Recently I've thought a lot about getting data quickly and the massive advantage in doing that. It's about reducing the possible options to a more manageable number, and then being able to clearly discern a new way forward based on distilled information. I recently drove around Chicago to potential locations for IPaintMyMind's Shared Walls™ loaned art program. Instead of sending 4 emails to 6 locations over the course of 4 weeks, I was able to immediately eliminate three options in a single afternoon.

I reduced the time it took to figure out what locations were viable options from 4 weeks to 3 hrs.

Getting data quickly allows us to exponentially save time by efficiently discerning what we shouldn't be working on.

This article talks about getting big data quickly, so it's focused on the insights analytics provide us about our web traffic, but the same logic applies to any data set that helps us build or provide better solutions for our communities & customers.

How much more strategic impact can we affect if we're obtaining vital data 2x, 5x, or 10x faster?

That said, let's get our data fast, and soon.