Global AIConf 2017

Discover more about us
at harnham.com/us
HOW TO BUILD AN
EXCEPTIONAL CAREER IN
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCEAdam Keene

at harnham.com/us
INTRODUCTION
• Congratulations on choosing AI!
• The fastest growing, yet most competitive sector
• Standing out isn’t easy to do
• So, how can I help?

at harnham.com/us
WHO AM I?

at harnham.com/us
• Head of Data Science Practice - Boston
• 8 years recruitment experience
• 4 years in agency-side analytics
• UK to Chicago
• Chicago to New York
WHO AM I?
ADAM KEENE

at harnham.com/us
• World’s largest & leading recruitment business dedicated solely to Data & Analytics
HARNHAM
WHO ARE WE?
London
(Founded 2006)
New York San Francisco
• Data Science, Digital Analytics, Marketing & Insight, Data & Technology,
Life Science & Health and Credit Risk

at harnham.com/us
WHAT IS A
DATA SCIENTIST?
“Data science is an interdisciplinary field pertaining to scientific methods,
processes, and systems to extract knowledge or insights from data in
various forms, either structured or unstructured.”
Vasant Dhar, Professor at the Stern School of Business and the Center for Data Science at New York University

at harnham.com/us
• An important delineation to make
• Sometimes a blurred line in companies
• Important to recognize the difference
• And the path you wish to take
DATA SCIENTIST
VS DATA ANALYST

at harnham.com/us
DEFINING A
DATA ANALYST?
“A Data Analyst performs the process of inspecting, cleansing, transforming,
and modeling data with the goal of discovering useful information,
suggesting conclusions, and supporting decision-making”
Data Analysis & Data Science – Key Differences, WIKIPEDIA

at harnham.com/us
DATA ANALYSIS & DATA
SCIENCE
KEY DIFFERENCESData Analyst
• High-level of education not a pre-requisite
• Collection & processing of data
• Analysis of data using tools such as SAS &
SQL or BI Tools
• Analyzes and mines business data, often
from single data sources (such as CRM)
• Creates reports to aid business decision-
making
• Finds the answers to prescribed business
questions
Data Scientist
• High-level of education a necessity
• A highly capable programmer in the likes of
Python, R, Spark etc.
• Using multiple, often disparate &
uncategorized data sources
• A storyteller who can communicate
internally/externally
• Identifying new business questions that can
add value
• T-shaped people

at harnham.com/us
A COUPLE MORE
SIMPLIFICATIONS
• A great Data Analyst can analyze what they have, and come up
with insightful answers to prescribed business questions
BUT
• A great Data Scientist can discover the questions that the
business should have been asking all along

at harnham.com/us
SOMETHING
THAT STUCK WITH ME
• A Data Analyst is like a tour guide, able to take what we already
know, and provide a unique insight into it
BUT
• A Data Scientist is an explorer, discovering unchartered lands
and bringing insight and new questions from the unknown

at harnham.com/us
THE NEW
NORMAL

at harnham.com/us
• A Masters/Ph.D. education in a statistical, math, computer science or related discipline
or, something industry specific
• A curious, obsessed problem solver
• An excellent level of technical ability using key tools such as Python & R
• Statistical rigor (Scientific Method)
These things are the new normal
THE NEW
NORMAL

at harnham.com/us
THE TRIPLE
THREAT

at harnham.com/us
• Business acumen
• Top-tier communication skills
• A hobbyist mindset
THE TRIPLE
THREAT

at harnham.com/us
• “Business acumen is keenness and speed in understanding and deciding on a
business situation.”
- The Financial Times lexicon
• There is no doubt that whether liaising internally or externally, that disseminating
the ROI of your work will be absolutely intrinsic to your success
BUSINESS
ACUMEN

at harnham.com/us
A great Data Scientist:
• Complex thoughts - Simple words
• Storytelling
• Diplomacy
• An evangelist
• Collaboration
COMMUNICATION
SKILLS

at harnham.com/us
• “A hobbyist is someone that would spend their time doing Data Science even if it
wasn’t a career option”
- Adam Keene, 2017
A hobbyist will:
• Have projects they work on in their spare time, especially those which expose
them to new areas in their field
• Stays up to date, and takes part in conversations online as well as in person
through Meetups and hackathons
• Cultivate a great GitHub repository, sharing their best work with pride
• Compete with their peers on Kaggle, creating a profile that makes them proud
BEING A
HOBBYIST

at harnham.com/us
• There are huge & untold benefits to making the most of Kaggle & GitHub
HOW DO YOU
APPLY THIS

at harnham.com/us
GET YOURSELF
THE INTERVIEW

at harnham.com/us
• Tangibility, and a focus on the outcomes is a necessity
• Create a segment on your resume for times when you’ve presented, whether Meetups or
otherwise and include the topic you spoke on
• Show evidence of both personal successes, and fruitful collaboration
• Outline your communication skills in your opening statement, be specific
• Make sure your hobbies & interests include your passion for Data Science with examples
• Put links to your Kaggle & GitHub on your resume, be proud of them
GET YOURSELF
THE INTERVIEW

at harnham.com/us
MENTORING

at harnham.com/us
• You don’t need to do this alone!
• Make the unknown, known
• Avoiding typical mistakes
• Building your network
MENTORING
WHY?

at harnham.com/us
• Meetups, events, conferences, job interviews, anywhere!
• Don’t pop the question right away
• Two way street
• Long term strategy
MENTORING
HOW?

at harnham.com/us
HARNHAM
THANKYOU
Adam Keene
harnham.com/us
adamkeene@harnham.com
Or, find me on LinkedIn

Global AIConf 2017

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

Similar to Global AIConf 2017

Similar to Global AIConf 2017 (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (18)

Global AIConf 2017