Infographic: Anatomy of a Data Scientist

We've just released an infographic showing the characteristics of a good data scientist—what a Harvard Business Review article called the "sexiest job of the 21st century."

Called the sexiest job of the 21^st century by Harvard Business Review, the rise of Big Data has fueled demand for data scientists. Indeed.com reported that job postings for analytic scientists jumped 15,000 percent between the summer of 2011 and 2012. McKinsey & Company predicted the U.S. will see a 50- to 60-percent shortfall in analytic scientists by 2018.

FICO has been hiring data scientists since 1956.  And we’ve learned that excellent math skills alone aren’t enough. Today’s data scientist needs to be able to solve problems for businesses, and explain their insights to people who don’t have Ph.D.’s in operations research.

Today we released an infographic that identifies the eight characteristics of a good data scientist. Our Chief Analytics Officer Andrew Jennings also wrote about it in this month’s issue of INFORM Analytics if you're interested in more detail. The characteristics are:

1. Degreed in Geek – holds degrees in operations research, statistics or math
2. Mathlete – strong math skills
3. Problem-Solving Prowess – devises creative solutions to real-world problems
4. Suit-able – can lead from the backroom and boardroom
5. Insight Whisperer – can develop unique insights and explain them
   to business people
6. Quantastic – mad programming skills
7. Curiouser and Curiouser – a relentlessly inquisitive nature
8. Agile and Adaptive – able to work in any industry

Of course it goes without saying; it takes an analytic scientist to know one. What do you think it takes to be a great data scientist?

For more on this topic, check out the recent blog post by FICO's Andrew Jennings: How to Hire a Data Scientist.