Analytics Career Pathways Task Force

What’s inside?

It is now a commonplace observation that data is ubiquitous. From industry to government, from institutions to our personal lives, the collection, tracking, and analysis of data is transforming the world. The prevalence of data, coupled with the computing power to help make sense of it, has spurred the demand for professionals skilled in data management and analysis.  Data science and analytics job listings are increasing, and analytical skills are not confined to core data analytics jobs – increasingly, employers are looking for data-literate workers for a wide variety of roles.

Based on employer surveys through the World Economic Forum’s global membership community, it was found that 85% of respondent companies were “likely or very likely to have expanded their adoption of user and entity big data analytics” by 2022. At the top of the list of emerging in-demand roles were data analysts and data scientists, along with software and applications developers and e-commerce and social media specialists. When comparing skills in demand in 2018 vs. 2022, “analytical thinking and innovation” was number one in the top 10 for both years.

Another report investigated the growing demand for analytics talent in contrast to candidate supply. The results showed that by 2021, 69% of employers expected candidates with data science and analytics skills to get preference for jobs in their organizations – yet only 23% of university leaders said their graduates would have those skills.

In this report, we distinguish between analytics and data science, and describe the current market for analytics, business analytics, and data science positions. We examined job titles, years of experience, and analytic skills to create a framework that defines technical job skills, requirements, and career pathways. Enclosed in the INFORMS White Paper Report: Analytics Career Pathways Task Force are research analyses, key findings, and recommendations.