Transforming data and research into Information for business and industry
I am a skilled and experienced information professional with over 20 years experience in the business community and over 10 years in the NFP sector. My professional career/work has been as a legal and market research analyst. (See proposal for a researcher in for profit or not for profit organizations listed below).
WHAT WE DO
WHAT WE DO
What other professionals are saying about ResearchINC.....
- “ResearchINC is through and professional in doing competitive research. and, at reasonable cost.”---- Barbara J. Davis, Information Services Professional, Cincinnati OH. 2017
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"Yvonne Davis @ ResearchINC provided accurate and timely information......
ResearchINC has been a great resource.”----Gary Coleman, Food Truck Entrepreneur and Chef, Cincinnati, OH. 2018
Research completed includes: Upscale Consignment, InHome Healthcare, Food Truck Industry and Corporate Family Trees.
Let ResearchINC help you find the information you need!
The evolution of information has been explosive and sometimes intimidating.
Artificial Intelligence? Big Data? Industry Trends? Prospect & Development Research?
January 2019
Legal Analytics, Judicial and Predictive Analytics: what does it mean to the legal profession??
Recent articles on the AI and the legal profession can leave the legal observer confused, frustrated and even mad. Many in the profession think AI software and algorithms will replace lawyers. As reported in a 2017 posting on my blog: "Granted, legal analytics has been slow to emerge in firms; because it doesn’t make sense for firms to compare themselves to each other when dealing with “predictive sciences.” Firms need to compare themselves to all services that their clients may need to improve outcomes and productivity."
Predictive Analytics or "what is likely to happen" analysis can be vital in reviewing the following:
- Generating a legal strategy
- Understanding the opposing counsel strategies
- Predicting case outcomes
- In the hiring process-determining the best individuals to meet client needs
Judicial Analytics or reviewing judges decisions and looking for "patterns in the way they write and rule." i.e. new research platforms emerging from Thomson Reuters' Westlaw Edge.
August 2018
New” tech disruption and “old” tech disruption---“Old” disruption or something old is new again?
Each year CNBC produces a list of top (50) Disruptor
Companies. These are new startups, new
processes which may change and/or attack the business status quo. These
companies are chosen by a prestigious group of business and academic
professionals. From CNBC, “Five
companies (Airbnb, Pinterest, Palantir, SpaceX and Uber) have made the list all
six years. Each year, we try to discover what the companies that make the list
have done that is new, and these five continue to deliver on the promise of
what it means to be a Disruptor. And
there are newcomers as well, disrupting industries from fitness to finance to
feminine hygiene. These are the companies that think differently — and force
the incumbent giants to do the same.”
In a recent blog posting from BCG (Boston Consulting
Group) reporting on their 2018 European Strategy Leadership Summit the “beauty
of disruption” was discussed focusing on embracing disruption and learning from
it. Companies need to use disruption to change business models and
organizations for future growth, according to the BCG summit.
These discussions got me thinking about some other “disruptions”
which may be considered “old news/old school” but may also lead to positive
changing business models???…….
·
Amazon announced this summer it would publish a “print”
toy catalog for this holiday season. With the recent bankruptcy of Toy r Us, the company moved to target another
group of potential shoppers.
While Amazon’s
catalog is not the only one around (Target and Walmart each have one); it will
have more exclusive merchandise, best sellers and a “rating system” for the top
15 selling toys of the top 25 toy vendors.
Amazon….moving the commerce needle.
·
The emergence of Docked and Dockless Bikes is
another old idea taking on new life…many cities, including
Cincinnati OH, have installed these bike stations in urban areas like downtown
and near universities. Positive images
in an area, a positive health message and positive ecological message all help
cities build their urban friendly images in order to attract businesses, shoppers
and maybe residents.
