Brad Riva Analytics

For this weeks post I wanted to talk about a something I noticed at my recent trip to the United Center in Chicago Illinois. When attending a Blackhawks game I purchased a beverage and noticed that there were no cupholders on the seats like most venues and stadiums. At first I was upset because I would have to hold my beverage because I didn't want to risk it getting spilled if it was left on the ground. I found myself drinking it faster than usual because it was more convenient than holding it for the duration of drinking it. Analytically speaking when these stadiums sell products like beer for $10 a serving they have a tremendous markup on the product. When they sell more beers they make more money per game. How do you sell more beer? You make them drink faster. They do this by eliminating cupholders. The selling price per seat is much higher because instead of someone drinking slow and enjoyably they will subconsciously drink faster and buy more. By optimizing the seat they are...

Chapter 5 of Surfing The Tsunami is about adopting AI and the what it can do for business. The main thing that I noticed from reading this chapter was the part about automation and routine work. When it comes to manufacturing jobs today there has been a push away from human skill and more of an influence of robotics which can do the job to the same standards every time. These jobs are an example to what is considered routine work. So what is going to happen to all those jobs where people do repeated tasks throughout the day? There will be technicians who will check quality and performance of the robots. So to adapt to this changing industry invest in an education in engineering or AI where you can have job security and make money while creating free flowing production.

This past weekend I went to a local McDonalds where it was very busy. I decided to attempt to use their new kiosk cashier which uses a touch screen to order instead of a cashier. When doing this I was asked to think about adding an additional item via a recommendation from the computer. This made me think would I be willing to try one of these products as well as my traditional breakfast sandwich? This recommendation process is just like when we use SEO to find relevant search results. If McDonalds wants to promote a product they can use their new virtual cashiers to do the work for them. This new kiosk could change the fast food market if created and excepted by all. With a recent strike for McDonalds employees to make a minimum of $15 an hour this could substantially lower cost of production in an industry where cost is key. The analytical part makes it easy for customers to notice new products and pair them to their "Usual" order.