the WAA Symposium that it struck me how the "Occupy" movement and the WAA "Symposium" movement tap into the same basic human need. That is, the need to gather with like-minded individuals rallying around a cause.

In this age where more and more socializing happens digitally, that basic need to meet face-to-face has never been stronger. In fact, in a recent survey of associations worldwide, "quality of networking opportunities" was the #1 reason why people attend conferences.

You can read more about it later in the newsletter, but suffice it say the Philadelphia Symposium was a huge success! David McBride and Joe Sanders from Comcast, Heather Aeder from TrueAction, Annie Heckenberger from Red Tettemer, and the rest of the Steering Committee did an outstanding job.

For those of you living in a major metropolitan area, I’d encourage you to get together and start envisioning what your Symposium could be and then get in touch with the WAA. In addition to Philadelphia, WAA Symposiums are happening in Seattle, Austin, Los Angeles, New York, and Atlanta in the coming year.

So bring this movement to your local town. Let’s Occupy Analytics!

To learn more about the Symposium program, please email .

 

Peter Sanborn,
WAA President

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to witness first-hand one of the things that I love most about WAA. I originally joined WAA for a few reasons: to meet other analysts, to gain knowledge about the analytics discipline, and to learn what other companies are doing. All of these things came to life earlier this month at the WAA Seattle Symposium.

This year, the Seattle Symposium drew 350 analysts to the Microsoft campus to learn from a range of knowledgeable and gifted leaders in the field. We heard from some of the most recognizable names like Jim Sterne from eMetrics and Joe Megibow from Expedia as well as others, like Kevin Hilstrom, that were new.

We also heard from an incredible panel comprised of practitioners, consultants, and vendors that was probably one of the best panels I’ve heard in a long time. My favorite part of the discussion was the role of analytics in the recent Netflix debacle. You have to check that out.

And we have an easy way for you to experience the Symposium yourself with video from the Symposium accessible on the WAA website.

WAA also has Symposiums this coming year planned for:

• Philadelphia – November 2
• Los Angeles – January 18
• Austin – February 9
• Atlanta – May 2012

I hope you have the chance to view or attend a Symposium this year. Maybe you’d be interested in organizing one in your city. It’s a lot of work, but the WAA provides support with logistics, etc. and what a great way to build community among your local analysts.

Are you a new analyst looking for a way into the digital analytics industry? An analyst looking for advice on how to grow in your role or be promoted? Looking for a new opportunity?

For the past year, the WAA Membership Committee has been working on an initiative to provide WAA members with information regarding careers in the digital measurement industry.

We are pleased to announce two new resources available for WAA members, to help you understand the opportunities in the industry.

1. Compiled from the insight of a representative sample of industry perspectives (client, vendor, agency and consulting side), the WAA’s Career Guide for Digital Analysts (members only link) is an overview of careers in the digital measurement industry, including:
   • The types of companies analysts can work for;
   • Typical hierarchy and responsibilities for each role;
   • Educational and skill set requirements, including the importance of emerging skill sets; and
   • Advice for those looking to break into the field, be promoted or find a new opportunity.
2. A panel-based session at eMetrics New York (Friday 10/21 at 2.05PM) where client, agency and consulting side practitioners come together to provide an overview of a career in their type of organisation, and discuss their advice for a successful career in digital analytics.

At the same time, we are kicking off an initiative to encourage careers in digital analytics. As many of us know, the digital measurement is industry suffering a shortage of talent in the industry. This program is aimed to provide information and encouragement to people to consider a career in digital measurement.

Interested in learning more or getting involved? Please contact the Membership Committee.

Download the WAA Career Guide for Digital Analysts (members only link)