The Secret Sauce of Top Data Hires (Hint: It’s Not Python)

I speak weekly to Hiring Managers who are looking for their next Data Wizard.

Typically, this comes in the form of a Data Engineer, Data Analyst or Data Scientist.

Hiring Managers often post a job ad and get between 200 and 400 applicants and spend the next 3 weeks going through resumes to find the top 10 to interview (or HR does).

Each job ad, and even the position description, often details some very specific technical skills needed for the role.

But when it comes down to how the decision is actually made? Technical skill is treated as a box check, where anyone with average to above average skills will satisfy the criteria.

What's more important is three other things.

1. Communication
2. Cultural fit
3. Ability to understand the business

Not just the technical skills.

These three areas come under soft skills and I'll explain each in this article.

Emphasis on Soft Skills

Soft skills are often hard to put a finger on in terms of what they actually mean.

Here are my anecdotal definitions from seeing them in action.

• Communication: I define this as the ability to convey your perspective and logic so another person understands. Similar to persuasion or influence, communication is the foundation of other people understanding what you do and eventually providing value to business stakeholders. For data, analytics and AI - this is really frickin' important because it's already hard to figure out what data folk actually do. If there's poor communication then there is often be no stakeholder buy-in, reduced the impact of work and whatever data product is being developed will typically miss the scope. Heck, you could be an Excel Wizard that communicates well that provides 10x more value than a Data Analyst that doesn't.
• Cultural fit: I define cultural fit as having similar personal values to the company's values meaning that you approach problems, conflicts and challenges in a similar manner. Cultural fit reduces time to decision-making and the ability to trust the judgement of others. Misaligned cultural fit can create friction. An example of cultural misalignment would be differing opinions on collaboration versus independent work. If you are interviewing and you love to tackle problems as a group but the team culture is to approach when independnetly ...then it may not be the best fit!
• Ability to understand the business: domain knowledge is paramount. A Master's in Data Science is great, but without any domain knowledge it's like being a ripped bodybuilder but not being able to climb up stairs without being out of breath. Without the functional knowledge of business, it's very hard to identify value and apply knowledge. I've seen businesses hire people with only domain knowledge for their data roles rather than a degree.

How to Develop Soft Skills

The path to "soft-skilling" is a little bit more obscured than technical skill development.

There are courses, certificates and degrees for technical skills...but it's less obvious when it comes to soft skills.

Here’s how I'd recommend tackling the challenge:

Join Toastmasters

If you're looking for a structured way to improve communication, networking and influencing skills Toastmasters is a no-brainer. It forces you to get comfortable explaining ideas to an audience - exactly what you’ll be doing in stakeholder meetings or project pitches. This is the one I go to fortnightly: https://www.toastmasters.org/Find-a-Club/00006428-city-of-perth-toastmasters

Girish Sharma - see you there soon right?

Take Courses

Contrary to popular belief, there are tonnes of online courses focused on communication, influence, empathy and leadership. Yes, even for data folks. Check out LinkedIn Learning, Coursera, Ted Talks or even YouTube to sharpen the softer edge of your sword. Now these must be applied in real life to realise the actual learning.

Take Initiative

Put your hand up to run the morning stand-up once in a while. Ask your manager if you can get stuck into a project discovery meeting. Volunteer to present team findings. Write a short post explaining what your dashboard does. All of it builds confidence and clarity - all just a question away from being a learning experience.

Learn from Others

Observe people in your company who have influence. What do they do differently? How do they phrase things? What tone do they use? Heck, this is why I go to Toastmasters - so I can see the experts in action!

Industry Examples

Instead of some nice words and intangible concepts, here are some real examples from the last few weeks in my work:

• Contractor in Mining Industry: Hired after a single 2-hour interview (I sat in on the interview). The reason? They got on like a house on fire with the Hiring Manager and understood the problems he was facing - the tech part was almost secondary.
• Head of Technology: “We’ll be hiring for curiosity and communication. It’s an entry-level role so some SQL and Power BI would be great, but not necessary.” Translation: people > tools.
• Head of Engineering: “Cultural fit is more important than technical to us.” Why? Because misaligned hires tank team performance faster and this is especially true in small to medium sized businesses.

The Summary?

Yes, tech skills matter. You need a foundation. But that’s not what separates good from great hires.

Hiring Managers know that communication, culture and business understanding are the real differentiators. The best candidates are usually not the most technically gifted - they’re the ones who can bridge the gap between data and humans.

If you’re hiring, prioritise soft skills early. If you’re job hunting, develop them now to stand out as it's often left behind.

I hate to mention AI but getting better at communicating is one of the better ways to protect yourself against automation.

Thanks for reading.

Doug

DR Analytics Recruitment - helping businesses hire top data + technology talent to grow and not get left behind in the modern world.