Knowing how to interpret data and apply insights are becoming indispensable skills in almost every industry. Businesses need to know how to generate, refine and use data so that they can stay competitive. For these reasons, business admin students and graduates need to develop their data skills such as knowing how to interpret complex spreadsheets, as this can increase their employability and earning potential. In this article, we will explore why business students and graduates need these kinds of skills and how they can go about developing them.
What are data skills?
Generally, data skills refer to the ability to harvest, generate, refine, interpret and apply data. Additionally, there are several specific data skills employers want to see, particularly in the field of business. Here are a few examples:
Spreadsheet interpretation
Understanding how to interpret complex spreadsheets is absolutely essential for business admin students and graduates, as well as many other business professionals. Businesses organize vast quantities of information of various types in spreadsheets, including consumer data and financial data. Knowing how to interpret this information and use the findings to inform decisions is imperative, as this helps businesses make intelligent decisions in terms of spending and forecasting, for example.
Analyzing spreadsheets also helps business administrators produce insightful statistics, which also dramatically improve decision-making abilities. Professionals can acquire these kinds of skills through formal education, through programs such as an online MBA from a university such as Aston, where remote learning can practically fit around your working life.
Data security
Data is now the most important currency in the world of business, as it produces insights that are extremely valuable. For this reason, keeping data safe is extremely important. This not only protects company secrets and valuable information but it also protects customers and their data. Leaks not only expose companies to legal liabilities but they can give information to competitors, damage reputations, and harm profit margins. As such, knowing about data security is crucial for business admin students and graduates. Familiarizing yourself with policies and procedures surrounding data protection can make you a highly valuable prospective employee.
Website analytics
A business’s website is one of its primary tools for collecting and analyzing data. Websites generate large volumes of valuable data on customer behaviors and spending habits, which businesses can then use to their advantage. Understanding how to process this data, extract useful insights and translate them into actionable suggestions is crucial for effective business administration. Advanced analytics were once reserved for professions like forex or stock trading, but now businesses of all kinds can leverage market data to their advantage.
Visualizing data
The value of data is minimal without the proper knowledge and methods of how to visualize it. Visualizing data is the process of presenting the data and the conclusions extracted from it in understandable formats, as this enables business leaders to apply the findings. You don’t necessarily need a degree in data analytics to do this nowadays, as many tools and software exist for this purpose. Here are some of the most popular platforms:
- Google Charts: This is a free tool, and it’s widely used among business owners and administrators. It’s relatively easy to use and makes for a great starting point for those new to data visualization methods.
- Tableau: This is the most popular option online today, and it requires virtually no technical skills to operate. It’s also possible to use this platform for free through the public version.
- Infogram: Professionals can use Infogram to drag-and-drop information and easily produce reports, charts, infographics, and other visualization tools. It’s an intuitive visualization tool that contains over 550 maps and 40 charts.
Data extraction and organization
The most fundamental and useful data skills are the ability to extract and organize data, as, without the ability to process it, data is useless. Knowing how to extract data means being able to identify valuable data and gather it. Organizing it allows it to be used, and this involves storing it in an appropriate database. This process is known as ETL (Extract Transform and Load). Here are some of the most important tools for facilitating this process:
- Microsoft Excel: This is one of the most well-known and widely used data organization tools. Professionals can use Excel to enter, categorize and export data.
- Scripting languages: Understanding scripting languages is an advanced skill that you most likely won’t have acquired unless you’ve acquired a degree in a relevant field or completed a programming course. Useful scripting languages to understand include Python, Bash, and Pearl.
Benefits of having data skills as a business administrator
Having strong data skills can make you a highly valuable employee in many organizations. Here are a few of the benefits of developing these skills:
- Inform intelligent decision making – Having the knowledge to extract and use data can make you an extremely effective decision maker, which can lead to huge savings. It can prevent you from making bad decisions and help you steer businesses in profitable directions. For example, you may be able to identify something that’s holding your business back in terms of sales and eliminate it, leading to increased sales.
- Effectively manage technical staff – With an understanding of data skills, you can more effectively manage a team of more advanced data professionals. Understanding even the basics of this subject can help you ask the right questions and direct people effectively, leading to better outcomes for the organization. You can also use your understanding to judge the quality of the work of data professionals and determine whether things are taking longer than they should.
With data now the most important currency in the business world, business students and graduates should strive to develop strong data skills, as it can only help improve their chances when they enter the job market.