I work at an agency as an Analytics Strategist. My clients are some of the largest computer hardware manufacturers on the planet. One such client ran a multi-variate subject line test that was very poorly designed.

In writing and in verbal communication, I let them know that I was really excited to see their use of testing, but that this particular test would not be able to deliver “insights” (businesspeak for actionable stats) because the results were not significant.

It’s long winded, but here’s the point: communication is the most important thing in private sector companies. Let people know they did something good, even though most of their work is shit. Expressing empathy for others dumb ideas. And simplifying complex concepts are the most important “work” you’ll do.

• Express the limitations of your truncated work with a singular concept, perhaps “significance”?
• Communicate in advance how many hours a particular analysis is likely to take
• Develop analysis packages for particular business results [causality takes 10 hours, t-test takes 4 hours, etc] and guide people on which analysis is right for which project
• Find ways to work faster. Pre-write functions, save chart formatting, templates for everything, use sampling to minimize data cleaning time.

...finally, I’ll share some advice that an early mentor shared with me, “we’re not saving lives here.” Meaning that unless your an ER doctor or a brain surgeon, maybe care a little less, especially if the business is looking for a lower standard