Data literacy - Insights from Industry

4Ehd...3ukk
1 Jul 2022
92

I had the great pleasure to welcome Data and Analytics enthusiasts to our first in person TDWI (Transforming Data with Intelligence) event in over two years on the 23rd June 2022. 
 
The session provided a great opportunity to connect, with students, data and analytics professional, and interested business stakeholders across a range of industries, to share experiences and expertise on the topic of Data Literacy. An event like this would not be possible without the wonderful support from the TDWI board and sponsorship from the University of Technology Sydney, Enterprise Learning Unit, Data Analytics and Insights Unit and the amazing facilities at the UTS Business School. 
 
Our fantastic panellists 

Angela Kim, Director Data Analytics & AI– Deloitte, Amar Poddatooru, Head of Data and Technology – Australian Ethical Investments,
Josh Hayward, Head Strategy Management, Cricket NSW,
Fiona Anson, Head Enterprise Learning and Future Work,

discussed and provided insights into a range of initiatives and opportunities to enhance data literacy in your organisation. Some of the session insights. 

Data literacy is an enterprise capability - to enable data driven decisions, skills and capabilities must be embedded throughout your organisation and extend beyond just your data and Analytics teams. 

 

Literacy across the Data lifecycle the need for literacy spans the entire data lifecycle and as we build data products, what you see via the reports, dashboards or Artificial Intelligence (AI) outputs is dependent on the way data is captured, stored, managed, modelled and visualised. Improving literacy across the data lifecycle is a shared responsibility that is the key to building TRUST and ensure the ethical use of data.

 

Data is another language – We are not all fluent in data but by working together in small teams sharing different perspectives we can aim to achieve consistency in our understanding and be aware of the risks associated with using data incorrectly creating unintended consequences and lead to poor decisions

 

Attracting Talent – is difficult and organisation are considering new approaches to attract talent and seeking to work closer with Universities to provide opportunities for students to work on real live problems and projects and are seeing some real positive results 

 

A need to develop new skills - with staff shortages and increasing demand for Data, Analytics and AI professionals, organisations are seeking and actively providing opportunities for existing staff to developnew skills (reskill) in emerging areas through the use of short courses or customised enterprise learning offerings. https://open.uts.edu.au/for-your-organisation/

 

Emerging and future skills, Data leaders are ensuring teams are developing the future skills to succeed, not limited to problem solving, critical thinking, story-telling, engaging stakeholders, making decision, in addition to ensuring technical proficiency.

 

Final Thoughts…

 
The session highlighted the importance of developing your existing staff with the skills to succeed, bringing the whole organisation on the data literacy journey and to ensure you consider ways to build a community that considers the importance of data across the whole data lifecycle. 

If you would like to learn more about how you can adopt some novel approaches, as above or share your thoughts please do so.
Please stay tuned for future events at TDWI Australia.

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23 Comments

B
One of the biggest challenges is the knowledge gap between current higher management executives who do not understand the importance of data literacy and therefore under inves invest. This has a trickle down effect on the new generation of emerging leaders in their late 30s who are not as data literate but will be impacted significantly in the coming years when they take over the reins from their predecessors. Executives will need to, look at the long term and realise that early investment into data literacy for their next generation of leaders will be key in the long term success of the company.
now
Every one should know this concept
bheema
Very good article its showing present condition of every thing
Distivboy
Great article @Napes
Distivboy
Valuable information about data literacy. Data is the perception of our environment (world) with specifics.
Hael
now
This post on data literacy insights from industry provides valuable information and highlights the importance of developing data literacy skills in today's data-driven world. It is a must-read for anyone who wants to stay competitive and make informed decisions based on data.
now
ENDORSED
Thanks for sharing, i agree everyone should have these skills, it opens up a highway of job opportunities
Data literacy and building community is good and thinking about future for everyone is really needs. And improved
now
ENDORSED
Great article! I found the insights on data literacy to be very informative and relevant to the current industry trend. The idea that data literacy is a crucial skill in today's data-driven world and can bring competitive advantage to organizations is spot on. I also appreciate the practical tips and suggestions for improving data literacy, such as continuous learning and fostering a data-driven culture within the organization. Overall, an excellent read for anyone looking to enhance their data literacy and stay ahead in their field. Thank you for sharing this valuable resource!
now
This is beautiful! I know so many persons would want to either get new skill( which is one of this digital skill) or enhance what they know already but there is usually an obstacle of financial limitation. I hope that organisation responsible for this educative program could atleast cut down the price . The world is evolving and we all need to evolve with it .
E2123
now
ENDORSED
Totally agree that data literacy and analytics need to be taught at all levels in an organisation rather than just within a specialised department. Understanding data is almost like needing to know how to use a word processor; it's a necessary skillset.