MBA in Data Analytics - Career as a MBA Data Analytics in India

By Dr Sachin Deshmukh

Many universities and institutes around the world have included Data Analytics in their MBA programs. Most of these programs are primarily focused on data modelling and programming.

The capability of Data Analytics has moved from being a competitive advantage to a strategic imperative. Many business, social and government organizations across the world have accepted the fact that deriving value from data is no longer a competitive advantage but it has become a competitive necessity. One will not be surprised to know that commercial organizations are using big data and big data analytics to create a competitive edge over their rivals. But what is striking is the social and the government organizations are using analytical techniques to optimize the use of the limited resources they possess and deliver effective social services.

By 2020, USA alone will have openings of 2 million jobs (4 million worldwide) in Analytics predicts Peter Sondergaard of Gartner. Currently India have openings of 75,000 jobs in Data Analytics. It is estimated that only one-third of these jobs will be filled by appropriate candidates making Analytics a scarce and a valuable commodity.

The Data Analytics Curriculum

Many universities and institutes around the world have included Data Analytics in their MBA programs. Most of these programs are primarily focused on data modelling and programming. The aim is to equip students with knowledge of data mining in order to achieve specific business goals. The curriculum incudes statistical modelling, data management, visualization, information security, optimization and decision making under uncertainty. Some MBA programs offer curriculum that focus on a blend of Business Intelligence, Management, Strategy and Information Technology.

Careers in Data Analytics

Data Analytics is an emerging field with the current trend indicating many organizations are adopting Analytics for building competitive advantage over their rivals, and decision making. A data analyst job tend to focus on looking at the data to uncover the hidden patterns and develop statistical models for predicting the future. Skills essential for a Data Analyst job, but vary according to company’s specific needs are:

And Utilities contributed 15% of all Analytics jobs in 2018. According to the current reports, FMCGs, large retailers, government sectors, shipping, and aviation industries have started adopting Analytics for better decisions. The job opportunities in Analytics are growing exponentially.As far as industry wise job openings in Analytics is concerned, 40% jobs posted by banking and financial sector were for Analytics (2018). E – Commerce sector offered 8% of the Analytics jobs whereas Energy.

Data Analytics Industry Job Profiles – Who does what?

The Data Analyst

A Data Analyst is a member of data science team possessing skills in languages like SAS, R and Python. The Data Analyst needs to have skills and talent to conduct the entire spectrum of Data Science Process combined with a healthy “figure-it-out” attitude.

The Data Architect

The person in this role integrates, centralize, protect and maintain the data sources. The Data Architect should have knowledge of Hive, Pig, and Spark and needs to keep a track of every innovation in the industry.

The Data Engineer

The Data Engineer often has a background of software engineering and handles databases of his/her organization. His knowledge should span over diverse set of languages spanning over both statistical programming and languages oriented towards web development.

The Statistician

He is responsible to extract insights from the data. With his/her strong background in statistical theories and methodologies, and a logical and stats oriented mind set, he/she harvests the data and turns it into information and knowledge.

Database Administrator

The Database Administrator is responsible to make the data available to all relevant users. A Database Administrator ensures all backup and recovery systems are in place and that data security is taken care of.

The Business Analyst

The Business Analyst masters the skill of linking data insights to actionable business insights and is able to use storytelling techniques to spread the message across the entire organization. They often act as the intermediary between the business guys and the techies.

Who Can Do a Course in MBA with Data Analytics?

“For Today’s Graduate, Just One Word – Statistics” was an article that was published in The New York Times in August 2009 by Steve Lohr. Today, Steve Lohr can boast of his article to find how true his predictions are in our industrial world. Anyone who want to make a career in Analytics should have the ability to play with numbers, must be strong in Statistics and Mathematics. Usually companies prefer engineers for the Analytics jobs. Therefore any engineering graduate with lust for numbers can take up a course in Analytics. For other graduates, the only condition is they should have some numerical ability as Analytics in not a cup of tea for everyone. Individuals with programming background and having some knowledge of database management can also find this career more suitable. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning is another area that is emerging fast.

Today’s HR managers, recruitment consultants and employers insist on hiring management graduates equipped with “thinking tools”. They want students to learn how to gain competitive advantage, not only by solving current problems and finding answers to the existing questions but also using data and analytics to deal with complex problems in a holistic way.

About The Author:

Dr Sachin Deshmukh is the Dean – PGDM Program Professor & Chair – Centre of Excellence for Business Analytics at Vivekanand Education Society Institute of Management Studies & Research, Mumbai