Real talk with a Data Scientist
I recently stumbled upon two video interviews published by Springboard of a real talk with a Google Data Scientist and another real talk with an Instagram Data Scientist.
After watching these two videos I found myself wondering about what it means to me to be a Data Scientist.
Let’s discuss about the characteristics of a Data Scientist.
How can you know if you are a “good fit” as a Data Scientist?
Simply put, my understanding of working in the “Big Data” industry is about the ability to leverage
- Computer Science
- Mathematical Modeling
- Data Visualization
in order to solve “Big Questions”.
Note that the work of a Data Scientist is not a one-man job at all. In fact, you should carefully conceive the idea that the best Data Scientists get out to talk to people - and that’s what I like the most about my daily job.
Why I work as a Data Scientist?
I can point out three main reasons why I chose to develop a carrier as a Data Scientist:
- High impact on business
- Huge variety of work
- Good career opportunities
Working as a Data Scientist is mostly about Problem Solving and the ultimate goal of a Data Scientist is to solve real-world problems.
It does sound pretty cool, I know, but there’s one little caveat to consider.
You must be aware that
Models are a dime a dozen.
What I mean is that any Data Scientist can produce thousands of fancy models in a matter of days.
The key and most-rewarding component of a Data Scientist job is
To know how to engineer features and implement the (only one) model into your company’s pipeline to deliver value
I hope it all makes sense to you. Please feel free to reach out to me - I’d love to have a talk with you!
~Giuseppe