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Skills for a Data Analyst

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    Skills for a Data Analyst

    Should a Data Analyst have SQL Skills. Thats the question?

    Because in my company, every f-cking data analyst they have can only use Excel!!! 30% can use Access!!!!!

    There's f-cking spreadsheets everywhere. They dont even have the sense to use the SQL Business Views provided to them via OLE DB or ODBC links!

    In the US they keep saying that SQL is an IT function and they only need people to put numbers together, but frankly I've got idiots trying to work out, how to get 200,000 rows into a spreadsheet.

    What does the panel think?
    What happens in General, stays in General.
    You know what they say about assumptions!

    #2
    "every f-cking data analyst they have can only use Excel!!! 30% can use Access!!!!!"


    A good data analyst would be able to spot the inconsistency there.

    Comment


      #3
      The next time somebody leaves their computer logged in, move one of their more important spreadsheets to a different folder. That should screw them up for a couple of days.
      ‎"See, you think I give a tulip. Wrong. In fact, while you talk, I'm thinking; How can I give less of a tulip? That's why I look interested."

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        #4
        At ClientCo most of the credit business, until 2 years ago, was 50% spreadsheets. The other half was mysql - it was fun when they reached 4gb!

        They still use alot of excel/mysql now...

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by MarillionFan View Post
          What does the panel think?
          Your right.

          I'd say 80% of my job is data analysis. I need to know the numbers before I decide on the warehouse sizing.

          Most of the analysis I look at won't fit in excel either 2003 or 2007 so SQL skills are a must.

          Any data analyst that doesn't know SQL is not a decent analyst what the point only being able to (potentially) analyse 65,536 rows?

          You could blow their fuzzy minds by suggesting they write their own tools. I've got some perl scripts that get driving distances between UK postcodes (thanks google maps) which allows me to work out pricing models etc. Thats decent analysis.

          Comment


            #6
            I agree, any self respecting data analyst should be able to write SQL, or at the very least, know how to link up tables in an Access query using the Wizard/GUI.

            Any company that keeps all their data in all manner of spreadsheets and other files needs a decent analyst and warehouse developer to come in a sort it all out.
            It's about time I changed this sig...

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by MrRobin View Post
              Any company that keeps all their data in all manner of spreadsheets and other files needs a decent analyst and warehouse developer to come in a sort it all out.
              That's what they did when I was at BP. They tracked $100m of worldwide IT spend using spreadsheets and there wasn't a database anywhere in sight. I wrote them a simple access tool which took their data from SAP and produced the reports their finance bods spent ages doing. However the reports from SAP and via my tool would never match the finance ones because the people in finance would reallocate the money offline without ever fixing it at its source. So the whole thing died - perhaps because my thing did their job in a few seconds instead of the days this huge team took to colour in Excel sheets.

              I wrote them another excel based tool to pull in all their financials relating to their projects spend. I wanted a database but they said they couldn't have one for political reasons!!

              We had another guy in the office who was tasked with matching up expenses in 2 datasets. He didn't know about vlookups and the like. He estimated it would take him about 4 days for each month he was looking at (we were in month 6 at that time). My Access database did the whole thing in a couple of seconds and produced their excel report out of the other end.

              I've never seen an organisation so dependant on Excel

              I want to learn SQL server and the like but struggle to find the time. I use SQL in my VBA but I cheat as I tend to build the query in the query builder and then hack the resulting SQL statements so that I can throw variables at it in VBA.
              Rule Number 1 - Assuming that you have a valid contract in place always try to get your poo onto your timesheet, provided that the timesheet is valid for your current contract and covers the period of time that you are billing for.

              I preferred version 1!

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by TonyEnglish View Post
                However the reports via my tool would never match the finance ones because the people in finance would reallocate the money offline without ever fixing it at its source.
                This is uncanny..... I've had the exact same gripe just a short while ago. Had a note asking why my figures didn't match finance, after lots of digging, was because they bastardise the centralised datawarehouse in their own offline version.

                Originally posted by TonyEnglish View Post
                We had another guy in the office who was tasked with matching up expenses in 2 datasets. He didn't know about vlookups and the like. He estimated it would take him about 4 days for each month he was looking at (we were in month 6 at that time). My Access database did the whole thing in a couple of seconds and produced their excel report out of the other end.
                Oh dear... what a useless scrote. Well, that's why we can charge plenty

                Originally posted by TonyEnglish View Post
                I want to learn SQL server and the like but struggle to find the time. I use SQL in my VBA but I cheat as I tend to build the query in the query builder and then hack the resulting SQL statements so that I can throw variables at it in VBA.
                There's nowt wrong with that. I often do the same... I could write the base myself, but what's the point if some wysiwyg will do it for you and then you edit the params in. Easier still if you learn a bit of TSQL @variables
                It's about time I changed this sig...

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by MrRobin View Post
                  Oh dear... what a useless scrote. Well, that's why we can charge plenty
                  A true contractor would have said they could do it in two days, done a script to do it in a few seconds, and spent the rest of the time on CUK.

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                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by TheFaQQer View Post
                    A true contractor would have said they could do it in two days, done a script to do it in a few seconds, and spent the rest of the time on CUK.

                    They do....and they are
                    It's Deja-vu all over again!

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