What Jiro Dreams of Sushi Teaches Us About Leadership, Craft, and High-Performing Teams

June 13, 2025June 13, 2025 by Vik

If The Bear revealed the raw energy and emotional complexity of teamwork under fire, Jiro Dreams of Sushi presents a quieter but no less powerful portrait of leadership. Jiro Ono’s Tokyo-based sushi restaurant, run with monastic precision, stands as one of the most revered kitchens in the world — and also one of the most instructive case studies for corporate leaders. In Jiro’s world, there are no performance reviews, OKRs, or corporate retreats. Yet his team consistently delivers at …

Leading Analytics Without Losing the Plot

June 6, 2025June 6, 2025 by Vik

In today’s data-saturated world, analytics leaders are under constant pressure to deliver more. More dashboards. More tools. More data. And yet, despite all that output, many teams struggle to drive outcomes that matter. Somewhere along the way, they lose the plot. This post is about staying grounded. It’s about leading analytics with clarity, avoiding common traps, and making sure your efforts connect back to what truly matters: progress, not just process. The Story Is the …

Throwing the Baby Out with the Bathwater? Maybe You Should.

May 30, 2025May 30, 2025 by Vik

We’ve all heard it: “Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.” In business, this phrase is often deployed as a caution against overcorrection. It urges us to preserve the core while cleaning up the mess around it. Fair enough, except when the core itself is the problem. The phrase assumes there’s a precious “baby” worth saving. But what if there isn’t? Or what if the effort to preserve it is what’s anchoring your organization to outdated …

10 Things Cobra Kai Teaches Us About Leadership and Focus

May 23, 2025May 23, 2025 by Vik

Leadership lessons don’t always come from boardrooms or business books. Sometimes, they strike hardest from an unexpected place—like a karate dojo. Cobra Kai, the modern continuation of The Karate Kid saga, is packed with drama, action, and yes, deeply relevant insights on leadership and focus. Just as The Bear showed us what kitchen chaos reveals about team dynamics, Cobra Kai brings clarity on how leaders rise, fall, and evolve under pressure. Here are ten principles every leader can take from the mat …

Data Contracts: Hype, Reality, and Practical Value

May 16, 2025May 16, 2025 by Vik

Over the past few years, data contracts have surged in popularity—touted as the missing link between data producers and consumers. Yet as with most trends in data architecture, hype often outpaces practical value. Let’s break down where data contracts truly shine, where they fall short, and how to think about them in the broader context of building scalable, trustworthy data platforms—and enabling effective data governance at scale. What Are Data Contracts, Really? At their core, data contracts …

AI Is More Than Just Generative: A Strategic Primer for Executives

May 29, 2025May 9, 2025 by Vik

AI is dominating headlines, boardroom agendas, and vendor pitches. But most of the attention is focused on generative AI — tools like ChatGPT that can create text, summarize documents, or even write code. These tools are impressive. But they’re just one part of a much broader AI landscape. For years, companies have used AI to forecast demand, detect fraud, personalize marketing, and reduce churn. These traditional AI applications may not trend on social media, but …

Pushing Through: The Leadership Muscle No One Talks About (But Everyone Needs)

May 4, 2025May 2, 2025 by Vik

Every business hits friction. Sometimes that friction is healthy; it creates checks, balance, and rigor. But too often, friction becomes inertia—slowing progress through convoluted processes, outdated systems, unclear ownership, or quiet resistance from those who’ve grown comfortable. That’s when pushing through matters most. Pushing through is a leadership muscle. It’s not soft power. It’s not charisma. It’s not consensus-building. It’s the ability to get meaningful things done—especially when the odds are stacked against you. And let’s …

40 Retail Analytics Use Cases Every Data Leader Should Know

April 25, 2025April 25, 2025 by Vik

Retail analytics is one of the most dynamic and mature domains in data. It sits at the crossroads of customer behavior, real-time operations, and constant decision-making. But here’s the truth: while the retail context is unique, the analytics patterns it relies on are highly transferable. Whether you’re in fintech, education, manufacturing, or SaaS, the tactics used in retail analytics—segmentation, forecasting, personalization, optimization—are universally applicable. Retail’s dynamic environment—marked by real-time customer behavior, high transaction volumes, and …

What Every Industry Needs in Their Marketing Stack (Even If They Call It Something Else)

April 18, 2025April 18, 2025 by Vik

Tools Change, Needs Don’t This is Part 3 in my Marketing Patterns That Work Everywhere series. In the earlier posts (Part 1 | Part 2), I shared how core marketing principles—like conversion, personalization, and attribution—show up across fintech, edtech, supply chain, manufacturing, and automotive. I know what you really want to know – what tech stack should be powering this. Simply put… you don’t need 20 tools. You need tools to support one clear loop: Track behavior → Store it …

What Car Shopping Taught Me About Marketing Funnels

April 11, 2025April 11, 2025 by Vik

This is Part 2 of my series on universal marketing patterns that work across industries. In Part 1, I shared five core patterns—lead generation, customer journeys, next best action, conversion, and attribution—and why they matter no matter what space you’re in. Lessons Travel Well Some of the best marketing strategies don’t start in a boardroom—they start in the field, solving real problems. What works in one industry often works in another, once you strip away the …

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