8 Ways To Be An Awesome Data Professional

Some of you aren’t very good at what you do.

I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this, but it’s true. I have proof.

Every day I go into forums and read about someone who can’t recover data, or I meet someone who can’t communicate to their peers, or I find someone that is afraid of learning something new.

The best data professionals have one eye looking forward and the other eye on the current business objectives. They don’t put new technology first without an understanding if it will help the business meet a common objective. They don’t just wave their hands in the air when someone suggests something new needs to be tried.

If you want to be an amazing data professional then here are the eight things you can start doing today that will have your colleagues singing songs in your honor as you walk to the Keurig machine.

You’re welcome.

1. Have Backups

No data professional ever wants to be without their data. If you love your data then you’ll take steps to protect it just like a sailor protects himself on shore leave. Make sure your critical files and data have at least three copies, in two different formats, and one of them offsite. I’m talking about databases, your excel files, and even the excel files you store inside of databases (OH HAI SHAREPOINT!) Don’t forget your own data professional files, too. Data models (you know what those are, right?), SQL scripts, stored procedures, and even those pictures from the office holiday party that helps to explain your sudden promotion last January.

2. Have A Recovery Plan

Backups are good, but recovery is better. If you want to be an amazing data professional then you had better be able to recover your data if and when the time comes. Understand what RPO and RTO mean, and make sure they are applicable for the systems you are working with. Nobody wants to be told they need to redo a few weeks worth of work.

3. Know How To Present Your Solution

When I was earning my MCM I was told that being a “master” meant understanding all available options along with the cost, benefit, and risks associated with each one. The business will want (or need) a solution and you will be asked to provide options. You will want to lay out the options and be able to present your solution and back it up with facts.

4. Don’t Be The Bottleneck

Take the time to understand what it is your business end users are doing, and how they are doing it. Look for ways to streamline their process, reduce confusion, or unnecessary work. When the business users come to you and say “we need X”, think about them first, and not yourself. Even if X means more work for you, it could be the thing that sets your business apart from all the rest.

5. Keep Improving Yourself

You need to constantly be on top of the latest industry trend and seeing if they are applicable to your needs. Don’t let the naysayers discourage you from trying something new. Imagine where we would be if the Wright brothers had said “you want me to do what with that bicycle?” If you have no idea what Invoke-Command means, or break out in sweat when you come across an instance using Server Core then those are signs you have stopped learning, and that’s a bad thing.

6. Don’t Be A Troll

Nobody likes to sit next to a meeting troll. You know the type…the ones who say they know everything, or claim to have predicted the future, or say the words “devil’s advocate” over and over? Don’t be that person. Don’t dwell on the mistakes of others. Ever. You also influence others to be helpful when you lead by example.

If there is one thing you need to take away from this post it is this: You don’t get better by dragging someone near you down. You get better by helping them up.

7. Send A Note To Future You

Good data professionals keep track of where they are, where they have been, and where they are going. Document everything. That way if someone says “how did we get here” you will be able to tell them the factors that led up to a series of decisions. Don’t think about writing a novel. Think about taking good, organized notes. Consider this as you sending messages to future you. That makes documentation cool, right?

8. Share This Post With Someone That Should Be Amazing

Know a data professional? Want to help them be better at what it is they do? Then send them this list.

Because we’re all in this together.