... Is a far bigger question, far more difficult to answer, and far more complex than a simple what or where or when.
For analysts - and I would associate myself with analysts more than planners after a decade and a half in this business - the biggest question is "why are things working or not working?"
Data can immediately show differences, trends, and similarities. Across time. Across groups of people. Across brands.
Models and equations can dissect components of a certain result into pieces and their future effects predicted with some confidence through true- or pseudo-simulation in a wargame or in a PC.
All these however are simple answering "what, when, where".
"Why" deserves a bit more than just crosstabs, coding, and modelling.
"Why" tells us underlying stories behind correlations. It tells us why certain interventions work and some don't. It tells us why certain scenarios existed in the past - and what elements would foment the same in the future.
That's what separates analysts from data crunchers.
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