Can Data Analytics get you a promotion?
As someone who leverages data analytics for a living, here’s a fun fact: Of all the people who engage my company, 45% get a job promotion within two years. When I see an interesting trend like that, I tend to dig deeper to better understand what’s driving such a fascinating trend.
By the end of this article, you’re going to see just how powerful being in the data analytics field is for your own personal career growth, while simultaneously delivering incredible results for your company. It turns out that there are seven discrete ways using data analytics can help you get promoted:
1. Digital transformation surfaces the most important KPIs.
The first one is beautifully simple. When you’re involved in any sort of digital transformation project, you’re exposed to the most important key performance indicators (KPIs). These KPIs are what the CEO and their leadership team have identified as the most important success drivers of the company. Knowing these KPIs allows you to align your individual performance KPIs with the corporate priorities.
Since you are responsible for the tracking and reporting that fuels the measurement of these KPIs, you not only have incredible insight on what’s important to the key decision makers in your company, but you are also empowered to set up your own personal KPIs for the very project that you’re being measured against.
2. You have proximity to power.
Once your data analytics project has launched, your company’s data becomes a digital treasure map. Immediately you can see what is underperforming, what needs to change and how. You’re in a prime position to train your executive team — not just on what you’re putting into place, but on how it will move the corporate needle.
Think of this as a form of reverse mentoring. You become a trusted advisor and analyst that teaches the CEO and your executive team how all this digital transformation focus is paying off for the company.
While few executives actually care about the details of a Facebook media plan, they all care about the growth of the company’s e-commerce, CRM and the ability to connect these activities to bottom-line profits. With your ability to show how these activities are working or not working, you become a powerful go-to resource within the organization.
3. Digital analytics infrastructure is the gift that keeps on giving.
By creating the foundation of your company’s digital analytics infrastructure, you continue to receive acknowledgement and ongoing credit for the company’s buildout that all started with your foundational work. As you roll out the CRM, analytics, business platforms and other digital tools, you’re shaping the infrastructure that will impact the company for years to come.
What’s more, you’re typically asked to help train teams on how to use these systems on a day-to-day basis, giving you the right kind of exposure to the most important teams driving the company’s success.
4. Success begets more success.
As you demonstrate results, the top executives within your company want to give you more team members to keep the growth going. This does two things for your upward advancement: 1.) As you take on more responsibility for growing and managing a successful team, a promotion becomes a foregone conclusion, and 2.) a larger team also helps you deliver more tangible results. That is, a team of smart people is empowered to deliver better results (so long as you’re hiring well).
Even if your executive team chooses not to promote you for this very reason, the ability to say, “I grew a team from two people to 20” looks great on your LinkedIn profile.
5. More responsibility equals faster movement and less bureaucracy.
Assuming that your company has a directive to grow digital, then the person in charge is given more leeway to get it done. Tasks that normally might take one to two years are accomplished in a much shorter period of time. You can move faster because you’re given more responsibility — and therefore you can accomplish more.
You are given the means to succeed that are often not given to other departments within the company. When you come up against the typical red tape, you are able to say, “Our CEO wants to do this, so let’s find a way to make this work faster.”
6. Successful completion leads to training and mentoring.
One of the perks of successful completion of a project is that you get to showcase what you’ve done to every group in the company. From different regions to different markets, you are quickly acknowledged by other leaders as someone who can solve problems and make things happen. This larger exposure opens more opportunities.
7. All this helps you stand out in a shortage of qualified talent.
While this article may make it look like managing a digital transformation project is a silver bullet that ensures your next promotion, that’s not what I’m saying. I acknowledge just how much work is required to advance inside your company. Moreover, the spotlight is on you to perform, so if you don’t deliver on that promise, there’s certainly risk involved.
That said, when you are successful, companies are excited to share what they’ve done to look more appealing to new hires. Typically, the one who made it happen is asked to speak publicly at industry conferences to help spread the word — which helps build your personal brand equity.
So, perhaps your next data analytics project won’t just help your company — it may very well help you get your next job promotion.
Published originally by Michael Loban
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