A New Role – VP of Internet Channel Strategy for iQuest

I am pleased to take on a new responsibility with iQuest Analytics as the Vice President for Internet Channel Strategy. Their iQuest tool is a software suite that combines social network analysis, auto-categorization and text mining technologies to analyze unstructured data. This allows you to look at the patterns of communication between any form of electronic communication, (e.g., email, blogs, tagging links, etc.). Unlike other social networking analysis tools, it can display the evolving nature of social relations over time though “movies” of the changing patterns. iQuest also goes beyond standard social networking tools to allow you to look inside this communications so you see what people are writing and communicating about. It can analyze anything with words or symbols (e.g., articles, web pages, reports, memos, e-mails, telephone call logs, transcripts, message boards, blogs, survey responses, RSS feeds) to show who is talking to whom, what they talk about, when they talk and where those conversations are taking place.

In this generation of the web with increased participation and increased connectivity, I think that a tool like iQuest offers great potential. For example, it looks at networks of blog links, the inter-connections between web sites within a market, or the patterns of email communication. It can see what people are talking about and how they are connecting, or not connecting around these issues. It can look at media reports, blogs, message boards and enthusiast Web sites to track trends from their birth to their tipping point to forecast future trends.

I have known Josh Rosenthal and Peter Gloor, the principals at iQuest Analytics, for some time and I have great respect for them and their vision for the directions this tool can take. iQuest can function as enterprise business intelligence tool and as a web application. My focus is on the latter to help them envision and plan new capabilities to add value within the evolving internet, new web-based uses for iQuest, and new ways to position iQuest as a web application, as well as look for other web-based tools and services that can benefit from integration with iQuest’s capabilities. I am excited about the path forward and I will write about iQuest from time to time on this blog.

This role is not exclusive and I will continue with my other alliances and work. This includes my partnership with Kathleen Gilroy and The Otter Group in offering the Learning Boot Camp 2.0 and related consulting work, my alliance with Cindy Gordon and Helix Commerce for their blog and wiki workshops and consulting and other services, and my own consulting, speaking, and writing in the use of emerging technologies in business.

Comments

[Gautam]

congratulations !

It's great that you'll be continuing your consulting and speaking assignments !

regards
Gautam

[Luis Suarez]

Excellent ! Congratulations, Bill !

I am really glad to hear about these news and I do hope to read some more about your new adventure here in your blog ! Congrats again and wish you all the best, Bill !

[Patrick Cormier]

Congratulations Bill! I look forward reading more of you. Learning Boot Camp 2.0 is interesting - I saved it and will recommend it.

[Tomoaki Sawada]

Congratulations on your assignment, Bill. Looking forward to hearing more about the capability of iQuest and its syenrgy with SNA and tagging for improving enterprise innovation.
Regards

[Bill Ives]

Thanks to everyone who has commented on this. It feels very good to see this support. I will be writing more about iQuest as I mentioned. I will also keep ths blog active with daily posts.

[Tomoaki Sawada]

Question to you, Bill. One of my fiends has been studying Cynefin Framework for sense-making and its relation to scenario making. I learend that you are tied with Helix commerce that looks to be colosely collaborating with Dave Snowden, since I came acrross when studying Snowden's work. And I know you and Patti Anklam are involved in coordinating KM world

My question, Bill, is simply, what the hell, are these pieces, listed below, fitting together to make a BIG Loop.

KM-Cynefin Framework-Sense making-Scenario Based method for future mapping-SNA/ONA-Value Network Analysis

VNA is by Verna Allee as described in Patt's BLOG
http://www.byeday.net/weblog/2006/03/scenarios-as-sense-making.html

I may be cofused, but I apprecaite if you can clarify to solve my PUZZLE. Appreciate

[Bill Ives]

Tomoaki - It is certainly a small. world, someone should do a SNA of KM & SNA consulting. I know that Verna and David know each other well, along with Patti and Cindy of Helix Commerce. I know Patti and Cindy much better than Verna and David. Cindy was a colleague of mine at Accenture and we have stayed in close contact. Patti and I are in the Gennova Group in Boston. Cindy had me come to a lunch with Verna and David at last Fall's KM World. I am not an expert in the approaches of Verna and David but I have some familiarity wth them, and have seen each of them present. I think they are complementaary and not redundant with each other. I would ask them directly as they both seem quite responsive. I also think that iQuest could be a useful tool to support the work of all four of these consultants.

[Tomoaki Sawada]

Bill, thanks for your response and explanation of your relationship with other fols. Your last comment is exactly what I am pursuing right now, since I am investigating to find new consulting area for my company that emcompasses these areas and also figure out the best prominent tools to support varying stages of consulting activities. My idea is in its very early stage, but your continued attention to these areas would be very helpful indeed. Best regards.