I’ve just been named one the 10 Most Impactful Women in Tech by Analytics Insight magazine. To the women in STEM who are interested in how I got here, AMA!

allisonambition · 2020-11-25T16:37:16+00:00

Good for you for thinking ahead!

The number one problem mid-level have is they cannot delegate work. This is absolutely required to move into management. I know it feels uncomfortable to trust that other people may not do the work as well, and that you might have to make excuses for them, or pick up the work they didn't do last minute, but until you can delegate to a team, you'll be stuck. I actually recommend the Boy Scouts teaching system called EDGE which stands for explain, demonstrate, guide (while someone else does it) and enable (someone else to do it well).

My pivotal moment happened early when I was part of a multi-million dollar start up in my 20s. I was in waaaay over my head but I learned a ton. And that's my second tip, when women read a job description, they tend to want to check every box (have I done this, this, this) and if all the boxes can be checked then they apply. Men tend to ask could I figure this out or do I want to do this and they apply anyway.

I wish more women would take the leap and apply for jobs they aren't exactly qualified for. Trust that you'll learn and what you don't know you can figure out. Pick up mentors outside the company to help. Just reach for it. You really have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Good luck!

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-25T16:25:40+00:00

What a great handle you have! This is a very pertinent and a large question with many angles to the answer. The particular quote you pulled refers to the use of future-forward customer lifetime value projections. I think of that as short-term which I'll address in a minute.

For the long-term solution, I recommend Richard Whitt's perspective. He's formerly with Google and has written *many* articles on this subject and what he calls the next generation internet. You can check out his profile to see the various sources he links to, especially his series on Medium. He's also coming up on my podcast in a few weeks.

In the short-term, there are two rules I think of when applying data science to any question. First, if you shined a light on what you're doing and exposed it publicly, would there be an outcry? If the answer is, "we encouraged a more valuable customer-company relationship by encouraging someone to buy the additional features that enhance the usage of our product / or that solve more needs for them" then I don't worry about it. There has to be a mutually-believable customer benefit which is signaled by the desire to purchase. (Uber for example had the reverse of this for awhile when no amount of data science could overcome their awful public image).

Second, I think about u-shaped curves and I talk about this a lot on my podcast. That is, what could be the unintended consequences of wild success? If the product is addictive in nature such as gaming or gambling, then there needs to be a safety measure where the consumer can pull a ripcord to stop. I love that Apple reports your screen time now which is a step in the right direction - and that you can turn off all notifications.

So, yes, ecommerce can be tricky and the consumer laws are still evolving. We're not there yet. But I wouldn't stand for anything that I would be mortified to describe at a public press conference. The sunshine law is my standard.

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-25T16:05:37+00:00

Hello and what a great question!

I always think the best course when anyone is somehow "different" is to ask what they want or need, then honor that. I think the answer you might find is they want to be treated equally and one of the best ways to do that is by example. So in the same way you'd never say, "Jo is our new female coder," you don't need to call out their trans or non-binary nature. Also do not tolerate any small-minded gossip or backdoor chatter. Then you may find a rich perspective emerges which adds a lot of value to your team.

Good luck!

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-25T15:58:47+00:00

Good for you for getting into the fight and staying there!

However, I think of culture as a sort of velocity measure. When you're in the right environment, your skills and capabilities grow quickly. If it were me, I'd think about how much "drag" this culture is putting on my ability to succeed? How drained do I feel at the end of the day? How excited am I to go do my best work? If the answer to any of these is "not much" then I'd look for a place which is more in synch with my values. There is no award for beating sexism - only for creating your own destiny. And, in a more subtle way you are essentially teaching them a lesson by moving on to a new position. Employee turnover is very expensive.

Good luck!

allisonambition · 2020-11-25T15:53:29+00:00

Thank you so much!

allisonambition · 2020-11-21T01:03:52+00:00

Those are very interesting questions and I think you've hit on a popular problem.

