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Careers/Technology/Data Analyst

Data Analyst

Technology

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Data analysts collect, clean, and interpret data to help a team make better decisions, using spreadsheets, SQL, and visualization tools to turn raw numbers into a clear recommendation.

Education

Bachelor's degree, or equivalent SQL/analytics skill

Experiences

Coming soon

Why this career matters

Every team, from marketing to operations, generates more data than anyone has time to read manually. Data analysts turn that data into a decision someone can actually act on.

What you actually do

1
Pull data from databases, spreadsheets, or internal tools
2
Clean and organize data so it can be trusted
3
Build dashboards and reports that track key metrics
4
Look for patterns and trends and explain what they mean
5
Present findings to teams that aren't data specialists
6
Answer ad hoc questions from other teams

A day in the life

You start by checking an overnight report for anything unusual, then dig into why a metric moved. Midday you write a query to answer a question a manager asked, and build a chart to show the answer clearly. In the afternoon you walk a non-technical team through what the data shows and what to do about it.

Key skills

Observe's own list, not government data.

SQLSpreadsheetsData visualizationStatistics fundamentalsCommunicationAttention to detail

Work environment

Office or remoteBusiness hoursCross-team workScreen-heavyDeadline-drivenIndependent work

Related careers

Observe's own list, not government data.

Business AnalystData ScientistBI DeveloperMarket Research Analyst

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