The Data Career Compass: A Mindful Guide to Every Role Card (Intro-S1E1)
What if job titles don’t tell the full story? We uncover the real skills, responsibilities, and impact behind every data role.
Hello everyone,
Let's HONESTLY admit that job titles don’t tell the full story…
As I was thinking about the content for DataConscious while running on the treadmill at the gym, an idea struck me…I should start the newsletter journey with the basics. First things first.
That’s how I decided to create a series of posts where we’ll deep dive into each role breaking them down in detail. Each post will also be accompanied by a podcast episode featuring industry professionals who will share their valuable insights and experience.
🔹 A Data Analyst in one company crunches numbers in Excel, in another, they’re writing complex SQL queries and managing data models.
🔹 An Analytics Engineer might be fine tuning data tests in one role, but in another, they’re the architect behind the entire ETL pipeline.
🔹 A Data Scientist in one company builds machine learning models, in another, they’re mostly creating reports and explaining metrics.
🔹 A Data Engineer in one job is all about Spark and real time pipelines, while elsewhere, they’re maintaining old school ETL jobs in SQL.
🔹 A Head of Data in one organization sets strategy and builds teams, in another, they’re hands-on coding and still cleaning up legacy reports.
That’s why I’m launching The Data Career Compass, a post + Podcast series breaking down every data role, featuring real industry pros sharing what they actually do, the tools that matter, and how they got there.
The goal? To bring clarity to how the data landscape is structured today. We’ll create a dedicated card for each role, covering everything you need to know.
🎙 The podcast
I really like podcasts and the idea to start a podcast series was always stuck into my mind. The truth is I was not sure about the topic. And boom, here it is!
To bring these roles to life, each post in this series will be paired with a podcast episode featuring industry professionals who have firsthand much of experience in the role we're exploring.
Why? Because job descriptions only tell part of the story, the real insights come from the people living the job every day.
In each episode, we’ll dive into:
🎙 Their journey into the role: How they got started and what they’ve learned along the way.
🎙 What their day-to-day actually looks like: Real talk about responsibilities, challenges, and wins.
🎙 The skills that truly matter: What they use daily vs. what’s often overhyped.
🎙 Career growth and industry trends: Where the role is headed and what aspiring professionals should know.
🎙 Honest advice for newcomers: What they wish they had known before stepping into the role.
Real stories, real experiences, and real advice from people who have been where you want to go.
Whether you're trying to choose a career path or level up in your current role, these conversations will give you insider knowledge that you won’t find in a typical job post.
*There will also a podcast for the latest post Increasing the reputation of Business Intelligence teams within an organization from a BI Leader…🤫
🔊 Subscribe, tune in, and let’s navigate the data world…one role at a time.
📌 What the role actually does (beyond the job title)
I remember when I moved to Athens for my first job as a Data Scientist. I was excited but also 80% unsure about what my role truly entailed. And guess what? That’s completely normal. No one knows exactly what to expect when they start out and if you feel that way, don’t worry.
The reason? Companies shape roles differently based on their needs, teams, and tech stack. There’s no universal standard.
For example, in one company, a Data Analyst might work only with processed data from a Data Warehouse, while in another, they might also be responsible for building data pipelines.
Is one approach more correct than the other? Not necessarily. It all comes down to what aligns with your goals and interests.
Similarly, an Analytics Engineer in one company might focus solely on writing tests, in another, they might handle everything from ETL to dashboarding, and in a third, they might be dedicated entirely to data quality checks.
That’s why we’ll hear directly from industry professionals performing these roles because real world insights are invaluable. Trust me, you won’t want to miss this!
🛠 The skills and tools required to succeed
Conversations around tools are never-ending.
Tableau vs. Power BI
Azure Synapse vs. AWS Redshift vs. Google BigQuery vs. Snowflake
Snowflake vs. Databricks
Python vs. R (though we know who the winner is here 😉)
Prefect vs. Mage
…and the list goes on.
But from my perspective, there’s no absolute winner, not without context. A tool is only as good as the problem it solves and the environment it operates in.
That’s why, in this series, we’ll break down the key tools and tech stacks used in each role, so you can understand what’s truly essential and avoid wasting time on tools you don’t need.
📈 Career growth opportunities and salary expectations
What does the career path for this role look like?
Role Growth in the industry
Where have professionals ended up after 3, 5, or 10 years in this role?
What are the salary expectations for entry, mid, and senior levels across different locations?
How easy (or difficult) is it to advance in this role?
We’ll dive into real career trajectories to give you a clear understanding of where each role can lead you.
🚀 How to transition into the role effectively
Whether you're a student, a career switcher, or someone already in the data space looking for a shift, we’ll lay out practical steps to help you land the role you want.
This includes:
✅ Recommended courses
✅ Certifications worth pursuing
✅ Real-world projects to showcase your skills
✅ Portfolio-building strategies
The goal? To make your transition smooth, intentional, and effective.
🎙 What the Data Pros Say
This is my favorite part of the series!
Beyond the technical breakdowns, you’ll hear from experienced professionals in each role. Through our ‘What the Data Pros Say’ section, we’ll bring you firsthand insights from people actively working in the field:
📢 What they wish they knew before starting
📢 The biggest challenges they face daily
📢 Their advice for aspiring data professionals
If you want to give your perspective on the role you are in, I really want to hear from you, comment the post, or drop me a message!
Who is this series for?
🔹 If you’re exploring data careers, this series will give you clarity and direction.
🔹 If you’re already in one role but considering a switch, you’ll gain insights into alternative paths.
🔹 If you’re a business leader hiring for data roles, you’ll better understand what to look for in candidates.
Great analysis starts with great awareness. Be mindful, be DataConscious.
References
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