Nicole L. Savitsky

Many LinkedIn Influencers and Leaders within the Data Analytics & Data Science space have talked a lot about how to grow your skillset in the field. I’ve seen a lot of the same advice getting shared, but I think Ian K on LinkedIn summarized it best in one of his recent posts:

1. Learn your tech stack (Excel, SQL, BI Tool)
2. Do 2-3 projects per skill learned
3. Create a great resume
4. Invest time in learning HOW to interview (STAR questions)
5. Apply to data analytic jobs daily

While this may be basic roadmap & not always the one everyone needs on their journey, I found that it really got to the main points of how to grow or enter the Data (specifically Data Analytics) space.

For me, I’m currently doing a mix of all 5, but more focused on steps 1-3:

1. I’m continuing to grow my tech stack through courses on Maven Analytics, Udemy, DataCamp and Coursera as well as one of my local universities.
2. I’ve completed 2 projects right now. One utilizing Excel, SQL & Tableau and another utilizing Excel only. I have one portfolio project in-progress and one class that is taking me through a project step-by-step using Python.
3. I’ve created a resume and am continuously updating it and tweaking it towards any jobs I apply to. I have plans to go back and add more focused projects when I have more as well as have colleagues and friends take a look at it for more advice.
4. I’ve only done some interviewing research, but have learned a lot through various podcasts that I’ve listened to and from LinkedIn members within the field.
5. I haven’t reached the phase where I feel like I could go all-in on applying to relevant jobs, but I have applied to a few jobs that have really caught my attention.

While going through my roadmap and skill growth, I’ve found that I’m really drawn to analyzing and utilizing data around people. I enjoy being able to help companies and others succeed through data and that has led me to look into jobs around People (or HR) Analytics, Marketing Analytics or Health Analytics.

Lately, through challenges and projects I’ve participated in as well as podcasts I’ve listened to, I’ve been really drawn into the HR side of companies – of understanding employee acquisition, employee growth and employee engagement. How utilizing data, but also interviews, surveys, and design-thinking can make a difference in an employee’s professional growth and a company’s success.

I’m very interested in seeing where this current interest takes me while also working on projects in my other areas of interest.

As a current librarian and just through my work-history trends, I’ve come to realize that I enjoy helping people and now I’m excited to explore how I can do this using data!

Let me know where you are on your career journey; what your roadmap looks like or any advice you may have for a new data analyst!

-Nicole

Book I’m Reading: It’s About Damn Time: How to Turn Being Underestimated into Your Greatest Advantage by Arlan Hamilton
Course I’m Taking: WiD July Cohort – Data Visualization with Python
Course on Deck: SQL Certificate Course & Project Management Course through Temple University
Podcast Episode I loved: “The HR Tech Market is Going Crazy: What to Look For in 2023” by the Josh Bersin podcast
My Roadmap (Notion): Find it Here!

Header Photo: Photo by Jess Bailey on Unsplash