Combine analytical ability with experience to solve problems: experts

Analytical ability alone or years of experience in a certain domain is not sufficient to solve the “wicked problems” that organisations and nations are now facing, speakers said yesterday.

Rather, a combination of the two will suffice, they said at the launch of the pi STRATEGY's fourth volume of 'Insight Series' thought leadership publication, held at The Westin hotel in Dhaka.

Gowher Rizvi, international affairs advisor to the prime minister, highlighted the importance of having a balance between data-driven strategy and intuition-based decisions.

“Only when you can bring the analytical and the intuitive together that you can unlock the winning combination.”

But the combination remains hard to come by at once, he said, adding that having one without the other can be dangerous. Kamal Quadir, chief executive officer of bKash, warned against the use of intuition alone and advised on backing it up with data.

Tamara Abed, senior director of Brac Enterprises, said intuition is not a conscious process. “You don't often think about intuition. It is a magical moment when you know you have struck gold.”

Asked about connecting the dots, she said: “There is often a lot of data, but you need to ask the right questions to get the most out of that.” This is not necessarily analytical thinking, but the ability to connect dots together, she added.