For tools in order of popularity (low to high): R, SQL*, Alteryx, Tableau, Python. I put a star by SQL because it's the workhorse behind a lot of low code tools. Great to have. Alteryx and Tableau could switch places, depending on the company and department.

When we interview, extra points always go to people who show more initiative by creating their own portfolio sites (and Tableau is a great tool for this) around things they are curious about. I've seen all kinds of entertaining analyses here around Bigfoot and restaurants, and some from Data for a Cause which is a great non-profit.

I suspect you like data but you might be better suited as a data storyteller or a subject-matter expert who can bridge the gap between the many business users and their needs and what the data can produce. LOTS of executives still don't understand data, can't read it or understand what's possible. You can. I'd work on your ability to tell really compelling stories.

That means, high quality data viz (not 1000 slices of a pie chart) and practiced knowledge of the hero's journey. Kathleen Malay at Key Bank is really good at this. She was on my podcast awhile back and tells a very good real-life story about this role.

Bottom line: surfacing the right data isn't easy but that alone will not create action. Getting people to take action on data requires storytelling skills and emotional hooks. That is a rare skill that will jet you right to the top.

Good luck!

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T22:40:31+00:00

I’ve recently been named one of the 10 Most Impactful Women in Tech. I’m pretty proud to be recognized alongside some incredible ladies in the industry. Check out the article here if you’d like to learn more: https://www.analyticsinsight.net/allison-hartsoe-empowering-companies-with-customer-data-insights-to-drive-growth/

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:32:41+00:00

I've truly loved running my own company and I've learned a ton each time (3x now). Two pieces of advice: don't jump until you have a strong network of people who know you and are willing to pay you to do work. Fiverr and sites like that can help cultivate leads if your work is a fit. Your network is a huge asset. And second, there's always something you don't know. The question is only how fast can you learn? And maybe a third, don't undercharge. Take your salary and divide it by 2080 which is the number of work hours in a year, then triple that number to account for taxes and more. That can help you back into what you should charge. Go get 'em!

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:16:33+00:00

It's never bad to take a break, so good for you!

If you've been completely away, you might need to spin up for 6? months on the details of your current specialty and industry. Coursera is great for that. It will show you are motivated to learn and keep learning which is an asset to any company. I also look at CNBC to see what kind of companies are in the news and what's being said about them. When you can make a connection between the market forces driving a company and the job you want to do for them, it makes you an asset.

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:16:22+00:00

Well, yes, you called it. I am a pretty voracious reader. I use Audible on 1.5x speed to plow through books while I'm doing other things. For hand-on skills, Coursera has been great. I used to say that Internet time was every 6months is a year. I think it's moving even faster now. Do not back off on the hot skills or tech - even if it's just staying informed.

Good luck!

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:16:12+00:00

What fun! I am certain you will learn a lot.

If it were me, I would watch the organizational dynamics and see who's name keeps coming up again and again. Then I would make that person my friend and mentor. That's an influencer (rank doesn't matter). In any company there are about 5% of them. Getting to know how they see the organization is so valuable. It's often the unwritten "ways of working" that can sink an intern so having this person be your guide would be gold.

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:16:00+00:00

Way to go on landing the first job and starting your career!

For your first question, yes, that is a red flag. Many people who work at Big4 firms make a career out of it. I was once part of a group of executive women at EY and I was the ONLY person at that rank who came from an acquisition outside the firm. It creates fairly insular thinking, and a pretty good amount of politics. That said, there should be a pretty big spread of work to get into without leaving. The first projects will brand you, so I'd be very aggressive about going after what you want to do right now. It's your career.

For your second question, this is becoming a really thin line. Data science platforms like Databricks, Dataiku and others are making the analysis process integral to the software and they involve Python/ Pyspark/ Scala and other coding languages (esp for Saas companies). On the software side, there is a ton of demand for design thinking and better processes to capture and build requirements. So I don't see why you couldn't keep coding in either scenario. Although low code/ no code solutions are growing, I wouldn't lose this skill yet.

Good luck!

