Occupational Skills Profile for the Big-Data-Enabled Specialist

In August of 2014, ODI gathered experts from the scientific, education, business, and law enforcement fields to develop an occupational profile that describes the specific skills and knowledge needed to compete in a big-data-centered economy. This work is the first of its kind in the field, and the results will help inform conversations about college and career readiness at the K-16 education level. Meet our panel of experts.

Why the big-data-enabled specialist?
More and more, industries representing a wide array of career fields find themselves researching, analyzing and integrating big data in their work. Raising a generation with skills and knowledge to work with big data is becoming increasingly important as big data becomes more influential in shaping the work and thinking of so many industries. Drawing upon methods that have been used to describe and define emerging occupations across a range of technical professions, ODI worked with a panel of big data experts to develop an occupational profile of the big-data-enabled specialist. 

We are defining big-data-enabled specialists as individuals who wrangle and analyze large and/or complex data sets to enable new capabilities including discovery, decision support, and improved outcomes.

What is an occupational profile?
An occupational profile presents a detailed synopsis of what a particular professional does, as well as the skills, knowledge, and behaviors that enable him or her to succeed in the workplace. These profiles guide educators in the design of curricula and training programs.  Read more about the profiling process.

Download the Profile
Visit our resource page to download your own copy of the Profile of a Big-Data-Enabled Specialist and read the Executive Summary.

Back to Top