Cedric Chin, a leading voice in business writing and creator of XMrit, dives into the transformative power of understanding variation in business. He discusses his journey from frustration with Excel templates to developing a groundbreaking tool for data analysis. Cedric emphasizes that progress is a marathon, not a sprint, and reveals how XMR charts can distinguish significant changes from normal fluctuations. Unlocking intuition through effective data interpretation may be the hidden superpower your business needs!
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insights INSIGHT
Data-Driven Curiosity
Cedric Chin's interest in data-driven companies stemmed from his content marketing work for a BI company.
This experience exposed him to dysfunctional data usage and sparked a quest to understand effective data-driven practices.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Working Backwards Connection
Cedric Chin's work summarizing the book "Working Backwards" led to a collaboration with Colin Breyer, Jeff Bezos's second "shadow."
Breyer recommended Donald Wheeler's "Understanding Variation," a pivotal book about XMR charts.
insights INSIGHT
XMR Chart Impact
XMR charts fundamentally change one's perception of reality by revealing underlying patterns in data.
They played a crucial role in quality improvement during World War II and the Japanese economic miracle.
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Working Backwards provides a detailed look at Amazon's approach to culture, leadership, and innovation. The book is written by Colin Bryar and Bill Carr, who collectively have 27 years of experience at Amazon. It outlines the company's 14 leadership principles and how they are applied in practice, focusing on customer obsession, long-term thinking, and operational excellence. The book is divided into two parts: the first part explains the leadership principles and practices, while the second part includes case studies on the development of products like Kindle, Amazon Prime, and Amazon Web Services. The authors provide practical steps and insights that can be applied to any business, regardless of size or industry[2][4][5].
Understanding Variation
Donald Wheeler
In today’s episode, I'm joined by Cedric Chin, a leading voice in business writing and the developer of XMrit, a revolutionary tool for business data analysis.
We'll explore the secrets behind mastering skills and leading effectively, and how progress is a marathon, not a sprint. Cedric shares his journey of turning frustrations with Excel templates into a game-changing tool, and we discuss why understanding variation could be your hidden superpower.
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by data or struggled to make meaningful improvements in business, this conversation is for you. Let’s get started!
Show Highlights:
Learn insights about data-driven companies [05:12]
This is the source behind most Amazon ideas [07:17]
How to change your approach towards business and life? [09:44]
Discover how XMR charts give you an understanding of variation [12:33]
Navigating the significant and insignificant changes [14:31]
Can your business grow by only talking to customers? [16:40]
This is how you can get an exceptional variation [20:21]
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