I like the analytics vs LoB oriented framing. In my experience, analytics is necessary to evaluate quality and guide change, but value only materializes once decisions are executed in the LoB systems. That mismatch makes analytics easy to layer on, but hard to own.
What I keep wondering is whether there will ever be a point where analytics is perceived as first order value from day one, rather than as something you add later once the system already exists.
That’s an interesting point. One thing I’ve noticed, though, is that even the people who are directly exposed to incentives (usually product and marketing) tend to focus almost exclusively on the final KPIs they’re measured on, like revenue or conversion rate.
Because of that, the analytics layer is often seen as something secondary. As long as the top line numbers are moving, there’s little perceived urgency to invest in a structured analytics foundation that explains why those numbers move.
So even when incentives exist, they’re often too outcome focused. Analytics that helps understand mechanisms, not just results, struggles to justify itself until something breaks or growth stalls.