The analogy of data/insights being 'live grenades' is dramatic at best and delusional at worst.
** The first shot has been fired **
This is an ideal for the data analyst role - to drive decisions and have immense impact - however it is just as misleading as the ''SQL Monkey" assumption.
In most cases, the data or analysis simply needs to confirm that a decision is correct. That the direction the boat is heading in is logically supported by the available information. This makes sense, because the business is usually more aware of the problem, its complexities, and its dependencies, and plans would already be in motion long before the compass check is requested from the analyst.
Yes. There’s potential for moments of glory - the last minute three-pointers - however these do not represent the day-to-day responsibilities of an analyst. This potential has created hype and is frequently peddled by SaaS providers, tutors, and content creators. In reality, the "SQL Monkey" role – hence its’ existence- is an entirely relevant role whereas the fictitious ‘SQL Wizard’ that marketers keep pushing is unfortunately not.
(** The second shot has been fired **)
This is clear in the post itself, for example when is an analyst ever "directly responsible for the restructuring of an org"? Who are we talking about? Someone with executive responsibilities like this is not also being requested to pull data fast, this is a poor comparison and leads to the very problem this piece alludes to challenge.
Since we’re equating the value of an analyst to the type of decision-making that can save "10s of millions of dollars", it's perfectly logical for the expectation to be ‘Great! Do it faster!’. Hence why decisions are actually made collectively by well-informed, well-experienced people with a history of taking accountability for similar decisions and the confidence to make calls in the now.
In conclusion, the real rebuttal to the "SQL Monkey" assumption is not to redefine the role as a fictitious 'SQL Wizard'. It is to establish the truth and introduce some balance into the dialog that ensures analysts are valued while managing stakeholder expectations. However, that’s not buzzwordy enough so what about calling analysts as 'Compass Coordinators' and call it a day😊
The analogy of data/insights being 'live grenades' is dramatic at best and delusional at worst.
** The first shot has been fired **
This is an ideal for the data analyst role - to drive decisions and have immense impact - however it is just as misleading as the ''SQL Monkey" assumption.
In most cases, the data or analysis simply needs to confirm that a decision is correct. That the direction the boat is heading in is logically supported by the available information. This makes sense, because the business is usually more aware of the problem, its complexities, and its dependencies, and plans would already be in motion long before the compass check is requested from the analyst.
Yes. There’s potential for moments of glory - the last minute three-pointers - however these do not represent the day-to-day responsibilities of an analyst. This potential has created hype and is frequently peddled by SaaS providers, tutors, and content creators. In reality, the "SQL Monkey" role – hence its’ existence- is an entirely relevant role whereas the fictitious ‘SQL Wizard’ that marketers keep pushing is unfortunately not.
(** The second shot has been fired **)
This is clear in the post itself, for example when is an analyst ever "directly responsible for the restructuring of an org"? Who are we talking about? Someone with executive responsibilities like this is not also being requested to pull data fast, this is a poor comparison and leads to the very problem this piece alludes to challenge.
Since we’re equating the value of an analyst to the type of decision-making that can save "10s of millions of dollars", it's perfectly logical for the expectation to be ‘Great! Do it faster!’. Hence why decisions are actually made collectively by well-informed, well-experienced people with a history of taking accountability for similar decisions and the confidence to make calls in the now.
In conclusion, the real rebuttal to the "SQL Monkey" assumption is not to redefine the role as a fictitious 'SQL Wizard'. It is to establish the truth and introduce some balance into the dialog that ensures analysts are valued while managing stakeholder expectations. However, that’s not buzzwordy enough so what about calling analysts as 'Compass Coordinators' and call it a day😊