The MSBA students’ Current Topics class was fortunate to host Dennis Gammon as a guest speaker this semester and learn directly from his experience as a seasoned industry professional. Students left Dennis’s engaging and interactive talk feeling inspired to innovate using analytics.
After graduating with his MBA from BYU, Dennis began working with data at YRC Worldwide, a Fortune 100 trucking company. He then went on to work in the insurance industry, taking on roles like senior manager of business analytics at Farmers Insurance, and director of business automation and transformation at American Family Insurance. He now works for a start-up, QOC Innovations, where he oversees solution delivery for all clients. Dennis explained how much of his work in these roles focused on uncovering areas of operational inefficiency and using analytics to not only develop solutions but to prove their financial significance to executives.
Hands-On Problem Solving
Embracing this experiential learning opportunity, students we able to interactively engage in the problem-solving process Dennis used during his first project at YRC Worldwide. Tasked with finding a more efficient way to analyze data from 500,000 shipments and determine competitor rates, students asked questions regarding the “re-rate” method options. Dennis used a whiteboard to help them visualize the costs and benefits associated with each and explained the importance of questioning things others in the company do not, to uncover untapped potential. Collaborating to arrive at a solution, students were able to better understand the data driven processes companies use to remain competitive.
Optimizing with Automation
Dennis also walked students through case studies from his time working in insurance. This opened the discussion for topics especially relevant in today’s technological landscape like AI and automation. At American Family Insurance, they noticed an abundance of time and productivity loss because of workers doing tedious tasks manually. He explained that “it is possible to do automation the right way and be caring and friendly,” and his team’s goal was always to make jobs easier rather than eliminate them. Documenting the amount of time saved because of the implemented robotic process automation (RPA) efforts were vital when persuading executives to expand their reach. Indeed, he and his team contributed $15-20 million sustained productivity gains annually.
Data Visualization Tips
Dennis leveraged the lecture date, 3/14, also known as “Pi Day,” to drive home key points about data visualization to students. Pie charts, which are not intuitive and require additional effort to interpret, should never be used. Dennis validates that communicating the meaning of data to non-data people is a vital skill for those looking to enter the field. He shared his experience backed suggestions to students:
- Do not trust the software to work for you – you may need to guide it into producing the outcome you want.
- Do not trust other people’s opinions or directions – most people are conditioned to prefer bad design because its familiar.
- Study principles of good design and apply them – less is more, aim for a high data: ink ratio, use color sparingly.
Dennis’ parting advice to students was to “learn some programming because you’ll need it, use AI wisely, and save pies for dessert.”
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