5 Strategies For Recruiting Analytics Talent

http://data-informed.com/5-strategies-recruiting-training-decision-science-talent

Came across the above mentioned article. It starts, “A career in decision sciences/analytics continues to be one of the sexiest jobs of the 21st century, but the supply of analytics talent threatens to limit the promise of decision sciences.

A report by McKinsey and Company estimates a shortfall of 140,000 to 190,000 data scientists and 1.5 million managers who have the skills needed to use the insights to drive decisions. And Gartner predicts that by 2015, big data will create 4.4 million jobs globally.

Data scientists are in short supply, but the dearth of decision scientists – the rare breed that combines the interdisciplinary prowess of math, business, technology, behavioral sciences, and design thinking – is even more alarming. For this reason, there needs to be an increased emphasis on recruiting and training as opposed to relying on acquisition.” The writer then listed his 5 strategies for recruiting analytics talent.

I have a few variations on his top 5, here they are:
1. Destroy the Top Talent Only Comes From Top Schools Myth
2. Test For Curiosity and a Learning Mind Set
3. Appreciate an Inter-Disciplinary Perspective
4. Teach the Art of Asking Questions
5. Be Both Big Picture and Tiny Detail Kinds of Analysts

So basically what it boils down too, is that business don’t just need high-end, well-educated data scientists, they need lots of people who think like analysts.

That’s what I specialize in, I take people who are curious, regardless of their background and I train them to unleash their curiosity and empower then to use data to make decisions.

Hiring a data scientist is not really an option for most companies I work with, but hiring one of my trainees to work in their office or online for their business is a very good option.