facebook-pv

What Companies Look for in a Business Intelligence Analyst

by
 

As the amount of data companies are collecting continues to grow at a rapid rate, the talent pool of individuals needed to analyze this information is having trouble keeping up. It comes as no surprise that jobs for business intelligence (BI) analysts—employees tasked with analyzing large amounts of data— are opening up faster than they can be filled.

While employers seek candidates with a wide variety of technical experience, proficiency in SQL (the programming language used for data definition and manipulation) tops the list.
To learn what types of roles prospective BI analysts could expect to fill in companies once hired, you evaluate the most common job responsibilities featured in BI job listings, such as:
 
  1. Producing dashboards and reports for various departments within a company is the most frequently listed responsibility. Reports are representations or varied observations and conclusions from data while dashboards are an access area for the compiled reports.
  2. Second to this is SQL programming. 
Other less technical responsibilities are also featured. For example, interfacing with internal or external clients as a key role. This either means supplying BI analysis to employees within the company, or doing so for customers as part of services the company provides.
Other key responsibilities include provide business recommendations and translate business needs to data requirements for BI.
The purpose of BI or any other kind of analytics is not only to acquire the data, but to create something that is easily usable in decision making.
Similarly, 60% of companies are looking for candidates who have experience working with specific BI software programs such as Oracle, Tableau, IBM Cognos or Microsoft Power BI among others.

The ability to meet the above mentioned responsibilities is sought by most companies. As such, it’s highly recommended that BI analyst job seekers prioritize learning basic SQL programming and at least one vendor-specific BI software program before applying for a job in this area.

 Author: Stephen Barry Okwaro – Business Processes Lead Pathways International Limited

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *