Data skills are vital to ensure that your career is ‘future-proofed’ in almost any industry.
Big data and technology have become commonplace in the everyday operations of the majority of modern businesses regardless of their industry or size.
Data analysts, data scientists and non-IT professionals that possess knowledge of data analytics have become vital to their organizations’ need to have raw data transformed into formats that are workable and actionable for identifying trends, reaching meaningful conclusions and modeling future outcomes.
With the expansion of the proliferation of data analytics, the way to future-proof your career is to develop your expertise in data skills.
Data is transforming roles throughout almost every industry, including finance, health and travel, with many companies using it as a competitive advantage, and a growing number of people who are in possession of data skills will be required over the course of the next few years.
For people who have the correct skills, there is a growing array of open data roles.
Many companies will have to build those skills internally rather than hire newcomers, and the people who receive promotions and are successful at these companies will be those who have an understanding of data and are capable of working with it effectively.
Now is the time to learn data skills that can take your career to new heights.
Data analytics
Data analytics is the term used for the collection, inspection, organization and transformation of data for the identification of useful information that can help to inform the decision-making process.
More than an input or a tool, data analytics is a process that when used in the proper manner offers a comprehensive view of the problem that is being solved, enabling those who make the decisions to reach the right conclusion with the best available information.
Before the expansion of data analytics, businesses that were trying to achieve specific goals had to go through many time-consuming manual processes, but by being able to understand and master data, many people can now future-proof their career and expedite their learning curve regardless of where their career path takes them.
Data analytics can be used to make sense of the enormous amount of financial information in order to evaluate the performance of a business and analyze the behavior of customers so as to more efficiently and accurately predict market trends than has been previously possible.
Data analytics can also be used in the identification and management of risk.
Data skills are going to be with us for a very long time to come and in the end, success will be there for the taking by the one with the most skills.
Enhanced data skills such as having an Online Master’s in Data Science will only increase your chances of success and ensure that your career thrives for many more years into the future.
With awareness and understanding of the benefits of data skills growing, businesses are continuing to look to hire those who are in possession of this highly sought-after skill set.
The most important data skills
There are a number of data skills that have been identified as being among the important for success in the business world.
One of those skills is the ability to take into account new research and data sources and spot risk factors and other anomalies within the data.
Being able to make use of exploratory multivariate statistics, visualization tools, machine learning, predictive analysis tools, and inferential statistics and optimization methods is also crucial.
Another important skill is having an understanding of both relational and non-relational databases and how to combine several datasets from each one.
It is also vital to be able to perform process and data mapping from a risk assurance and regulatory perspective.
Identifying and framing important management decisions and the metrics that relate to them to result in more efficient and effective business solutions is another crucial data skill.
How is data analytics applied?
There are a number of applications for data analytics, including data mining, data management, statistical analysis and data presentation.
Data mining refers to the extraction, transformation and loading of data from unstructured data sources such as written text, raw sensor data or big complex databases.
Data management involves the design and implementation of databases to allow easy access to data mining results, a step that usually entails the creation and management of SQL databases.
Statistical analysis lies at the very heart of data analytics and revolves around the creation of statistical models that expose trends within data, models that can subsequently be applied to new data for the purpose of making predictions and informing decision-making.
Statistical programming languages, including the likes of Python, are vital to this process.
Data presentation is a crucial step that enables the sharing of insights with stakeholders.
Data visualization is often seen as the most important aspect of data presentation as compelling visualizations play an essential role in telling the story within the data in a way that can help the importance of such insights to be fully understood by executives and managers.
What types of careers can data skills help with?
Data skills can help to future-proof or help kick-start a wide array of different careers.
These careers include:
- Healthcare data analyst
- Data scientist
- Quantitative analyst
- Digital marketing manager
- Transportation logistics specialist
- IT systems analyst
- Operations analyst
- Data engineer
- Data analytics consultant
- Project manager
As the importance of data analytics to entities of numerous sizes continues to expand, it becomes a higher priority for company owners and hiring managers who are looking to hire new recruits or promote existing employees.
As the world of work continues to evolve, it has become clear that it is those who have the dedication to fine-tune and upskill their professional skills who will not only survive but also thrive in the long term, and it is data skills that are the key to future-proofing your career.
