My newest obsession: data science

I have a new obsession these days: data science. And, apparently, while I may be a little behind the bandwagon, I'm not the only one completely fascinated by it.

When Google Chief Economist Hal Varian told the New York Times that the “sexy job” in the next decade is statisticians, he wasn’t kidding. Data scientists are becoming increasingly important now that we can track the bazillions of ways people interact with one another on mobile and the Web.

In fact, companies like Google, Facebook and LinkedIn seriously have teams of data scientists who analyze EVERY. BIT. OF. INFORMATION. that comes in. They interpret these massive amounts of data to learn about their users, and ultimately, to acquire and retain more users. (If you've ever wondered why they're wildly successful, this is one of the reasons.)


Here's a great example: LinkedIn’s Daniel Tunkelang was interviewed this week on Forbes.com for What is a Data Scientist? Tunkelang says “data scientists turn big data into big value, delivering products that delight users and insight that forms business decisions.” It’s this type of “big value” that leads to innovative products like the professional networking company’s “People You May Know” feature. (Facebook does it, too.)

Pretty cool, right? Know what's even more cool? This feature gives us a richer user experience and so we spend more time on the sites, searching those familiar names. Advertisers love that high engagement, and they pay big money for it.*

Part of the reason for my new obsession is because I joined a social and mobile analytics firm recently and it's totally changed the way I think of the online world. I mean, the trillions of actions we all make--from our Facebook posts to our tweets to Q&As on Quora to even those silly games we're playing on our phones (Angry Birds, I'm talking to you!)--are telling so many incredible stories about us as a whole. (Sometimes even history-making kinds of stories.)

And, I've learned that a lot of businesses are on information overload. Even if they have the infrastructure in place to collect the data, unless they have data scientists who are trained to analyze the data, it can be not only overwhelming but absolutely worthless. So, if you're in the social and mobile space, you have to ask yourself if you have the data science--the lens--needed to effectively interpret the data?

It’s how Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn stay competitive. And, it's what you need if you want to keep up, too.



*Disclaimer: This is just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many other factors involved. I'll definitely share what I learn in the coming months.



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