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

May 8, 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 But too often, friction becomes inertia—slowing progress through convoluted processes, outdated systems, unclear ownership, or quiet resistance from those who’ve grown comfortable.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 …

Beyond the Buzzwords: Marketing Patterns That Transcend Industries

April 4, 2025April 4, 2025 by Vik

Different Industries, Same Problems Every business thinks its challenges are special. And sure, industries can feel different—healthcare isn’t retail, and selling to a college isn’t the same as selling to a homeowner. But at the core, most teams are asking the same big questions: After working across industries, I’ve seen just how often these questions come up, regardless of the product or customer. The language might change, but the patterns don’t. This is the first …

What The Bear Taught Me About Leadership, Teamwork, and Mastery

March 28, 2025March 28, 2025 by Vik

At first glance, The Bear might seem like just another gritty kitchen drama—but beneath the loudness, noise and stress is one of the best explorations of leadership, teamwork, and the pursuit of excellence I’ve seen on screen. Whether you’re running a fine-dining restaurant or leading a tech team, the same ingredients show up: relentless attention to detail, a culture of trust, and the unglamorous but vital effort behind every great outcome. As someone who works in a …

Why Structured Data and Data Quality Matter More Than AI Hype

March 21, 2025March 21, 2025 by Vik

The Temptation of the AI Silver Bullet AI is having its moment. Everywhere you look, companies are rushing to implement large language models (LLMs), AI agents, and other cutting-edge techniques in hopes of solving their data problems. It’s easy to get swept up in the hype—after all, who wouldn’t want an intelligent system that magically fixes business data challenges? But there’s a fundamental issue that gets overlooked in this excitement: garbage in, garbage out (GIGO). If your …

Why You Shouldn’t Query Raw Data—And When It Makes Sense

March 8, 2025March 8, 2025 by Vik

I was recently asked why it’s not advisable to query raw data directly. The question caught me off guard at first, but it made me think deeply. Raw data is often viewed as the foundation of analytics, yet querying it without proper processing can lead to inefficiencies, inconsistencies, and potential misinterpretations. In this post, I’ll attempt to explain why querying raw data should generally be avoided, when it’s necessary to do so, and best practices …

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