Final Professional Job Data Analyst Memo (PR)
Data Analyst
Ah yes, a data analyst. Welcome to mornings and nights spent inside the most geometric and symmetrical blend of white squares: Microsoft Excel. No, I am not exaggerating. You will literally "live" inside of Microsoft Excel as a data analyst.
A data analyst is a professional who specializes in analyzing, interpreting, and turning data into actionable information. But what does this actually mean? It's no surprise that most people don't know what data analysts actually do because our work is hidden behind layers of Excel data. Our main responsibility is to take existing data and use that information to draw conclusions, present information, and check for inconsistencies.
The three words to best describe a data analyst:
- Storyteller
- Detective
- Explorer
For further context, I'll describe the above examples in my daily work
Storyteller
We tell stories by allowing the numbers to take life in the form of graphs, charts, and summary statements. Suddenly, an overwhelming sheet of numbers tells a story about a company or situation. We bring the numbers to life. Think of someone giving a "Ted Talk" through numbers. There aren't many words in the presentation, but the visual representation of the numbers tells an insightful story.
Detective
As a detective, we look for potential inconsistencies within the data. We record these observations and make appropriate changes to the data if necessary. Once we remove outliers, we detect patterns. For instance, when looking through an Excel sheet of oil data, we look out for inaccuracies in the records. Providing accurate records to executives and other stakeholders can be incredibly useful in aiding decision-making.
Explorer
We explore data records to discover trends and patterns within the data. With each new Excel file, we explore with an open mind to potentially discover valuable insights. Sometimes, the insights are not exactly the errors we seek to correct. Instead, these insights can be drawn from Excel tools including "Solver" and "Data Analysis" tools to understand the meaning of the data. For instance, we can use these tools to find a correlation between the sale of two products or even forecast the change in a stock's price.
Comparisons
A data analyst is an occupation difficult to compare with other jobs due to the complexity and versatility of the role. One simple comparison is with a sailor.
Data analysts are similar to sailors in that they both rely on detective skills to predict or forecast changes that have drastic impacts. Just as sailors rely on their detective skills to forecast weather changes, data analysts rely on their detective skills to forecast price changes.
Passive Sentences: 0
Flesch Reading Ease: 84
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 8
I never truly knew what a data analyst did other than "analyze data" but you made the role so easy to understand! The comparison to the sailor is very clever and fitting and it helps your reader understand just how important the role of a data analyst is - to forecast important changes that could have "drastic imapcts".
ReplyDeleteHi Pirooz! I loved reading your post and found it really interesting. I had a data science internship before and could relate to your descriptions and experiences in a similar way. The analogies you used for your role made it easy to understand and I could really visualize the responsibilities your job entails.
ReplyDeleteHi Pirooz, as someone with little interest in data analysis I found this post very interesting and engaging! You painted a very good narrative that clearly stated what you exactly did in your job. I also really liked your use of analogies!
ReplyDeleteHi Pirooz,
ReplyDeleteI love how you started the blog. I think your use of words and a little bit of sarcasm is very unique and fun to read. You did a great job explaining complex concepts in easy words, making it a very enjoyable blog to read. Another great tool was adding the day to day examples as a complement to the explanations. Finally, the comparison of being a data analyst with the sailor was great way to end the blog. I am definitely able to start recognizing your voice as a writer.
Hello Pirooz, I like the idea that you giving the metaphor of describing data analysts as detectives since I think there are many similarities in those two jobs. Both analysts and detectives need to be very careful and need to be good at finding the small things that people very likely would ignore. This makes them different from others and this makes their life.
ReplyDeleteHi Pirooz, I really enjoyed reading your job description and all of the responsibilities that came with your role. I like that yo used the words detective, explorer, and storyteller because it really gave me an image of what your job entailed in a creative way. Lastly, is this something you feel you want to do more in the future?
ReplyDeleteHi Pirooz, I like how you began the blog with a fun and unique intro to ease the reader into your job description. While I did not know much about the topic before this, I really like your analogy of the role being similar to that of a detective. I also liked that you explained some of the potential application of your work beyond just what you accomplished on your own. Overall great work!
ReplyDeleteHi Pirooz, thank you for sharing your experience as a data analyst! You are totally right that people often don’t really know what data analysts do, and we just imagine someone sitting behind a computer all day working on various softwares and excel sheets. Your examples and simple explanations were very helpful to me! Additionally, I really like how you compare your job as a data analyst to being a sailor, because it was so unexpected to me yet makes so much sense.
ReplyDeleteHi Pirooz! I loved reading your data analyst job description! As someone who has taken a few data analytics classes and struggled -- I thought you did an amazing job making it realistic while also keeping it fun and engaging. I thought your second paragraph did a great job at illustrating exactly what the data analysts' job is.
ReplyDeleteHi Pirooz! Thank you for sharing your experience working as a Data Analyst. I loved the three functions you used to described the role, and as someone who is interested in pursing a career in data analytics, I completely agree with your words. Being a storyteller is essential to a data analyst's jobs because being able to interpret the data and explain it in words is an invaluable skill.
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