Metering.com 19 June 2017
A recent PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report forecasts that 2.7 million data science and analytics jobs will be created by 2020.
PwC states that data-driven organisations are eager to gain operational insights that support strategic decision, adding that data science “is one of the fastest-growing interdisciplinary fields of work globally.”
In a release, ameinfo.com stated, “governments and organisations are increasingly recognising the benefits of analytical data and data science results for their development, growth, and ability to innovate.”
Global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company also predicts that there is a considerable analytics skills gap, a field-wide shortfall between 40-60%, says the company.
The US data science industry alone will require an additional 190,000 people by 2018, reported ameinfo.com.
Ted Friedman, vice president and analyst at Gartner, stated that IT professionals need to consider creating new end-to-end architecture designed to be agile, scalable and one that accommodates experimentation.He added that today, disciplines are merging and that approaches to data and analytics are becoming more holistic, involving the entire business/organisation.
ameinfo.com noted that some of the key trends driving this change include the upward trend of data and analytics as a foundational element of modern business operations. Furthermore, businesses will continue to take a holistic approach to data and analytics and business executives will make data and analytics part of the business strategy.
Gartner’s research also found that 45% of IT professionals had indicated that new data and analytics projects were in the ‘design’ and ‘select’ phases.
Closing the skills gap
According to ameinfo.com, analytics software and services provider SAS offers SAS Global Academic Programmes in data science and advanced analytics skills.
The company has collaborated with the American University of Science & Technology (AUST) in Beirut, to enable quality education in Lebanon.
Yigit Karabag, information management and analytics Practice Manager at SAS, said: “The demand for data scientists within organisations who can collect, organise and analyse data using advanced techniques such as data mining and machine learning to help decision makers arrive at sound business solutions is growing rapidly.
With the ongoing digital revolution, the possibilities offered by data science are immense.”
AUST is reported to be the first in Lebanon to launch business analytics and data science academic programmes, both at the undergraduate and the graduate level.
Riad Sakr, vice president at AUST said: “We believe that business analytics and data science are not just passing fads, but long-lasting and valuable disciplines which are sought after by local, regional, and International companies. Analytics are the skills, technologies, and practices that drive decision-making, and are vital for deriving maximum business value from organisational investments.”
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