siliconindia | | JULY - SEPT 202319CXOINSIGHTSBy Soumava Dey, Data Analytics Manager, Corebridge FinancialDEMYSTIFYING THE CAREER TRANSITION TO DATA SCIENCEData science is not a mere buzzword anymore as this field of study expanded its horizon across different industry verticals. From gathering meaningful business insights to extrapolating future trends, data science laid the foundation for various cutting-edge artificial intelligence mechanisms in the recent era. In 2012, Harvard Business Review titled "data scientist" as the sexiest job of the 21st century which served as a stepping stone to promote this role to a larger audience. Since then, the growing demands coupled with the hype around this job role have made it a lucrative career option for college students and software professionals. As enticing as it seems, the obvious question is how to become a data scientist? This article will help the readers to get a holistic overview of the field of data science so anyone can determine the most efficient and fastest way to transition into this role.What is Data Science?As the name implies, data science is all about uncovering meaningful insights (usage, trends, consumer behavior, retention, etc.) and hidden patterns of data by applying mathematical and scientific computation methods. It is an interdisciplinary field that encompasses the power of mathematics, programming skills, and data-driven business acumen. Figure 1 depicts the key prerequisites that aspiring candidates would be required to be familiar with to build the knowledge foundation for a data scientist role.The field of data science is still relatively new even in 2022. However, we have seen a plethora of industries started utilizing the power of data science in order to revamp their business practices that drive revenue growth. The following examples illustrate some key data science use cases underpinning figure 2 below:· Financial companies use data science to track anomalous transactions, fraud detection, and insurance scams. It can also be applied in other functions such as risk management, customer analytics, and algorithmic trading.· E-commerce giants Amazon and Shopify use customer's demographic data to improve their overall shopping experience and provide better product recommendation to their app users.· Uber and Tesla are breaking the barriers by manufacturing state-of-the-art autonomous cars that may change the paradigm of the automobile industry in the near future. Although we are Figure 1. Venn Diagram Represents the Essential Skill Sets for DataScienceSoumava Dey
< Page 9 | Page 11 >