The next disruption is a little odd ……but here goes
·
During a business newscast about the
legalization of marijuana in Colorado, several news analysts interviewed sellers,
discussing their business plans and business challenges. One “challenge” was the issue of money –receivables. Many sellers were considered federal
chartered institutions cannot accept marijuana money. While state chartered
banks in many states work to change laws, other small banks and credit unions
are coming to the rescue. One solution
by many cannabis businesses is meeting some immediate needs for safety and
security of their profits…….Free Standing
Safes
Regardless of our personal feelings/beliefs about this industry,
the safe industry has become an “old disruptor in a new economy.” These are not
the old fashioned metal combination safes we may remember from the early
banking days. They are high tech, high
security safes and vaults. These companies combined safety needs with
specialized “cannabis consulting”. This consulting
may include not just security of profits but security of the product itself.
There are probably other examples of old disruptors
becoming new again. If you can think of any
examples, send a comment.
May 2018
UPDATE: Oil States Energy Services, LLC v. Greene's Energy Group, LLC, 584 U.S. ___ (2018), the Court held that the
inter partes review process granted by Congress to the United States Patent and
Trademark Office for challenging the validity of patents, rather than a jury
trial, is constitutional and did not violate either Article III of the
Constitution nor the Seventh Amendment.
Decision announced April 24, 2018. >>>>https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/17pdf/16-712_87ad.pdf
March 2018
Are Startups leaving old school Wall Street behind?
When I get my daily CNBC fix on markets and industries
trends, I know I will always get an emphasis on publicly traded
markets/companies but little coverage on the actual size of the Market. (maybe I missed this coverage on one of the
network’s early morning or late night programs??) The number of publicly traded companies
listed in the US has deceased by more than 50% since 1997. Market watchers following this trend believe
this continued decease could affect US long-term economic prospects (and future
competitiveness).
In a recent detailed working paper from the National
Bureau of Economics (NBER), “Eclipse of the public corporation or eclipse of
the public markets?” Researchers believe
this decrease is due primarily to the rise of startups and their desire not to go
public.
This shift is due
to many factors, including:
·
Public markets are not suited to the young,
R&D-intense startups.
·
There are more money streams for these startups
in Private Equity firms.
·
US firms repurchase more equity than they
issued, resulting in more equity to shareholders and less available in capital
markets.
·
Startups spend more money on R & D than on
capital expenditures (i.e. tangible assets).
These assets are more realized for publicly held companies. (see GAAP
rules)
·
Startups with their intangible-heavy assets do
not want the transparent-regulated world of the public companies. Startups have ideas, concepts and processes
that are potentially harder to protect and easier to steal.
·
In general, the number of US small firms leaving
the stock market has increased.
To view the entire working paper.......
December 2017
Oil States Energy Services and the status of the IPR process was reported several months ago in Bloomberg Newsletter. (see article below) The idea that the St. Regis Mohawk tribe could benefit from this potential income stream is heartwarming and encouraging to me and my Native American ancestors.
Also, see recent comments on the November 2017 US Supreme Court oral arguments. From the Fish &Richardson Attorney newsletter dated 12/13/2017.
November 2017
See link to this interesting patent case dealing the process of inter partes review (IPR) making its way through the US Supreme Court with oral arguments heard November 27th. At its core, will be the legality of the recent agreement between major drug company Allergan (now headquartered in Ireland) and the US Native American tribe, the St. Regis Mohawk.
More reflections to come.........
US Supreme Court:
October 2017
“Customized
Research Services” available- provide a topic of interest and I will send you one article
a week for 4 weeks @ no charge!! Contact me @ ydavis@fuse.net.
August 2017
"That is not to say that
next-generation lawyers don’t read or perform research. Far from it. Technology
simply helps them do it much more effectively and efficiently.”
Above is a recent quote
from the article, “Artificial Intelligence (AI) is molding the attorney of the
future” (Law Technology News, 8/7/2017) that discusses several areas in which
AI can benefit attorneys. The main point of the article is the future in now. But, technology will not do away with attorneys;
it could instead help lawyers streamline, manage and draw knowledge/conclusions and
maybe work smarter.
This
concept is further examined in “Doing AI, what legal should remember about Big
Data”, (Law Technology News, 7/12/2017).
The author states “AI” is really “Advanced Information” in the legal world. AI and Big Data better define the world of publicly
available data not necessarily many of the private legal databases. For the legal environment….” Data is provided by human beings and then processed with the
use of some logic built and developed within a system. In and of itself, it is
not artificial and it is not intelligent.”