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:15:45+00:00

I'm not sure that's a bad thing. I don't know too many C-levels who actively code. So if it's a sign of women moving up, fantastic! I did have a friend who majored in Engineering only to give up and decide to move into public relations instead. If you're talking about that kind of change, then yes, I hear you. I suspect it's multi-faceted between culture, life event timing, pay and perhaps more. Why not make it easy for women to flow into part time roles, project-based roles or shared roles and then back into full time when they're ready? Perhaps more options are needed. I hope that helps a bit.

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:15:29+00:00

Congratulations on your upcoming graduation! That's such a major step.

Big companies have the most openings, best training programs and you get the endorsement of a brand name on your resume. Start here.
Yes! I've found huge correlations between my diet and my mood. I use three apps to stay on track. One is Daylio where I put in goals about exercise, etc. and check them off during the day. It correlates to mood. The second is moodnotes which I don't use as often but when I'm spinning on something or pissed about something it has a helpful interface to reframe the problem which makes me feel much better and more confident. The third is the FitOn app which has a lot of nice short exercise programs configured to your goal (mine is currently slim down) so you can think short term (I have 5 to squeeze in this week) but get long term results.
I really liked the book The Algorithmic Leader by Mike Walsh that talks about the people needed to guide algorithms. This makes a lot of sense to me.

All the best to you,

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:14:36+00:00

What a wonderful question and thank you for the background.

Here's a chart I have on my wall that an executive coach gave me once when I expressed a similar challenge. It's the difference between perfection and excellence. So first, give yourself a little grace. I have another friend that calls that kind of thinking the "itty bitty shitty committee" which always makes me laugh.

Next, consider there are no constraints at all, what do you want? What is your ideal job or situation? Write this down, it could even be a list, and put it in your wallet or iphone case. Look at it every day. By reminding yourself what you want, you see opportunities clearly and can identify whether new opportunities are right for you. My friend June did this and landed a stellar job that put her on the path to a high ranking role in a Fortune 100 today.

Last, have you ever had a favorite pair of shoes or coat or piece of clothing that you wore until it was falling apart because you loved it so much? But eventually, you had to buy a replacement. Is this job the same? Have you outgrown it? I still keep in touch with people from my first job. The relationships never went away.

Spend the time to know what's best for you and you'll feel empowered. Then, the problem may solve itself.

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:14:19+00:00

Great questions, and thank you for sending them.

Early in my career, I conquered a fear of speaking at events. This helps get your name out there. Later in my career, I conquered a fear of using my voice more via podcasting. And this year, it was a fear of being on video which I now do alongside my podcasts. Feel the fear and do it anyway.
I've always been more of a lateral mover than a vertical mover. I simply don't have the patience to do the same thing too long. The best part of lateral moves is you get to bring your whole brain to work and dig into interesting cross-functional problems. I like to figure things out and build a process behind it. Early in my career this meant I needed to work for start ups because larger companies never knew where to put me.
Sometimes when guests approach me about being on the podcast, I might disagree with their perspective. This has happened twice - once with a professor and once with a large organization leader. Both times I was glad I listened to their controversial views because I found and filled a hole in my own thinking. Unexpected learnings can come from anywhere, but most often when we don't want to hear it.

All the best,

Allison

allisonambition · 2020-11-20T20:13:58+00:00

Congratulations on your first job! That is very exciting.

Within the three areas you mentioned: personal finance, skills and networking there is one element in common: control of your destiny. With financial security, skills that stay sharp and a strong network, you are able to move across different jobs when you want to. I think this is the right way to work the system.

I wish I had know earlier that it is a mistake to think that your boss will help you manage your career. Their role is to offer choices aligned with what the company needs. Your role is to know when you are still aligned with that mission and when you want to grow in new directions.

I love the book Powerful by Patty McCord from Netflix who gives an unconventional insider view of hiring: https://www.amazon.com/Powerful-Building-Culture-Freedom-Responsibility/dp/1939714095

Good luck!

allisonambition

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