Data Skills Are Mission-Critical: How To Bridge The Skills Gap

By Jason Foster

Chief data officer, data engineer, data scientist—a decade ago, these job titles barely existed, let alone were considered fundamental to a successful business. Any data analysis—if it was even done—would have likely been managed by the “IT department,” which, as stereotypes would have us believe, was a group of workers in a dark room full of screens tapping away on a keyboard.

In today’s world, gone are the banks of underground IT departments. Data expertise is now a highly coveted skill in businesses of all sizes, with many organizations employing entire teams to manage the vast volumes of data they handle and create meaningful insights and models that power decisions and digital products.

But why are data skills so important, and what can be done to bridge the gap and encourage people to develop skills in data?

An Increasingly Important Role

Data is central to business success. Increasingly, the insights it provides are being recognized as an enabler for more accurate, evidence-based decision-making. Looking back, it’s possible to identify multiple catalysts in recent history that I believe have driven this.

The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation was a key moment when conversations around customer and employee data management were elevated to the mainstream. It became a topic that business leaders could no longer afford to ignore, and most had to take action to ensure their data was compliant with regulations.

Brexit has also shone an indirect spotlight on data. The U.K. government’s Office for Budget Responsibility said that Brexit worsened the supply chain crisis, according to the Independent. In the face of these challenges, I’ve observed data has been recognized as a means to help efficiently and cost-effectively track and manage the movement of goods around the globe.

And, of course, no data conversation would be complete without mentioning the pandemic. As stay-at-home orders hit and much of the workforce started working remotely, technology became the lynchpin holding many businesses together, and data took center stage. Organizations had to respond, and data played a huge part in allowing them to do so.

This sparked a rise in awareness of the importance of data management, analytics and business intelligence as the fundamental foundations for a data-guided, data-driven business.

A Growing Divide

Based on my observations, the trends mentioned above also led to a considerable and growing demand for data professionals who have the capabilities to design, build and implement data strategies for today’s modern businesses.

The aforementioned research by the U.K. government quantifies this. Findings show that 46% of businesses recruiting for roles requiring data skills have struggled to do so over the past two years. This is a concerning trend—and one that I believe businesses, alongside the government, can unite to solve.

Bridging The Gap

There are certain steps organizations can take to improve their chances of a positive outcome when recruiting for data roles. These include creating powerful employee propositions to stand out, attract and retain talent. For instance, perhaps your company can provide additional benefits or flexible working.

It can also be helpful to break out of traditional places to recruit. This can help diversify the talent pool and widen the available supply of skills. For example, is there a LinkedIn group for people from minority backgrounds working in data in which you could share the job opportunity?

Lastly, it’s important to understand what skills are needed and be clear about the role profile in terms of behaviors and background, not just responsibilities and years of experience.

For organizations looking to become more data-literate, investing in equipping existing employees with data skills can be an untapped gold mine. Despite this, many organizations choose to prioritize looking outward to recruit talent instead of upskilling their workforce. But this is a missed trick, as I believe the only way to close a gap is by investing in creating that knowledge.

Traditional training courses are a valuable option. You can also explore a new approach and consider working with education technology platforms that provide lessons on how to use, understand and extract value from data. Longer term, I believe embedding data skills into the school curriculum and across higher education courses will be critical to developing the next generation of data talent.

A United Effort

From my perspective, organizations and the government can work together to turn the tide and build the data workforce of the future. This means communicating the benefits of forging a career in data and ensuring there is adequate training in place to equip the existing workforce with the skills they need to become more data-literate.

Only through a truly united and concerted effort will change occur when it comes to bridging the data skills gap. With the right skills in place, the possibilities are endless for businesses when it comes to supporting positive economic change through the strategic use of data.

*Jason Foster is CEO of Cynozure and author of Data Means Business.

*This article first appeared on the forbes.com website.