The Dashboard Effect

In this episode, Brick and Caleb outline the three pillars of a BI system framework: data lakes, data modeling, and data visualization. Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . Blue Margin increases enterprise value for PE-backed, mid-market companies by building and managing their data platforms. Our strategy, proven with over 250 companies to-date, expands multiples through data...

 In this episode, Brick Thompson hosts CIO John Manzanares, a seasoned IT leader and a board member for PE-backed field services, construction, transportation, and logistics companies, as well as the Society for Information Management. John shares insight into: - How a Midmarket Commercial Services Company Monetized Their Data - Why Data Lakes are Key to the Buy-and-Build Strategy - How Microsoft’...

In this episode, Blue Margin consultant Greg Brown interviews John A. Lanier, CEO of Middle Market Methods. John shares insights into his approach to value creation road-mapping as well as his strategies for identifying areas for operational improvements and addressing the misalignment that commonly occurs between PE sponsors and portfolio company executives.    Click here to watch this episode on...

In this episode, Brick and Caleb discuss the importance of preparing your data environment for the arrival of AI tools. They highlight the advantages of a data lake, a flexible repository for storing and integrating data, making it easier to analyze and report on. By having an established data lake, organizations can seamlessly leverage upcoming AI tools without having to scramble to access data i...

In this episode, Brick and Caleb discuss ChatGPT - its current capabilities, shortcomings, and anticipated impact on BI. They offer some advice about preparing your company data to leverage these advancing technologies.   Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strate...

In this episode, Kate Eberle and Brick Thompson discuss the benefits of using a data lake instead of a traditional data warehouse during the first 100 days of a company's acquisition by a private equity firm, citing its ability to speed up insights, offer a consolidated view of data from different add-ons, and act as a sandbox for determining operational key performance indicators (KPIs). Dat...

In this episode, Brick and Will, Solutions Architect at Blue Margin, discuss the four areas of questioning he uses when interviewing SMEs or stakeholders for building a report. It's important to understand the context first before choosing the right metrics and slicers to ensure that the report is actionable and meets stakeholders' needs. Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube c...

In today’s podcast, Blue Margin consultant Greg Brown hosts Vishy Venugopalan, Managing Partner of Weave Growth Partners. Vishy brings the Silicon Valley playbook to lower midmarket deals by melding his knowledge of tech startups, investing, and both descriptive and prescriptive analytics. The interview explores the ‘why’ behind private equity’s slower adoption of data driven practices, correlates...

In this episode, Caleb and Kate discuss important KPIs for the manufacturing industry. While there are no one-size-fits-all solutions, they outline and provide insight on the leading and lagging KPIs that have helped our midmarket manufacturing clients improve sales operations, inventory management, labor and machine utilization, and cash flow. Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube chann...

In this episode, Brick and Caleb talk about the importance of making sure business users of BI understand the underlying data sources and their capabilities and limitations. It'll help maximize the value of your BI efforts. Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on...

In this episode, Brick and Caleb share Blue Margin's journey of transitioning to a culture of data transparency and the widespread benefits of tracking and sharing individual metrics across the company. Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create...

In this episode, Brick and Caleb discuss how to get internal buy-in for BI by making a clear connection between your BI projects and the anticipated ROI. Mentioned in this episode: Elgin Fasteners case study Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create...

In this episode of Expert Insights Series, hosted by BI Consultant Greg Brown, we feature Brian T. O’Neill of the company Designing for Analytics. Brian shares his deep experience in how to create value from data projects and the impact of human-centered design on business outcomes. Designing for Analytics website: https://designingforanalytics.com/ Experiencing Data podcast: https://designingfora...

In this episode, Brick and Caleb discuss different causes of untrustworthy data, and how to expose and address it to avoid flawed decision-making and improve adoption of your BI efforts. Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create a culture of accounta...

In this episode, Brick and Caleb tackle some of the misconceptions around making your organization data-driven, and some of the steps you can take to do it successfully.  Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create a culture of accountability. We call...

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . This episode of Expert Insights Series, hosted by Jon Thompson, features Tracy Hockenberry Senior Program Manager at Eaton (85,000 employees worldwide) and former Director of Enterprise PMO at New Story Schools, an Audax portfolio company that worked with Blue Margin to focus the team on the critical value creation metrics. She offers persp...

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . In this episode, Brick and Caleb discuss the likelihood and value of iterating your BI solutions. You should expect and embrace it. Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create a culture of accountability. We call it The Dashboard Effect, the title of o...

Click here to watch the episode on our YouTube channel . In this Expert Insights interview, Greg Brown, BI Consultant for Blue Margin, hosts Anthony Algmin of Algmin Data Leadership, host of podcast Data Leadership Lessons , instructor at DATAVERSITY (dataversity.net), and author of Data Leadership: Stop Talking About Data and Start Making an Impact!   Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mi...

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . In this episode, Brick and Caleb discuss four simple things you can do to improve BI adoption in your company. Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create a culture of accountability. We call it The Dashboard Effect, the title of our book and podcast ....

Click here to watch the episode on our YouTube channel . Click here to read the companion article. This episode of Expert Insights Series, hosted by Jon Thompson, features operating partner Brian Potts of One Rock Capital. During diligence, Brian assesses investment growth potential, and post-acquisition, he sets and executes portfolio companies’ sales and marketing strategies. He has 25 years of...

Click here to watch this episode on our YouTube channel . In this episode, Brick and Caleb discuss self-service BI, what it is, and some of the considerations for making it happen in your company. Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data into dashboards to execute on strategy and create a culture of accountability. We call it The Dashboard Effect, the tit...

Click here to watch the episode on our YouTube channel . In this Expert Insights interview, Jon Thompson hosts Vice Presidents Eric Weiss and Mike Marotta of Power ON. Founded in 2015, Power ON has 50 employees across the globe, and over 20 Fortune 100 customers. The company’s toolset extends Microsoft Power BI features, enabling real-time write-back and collaboration for planning, variance analys...

Click here to watch the episode on our YouTube channel . In this episode of our Expert Insights Series, Blue Margin's CSO, Jon Thompson, interviews Tania DiCostanzo, VP of IT, Strategic Initiatives and Data Analytics for Trace3, a $2bn IT and managed services company. Tania is at the forefront of using data visualizations to ignite business growth. Listen to her insights on the power of data...

In this episode, Brick and David Dimmen discuss a high-level overview of Blue Margin's approach to ETL and data warehouse architecture. Warning: This one is a bit on the technical side. Consider viewing the YouTube version of this episode here so you can see the diagrams David refers to during the discussion. Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organize their data...

Click here to watch the video on YouTube, or read the highlights here: https://bit.ly/3BaYX8O. In today's podcast, Jon interviews John Parent of Industrial Growth Partners (IGP Equity) as part of our ongoing Expert Insight Series. John shares IGP's approach to working with their portfolio companies to maximize alpha. Blue Margin helps private equity owned and mid-market companies organiz...