Data for development: The talent needed now

Many development organizations are already jumping on the big data bandwagon when it comes to hiring, according to Emmanuel Letouzé, director and co-founder of Data-Pop Alliance. They’re bringing on a few data scientists and putting them to work on pilot projects. But this isn’t the most effective way to build data science into an organization, he told Devex at the Cartagena Data Festival last week, and it would be all too easy to lose this talent to Google or Facebook. Rather than hiring for the sake of hiring, the development community needs to take a step back and first look at the current gaps in talent. READ: Traditional vs. citizen-generated data: Is it a case of either-or? People are currently trained in data science, computers and ways of organizing and manipulating data, but don't understand what to do with it, Sam Clark, associate professor at the University of Washington, told Devex. “You’ll hear beautiful analysis at a population conference,” he said, but the analysts are using data that have been prepared by people who collect, check and package it for them. The packagers and collectors, on the other hand, have a discourse about how to collect and disseminate data. What happens after it gets disseminated? They don’t know, he added. It’s that disconnect, Clark explained, that will require a new type of talent to create a bridge and cross. “I think all of the interesting things that will happen in the future will be between disciplines, between fields,” he said. “We need people who have a foot in both.” His assessment of the current needs could be likened to the wider global development community’s call for more integrators, or people who understand multiple specialties and how they impact each other. READ: Move over generalists, make way for integrators Demography students, for example, have enough knowledge of demography to do what they're trained to do, but they don’t have enough to be creative beyond that, Clark said. What if they were also trained in economics or sociology to orient them to the most pressing development questions today? This will require designing clear paths that help people get an education in multiple areas. To obtain a doctorate in demography, for example, instead of spending a year and half studying statistical methods, why not spend half a year on data methods? Then “there will be a few who will go much further than that,” Clark said. What do you think about the need for more “integrators” in data science? Whether you’re a seasoned expert or budding development professional — check out more news, analysis and advice online to guide your career and professional development, and subscribe to Doing Good to receive top international development career and recruitment news every week.