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Hello Member,
Predicting the future, especially as we are still pulling our feet out of the sticky mud of recession, is never an easy task, but that's what I've been asked to do at the Chicago ASA Luncheon next Tuesday.
So, I've dusted off my crystal ball and will offer my educated forecast on what is coming down the pike in the near- and long-term for quantitative specialists. I'll also cover the planning and strategies necessary for to navigate a successful career path - no matter what. I hope you'll join me. Bring your questions and we'll see what the crystal ball has to offer.
Linda Burtch
Editor
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September Luncheon |
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Noon to 1:30PM
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
The East Bank Club
500 N. Kingsbury, Chicago 60610
Please join us for the first talk in the Chicago Chapter of the American Statistical Association 2010-2011 Luncheon program!
Our speaker is Linda Burtch, Founder and Managing Director of Burtch Works Executive Recruiting.
Author and speaker Earl Nightingale once said: "Jobs are owned by the company, you own your career!" This is perhaps more true for quantitative specialists than for any other professional. Positioned in a field that will continue to grow and thrive for the foreseeable future, the well-educated quantitative analyst who keeps a keen eye on the data and remains hands-on with cutting-edge software has all the tools necessary for a long, successful career. Linda Burtch, founder and managing director of the executive recruiting firm Burtch Works, will explore how the field is faring as we emerge from recession, discuss her assessment of the industry's short- and long-term futures, and outline the strategies you need to plan and manage your career.
Lunch is $30 for CCASA members, $35 for non-members. Non-members, join the chapter for a year for only $15 and get the discount plus all of the other benefits of membership! As usual, the Lucile Derrick Fund will purchase a limited number of tickets for students who wish to attend. If you are a student and would like to take advantage of this offer, please register online below, and contact Gerald Funk, expressing your interest.
Please e-mail Gerald Funk at gmf@math.luc.edu for more information.
Register online now!
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Former CCASA Speaker Predicts 2010 Elections |
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Nate Silver presented a talk for us in 2008 when he was analyzing baseball statistics and predicted the 2007 White Sox upset.
Since then, he's become a well-regarded political blogger, making headline-grabbing predictions for the upcoming Senate and House races. His New York Times political blog, named "Five Thirty Eight" for the number of electors in the Electoral College, utilizes Silver's unique forecasting model to predict how the voting is going to go.
But Silver wasn't always using statistics to predict baseball wins or voting results. His first job as an economic consultant with an international consulting firm lasted a little over 3 years. It was an unhappy match, so Silver quit. Without a steady paycheck, he turned to online poker to earn a living. He then started writing a baseball blog forecasting the performance of individual players, players' metrics and the economics involved with the sport.
In November of 2007, Silver started writing about politics (specifically the 2008 Presidential Election). The New York Times picked up on it and "Five Thirty Eight" has been public since March of 2008. We will see if his predictions are correct.
*photo of Silver in his Chicago home office courtesy of New York Times
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A Nod to Academic Statistics |
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In this New York Times column, Harvard professor N. Gregory Mankiw says there are a few subjects that should be on every students' schedule -- statistics is one of them.
He writes, "High school mathematics curriculums spend too much time on traditional topics like Euclidean geometry and trigonometry. For a typical person, these are useful intellectual exercises but have little applicability to daily life. Students would be better served by learning more about probability and statistics.
One thing the modern computer age has given everyone is data. Lots and lots of data. There is a large leap, however, between having data and learning from it. Students need to know the potential of number-crunching, as well as its limitations. All college students are well advised to take one or more courses in statistics, at least until high schools update what they teach."
The other three subjects Mankiw says are a "must" are economics, finance and psychology.
Read the rest of the column here.
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About the Parameter |
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PARAMETER, newsletter of the Chicago Chapter of the American Statistical Association, is published 10 times a year as a service to its members. To submit material for publication, contact the Editor, Linda Burtch, email: lburtch@burtchworks.com
PARAMETER provides a job listing service by publishing Positions Available and Positions Wanted, the latter being free to Chapter members. Companies may list positions for $75. Contact the Editor for more information.
For additional information about Chicago Chapter ASA, please visit us on the web at: www.ChicagoASA.org.
Also, visit the National ASA web site www.amstat.org.
Email change of address to: smileyr@georgetown.edu
©CCASA 2009
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