Make Decisions, Not Dashboards.
I'm John Brandon Elam, a Decision Systems leader with $290M+ in documented profit impact at Toyota. I write, consult, and teach one idea: decisions can be engineered. My books (Bit Bros) and Gaming Is Good series are where that idea meets practice.
Fuzzy language produces fuzzy thinking. Fuzzy thinking produces fuzzy decisions. I write for people who want to communicate, not just sound smart.
I co-founded Bit Bros LLC with Adam DeJans to bring practitioner-first resources to decision intelligence and data careers.
We publish handbooks on optimization and decision systems, 3 of which are Amazon Best Sellers in their respective categories. We also consult and advise on decision intelligence and decision systems. bitbrosdata.com
Through Bit Bros, I've co-authored 2 books, one of which is consistently an Amazon Best Seller in Business Operations Research.
You Got the Data Job... Now What? is for early to mid-career data professionals who are good at the technical work but struggling to make it matter. The skills that get you hired are not the same ones that get you promoted. This book covers the gap: how to communicate, influence, navigate organizations, and build a career that compounds.
The Decision Factory is for anyone who has ever watched a great model sit unused, a perfect forecast get ignored, or an "optimal" plan collapse on day one. It does not matter if you are a data scientist, an operations leader, a product manager, or an executive. If you are responsible for decisions that happen at scale, under uncertainty, with real consequences, this book was written for you.
Together they cover the full arc: how to grow as a professional, and how to build systems that actually work.
Decision systems essays and Gaming Is Good — game reviews that connect play to professional decision-making.
FedEx just told us exactly where they're headed. I've seen this movie before.
Why the smartest-sounding people in the room are often contributing the least.
Why Real Builders Leave and Mediocrity Gets Promoted
What this game teaches: Systems thinking through automation and scale.
"Listen to Adam and John carefully. They have a better understanding of how to make decisions under uncertainty than any of the mathematicians in this field."
"John is an outstanding product owner... His strong business acumen and deep expertise in the software development lifecycle helped us navigate complex challenges while always making everyone feel supported and valued."
"He is a great teacher... His patience and willingness to help have motivated me to do the best job I can."
"He is a very capable and technically adept professional, with a very engaging personality, while remaining passionate about continually learning. Even now, as our paths have diverged, I find myself bouncing professional ideas off him from time to time."
Interested in decision systems, product leadership, or collaboration? Send a message — it'll reach me without exposing my inbox to the world.