Until
these systems can recommend the best outcome in disputes, draft the best
contract based on internal factors and answer questions on strategic /competitive
regulatory firm issues, artificial intelligence can stay in the public
marketing arenas.
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July 2017
Proposal for Business/Development Prospect Researcher
To: Interested Entities
From: Yvonne Davis, Professional Researcher
This position may be contract, part time or full time. Salary is negotiable. Contact me at ydavis@fuse.net.
Scope of Work: the following services conducted by the Researcher
· The development and implementation of an Information Audit which will survey the needs of the groups vs. the current resources available.
· Upon completion of the Audit, evaluation of information resources with a presentation of an information resources budget.
· Oversee the management of a prospect identification program, which includes training and maintenance.
· Identify companies, industries, individuals and trends that will assist in growth and further development of the competitive landscape.
· Conduct extensive background on key company prospective executives.
· Executive summaries on key business and industry trends as requested.
Research Methodology: conduct analysis and research using professional online services as well as local and regional print resources. Using the relationship management and proactive prospect research/analysis, this position will also assist in the review and tracking of the information metrics needed to achieve successful proactive identification.
Deliverables: information including industry and trend analysis to be delivered in written formats or electronically as requested.
See job description listed below.
Business Research Analyst
Position is responsible for the planning, designing, execution and communication of a prospect research program to identify strategic information, analysis and research tools to facilitate information sharing of mainly prospect research.
Oversee the management of a prospect information system and assist in the establishment of metrics to track and report on the success of the information system. Communicate assessment of the system at regular intervals and make recommendations to support improvements.
Create and execute strategies to grow the size and value of the information prospect program through aggressive collection, maintenance and analysis of prospective information.
- Development Research: the addition of competitive intelligence analysis and its use with start up businesses.
Start Ups need Competitive Intelligence because.....
A recent Harvard Business Review article " reported on a study of British tax data that covered nearly 2 million companies launched in the UK from 1995 to 2005. The study looked at the competitive environment the companies faced in their first few years and at how long they remained in business. The study “found that companies launched in crowded markets had higher odds than others of failing in the first year—but if a company survived during this early period, it had a much greater chance of making it to the three-year mark." (HBR, March 2013)
Early knowledge of competitive analysis may have had a positive affect on the successful companies helping them better prepare for what was down the road.
Why does my new business need competitive intelligence?
This blog will also review research techniques and offer suggestions for the first time entrepreneur as well as the seasoned professional.
The main goal of "effective" CI is to help businesses and companies monitor competitors and build growth....OK....doesn't the start up want to do the same??
It is a given that most new businesses lack funding and sometimes a budget for CI but it is still vital and important to at least be aware of what competitive awareness can offer.
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June 2017
Big Data 101:
Analytics: what is it and what affect will it have on legal information?
What is it?
The legal profession has been slow to use/embrace analytics and thus maybe missing the benefits of “Big Data” (Legal Style). Analytics refers to “deriving substantively meaningful insight from some sort the data.” Analytics has been in many everyday things-think Netfix suggested “titles” and Amazon’s suggested purchases “windows” appearing in your online searching.
“But it is law in particular that seems to have stagnated in the face of disruptive changes in the market. In a survey at the Managing Partner Forum conference, 66% of attendees said that law firm strategy has not changed at all in light of disruptive change.” It is interesting that law firms remain unchanged, while clients seem increasingly worried about the threat of disruptive innovation. (Thomson Reuters' Legal Executive Institute, 6/23/2016)
Granted, legal analytics has been slow to emerge in firms; because it doesn’t make sense for firms to compare themselves to each other when dealing with “predictive sciences.” Firms need to compare themselves to all services that their clients may need to improve outcomes and productivity.
Analytics has many avenues to its utility. One avenue is “structured” analytics which is a text by text comparison. This is the grouping of nearly duplicate items and looking for common language. This can also be the “collection and identification of document groups that are similar but not really identical.”
Another type of analytics for legal use is “conceptual “analytics which looks at groups of words in repetition. Proprietary software can sift through metadata looking for groups of terms or phrases.
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