Hi! Welcome back! In this post, I will discuss an update about my research speech and the new knowledge I have gained from conducting primary research (interviews).
The last week of ISM has been quite nerve-wracking, from presenting my research speech about the three most essential parts of data analytics I have learned so far and conducting another research interview.
I had been practicing my research speech multiple times a day for the days that led up to Tuesday. I remember practicing in the library during my first period, facing the large glass windows, pretending there were people there. When I came to class, I was nervous but found some relief when our teacher told us we had the first half of class to prepare. I took advantage of this time and meditated for 15 minutes to calm myself down, sitting at my desk with my eyes closed and listening to calming music. This is something I do when I am stressed or have a lot on my mind, and it allows me to take a break and recharge to do my best. I went after another student (thankfully, I wasn’t the first to present) and was barely short by a few seconds. I realized I had spoken relatively fast and still had a minute or so left, but it was all over before I knew it. Something I asked other students in my class was if they could understand what I had talked about. A majority of them were able to because I explained statistical concepts – such as voluntary response bias, outliers, undercoverage, and unrepresentative data. These were all things I had learned in my AP Statistics course. I was also told I incorporated the quote you see every time you open this website quite well, and overall, I thought I did much better than I would have expected.
Later that week, I scheduled another interview with Mr. Saurabh Aggarwal, a director at Salesforce. In the interview, I was able to learn so much and truly understand the application of data analytics in both marketing and sales. I was able to learn the best marketing techniques for B2C and B2B companies, as well as understanding consumer behavior. Similarly, I was also able to learn about common mistakes made when using data for marketing insights. I could understand other concepts, such as financial forecasting, as I had known this last year and again in my microeconomics course. A critical difference between the goals of a startup and a company is that startups focus on reaching a large audience, while more prominent companies focus on productivity and efficiency. This is important to reach the equilibrium point of profit maximization while having a good customer relationship management process. I learned about the tools used to analyze marketing and sales data and how these data-driven insights are used at Salesforce.
My ISM journey has been eye-opening, and I wish I had been able to take this course earlier in my high school career, as with everything I read and everything I learn (whether from professionals or research), I can connect this knowledge to the real world. I am growing every day, facing fears, and honing my skills, ensuring myself a successful future.
Thank you for reading! I hope to see you back next time.
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