Archive for February 26th, 2010

Here’s a tip. If you want to know what is really going on let people speak their minds. Set up rules for good conduct, but let the data speak. That’s what happened at Net Gain 4.0. We applaud the Canadians.
They did it right. The data sets were split. Separate analytical teams had open season on data sets. The questionnaire was agreed upon in advance. All had one objective: learn.
Don Ambrose and Peter Chan were given the data file to do as they saw best. We did not exchange slide decks weeks in advance. There was no agreement as to who would cover what. Intellectual freedom reigned. If there was an intellectual filter in the form of a programming committee, we certainly never felt its wrath nor did we hear from them.
A day or two before the event we exchanged slide decks. The MRIA was given complete right to eliminate anything they chose and we, as guests, would have complied. They told us that the names of the panels should not be associated with any data points and both sides kept to that understanding. Our analysis was on aggregate data looking at driving variables not inter-panel differences while theirs tread closer to inflaming a panel or two by showing the variability between panels, but not labeling who was who. In fact they don’t know who was who since the data was sent blinded to them; they also never asked.
We are grateful to the MRIA and their leadership for intellectual freedom. We are moved.