So far, 2018 has been a year when more than ever before, data is polarised topic of discussion. It seems to come up all the time in conversations ranging from one of the most memorable political campaigns of modern history, through to how your supermarket rewards card is seeking to understand you as much as your mother would.
The world of research has always had an inherent requirement to prove its findings. This is typically done by the collections of two types of information:
Quantitative Data — Quantitative data is all about the numbers – or the “what” of a situation. Working in the financial services world, quant analysis is somewhat intrinsically aligned to how we want to put together a financial plan. Ie — savings $20,000 a year will leave you with $100,000 in 5 years time.
Qualitative Data — Think of this as a way of capturing the ‘essence’ of a situation. It seeks to capture an individual’s description of a situation in their opinion. Qualitative data attempts to inform us about the “why”of situation.
Quantitative data feels clean, objective and may be designed to firm up an irrefutable conclusion to a research case. However, the world, society, research, and the individuals within it extend beyond the numbers, to have a better understanding.
At Treysta we are working with a number of clients helping to guide them to live their life according to what they truly value. Yes, clearly there are some financial outputs which are easy to quantify, but the real story opens up on the qualitative side of the coin.
Over the coming months I will be working with the team at USyd to think about how to best structure a research case on the outcome of Financial Life Management compared with traditional financial advice.
It’s going to be an exciting ride from here!
