Expert or managerial: two main career paths for analysts
In large companies, analysts usually have two possible career paths: managerial and expert. This gives everyone the opportunity to choose the path that best suits their interests and strengths.
It is important to understand that developing a career as an analyst is not necessarily associated with a transition to management positions.
Many professionals reach significant heights by continuing to develop as experts, deepening their technical knowledge and skills, without having to take on team management. In this case, the expert track becomes an excellent choice.
Companies offer expert analysts competitive salaries, bonuses and other incentives that are comparable to management compensation.
An example of a managerial and expert track in a company
Career tracks may vary slightly depending on the company. For example, our analysts, having reached the senior level, can choose the expert track and move to the position of leading analyst, focusing on deepening their technical skills. Or they can follow the managerial path and become a team lead if they are interested in management-related tasks.
The main differences between a team lead and a senior
In order to make the transition from senior to team leader, it is important to understand the key features of each position, tasks and core competencies.
Role Description
- The senior is responsible for analytics in a certain direction. As part of it, he solves open problems and thereby benefits the business. He independently plans the work plan for the quarter. In addition, the senior analyst generates analytical tasks, coordinating them with the team lead.
- The team leader is responsible for solving complex analytical problems, building effective analytics and communication processes within the team. He is responsible for the metrics of the entire unit, draws new ideas from interaction with the outside world and analysis of current trends, and introduces innovative solutions, even if they do not immediately find support.
Key Responsibilities and Competencies
The senior and team lead have similar levels of technical expertise, but their roles are significantly different.
- The senior does not need to manage a team, which allows him to fully concentrate on solving complex technical problems.
Such tasks may require the use of several methods and tools at once, which need to be combined into a single analytical system. To do this, the senior needs to have a high level of proficiency in the entire technology stack, which usually includes SQL/DWH, data visualization in Redash/Plotly, knowledge of statistics and mathematics, Python, Machine learning.
In addition, companies appreciate when a senior shares his expertise with colleagues and speaks at internal meetings.
- The team lead spends no more than 50% of the total time solving technical problems, the rest is taken up by management.
He needs to find an approach to each team member: explain the task to the junior in such a way that he understands, and work with the seniors, avoiding unnecessary pressure, which may be ineffective with them. The team leader is often under stress and experiences pressure from both sides: from team members who expect support, and from management who demand results.
Balancing these expectations is one of the key tasks of a leader. An important part of the team lead’s role is the constant search for growth points for the product and business. He analyzes current strategies and looks for ways to improve them, which helps the company maintain a competitive advantage in the market.
In addition, the team lead takes an active part in the hiring processes: justifies the need for team growth, participates in interviews and adaptation of newcomers. Like the leading analyst, the team lead shares his expertise externally, representing the company at specialized events.
Opportunities for growth and development
- The senior has the opportunity to expand his competencies and develop horizontally, holding the position of Lead Analyst (lead analyst). To do this, it is necessary to further deepen the knowledge of all the necessary tools and complete a project that will have a positive impact on the metrics of the entire cluster.
Such a specialist is a center of expertise, looks for open problems in the product and disseminates his knowledge and expertise at external events. One of the potential dangers for a senior is stagnation, when the illusion arises that everything has already been studied and further development is impossible. In such a situation, it is useful to try yourself as a mentor for younger professionals, which not only helps them grow, but also stimulates the senior’s personal development.
- Having reached the position of team lead, an employee can continue his development and become a Division Lead (head of a division).
Such a specialist coordinates the work of team leads and manages several teams at once. He forms longer-term goals and is responsible for the analytics strategy of the entire cluster. To move to the position of Division Lead, the team lead must fulfill all the goals set for him within a specified period of time, as well as formulate and defend a development strategy for his area.
Read on topic: 5 unusual ways to improve your team lead’s qualities at the beginning of your IT career
From senior to team leader: advice based on personal experience
When I was faced with further development, I decided to move towards vertical development and become a team lead. I was attracted not only by technical tasks, but also by the opportunity to build processes, establish communications, organize team work and help other analysts in their development.
There are two main ways to move from the position of senior analyst to the role of team lead:
- Growth through initiative and achievement
For a senior analyst who aspires to become a team lead, it is important not only to successfully perform his duties, but also to demonstrate leadership qualities. This includes active participation in team and company development at a more strategic level.
Although seniors already make meaningful contributions to tasks that impact the business, the key differentiator is the initiative to create new opportunities. For example, managing a small team (2-3 people) to complete a project that will have a positive impact on the metrics of the entire direction. An important criterion here is also assistance in the development of colleagues and the transfer of expert knowledge, which shows readiness to manage a team.
In large IT companies, as a rule, the results of work are periodically summed up, and if the results meet the expectations of the team lead’s position, then the senior analyst receives a promotion. For example, we have specified certain criteria for making such a transition; you can read more about them here.
- Growth through company change
If your current employer does not have opportunities for career growth, you may consider moving to another company for a more senior position.
I chose the first option. For me it was the most natural and interesting path (through initiative and achievement). The company where I worked at that time provided opportunities for career development.
Read on topic: I am a team leader: tips for those who want to become the leader of an IT team
Key steps that led me to the position of team lead
- Step 1: Learn the hard and soft skills that are important to the team leader
I studied in detail the description of skills for analytics team leads that were available in the company’s knowledge base. I also looked at the vacancies and spoke with the manager. We drew up an individual development plan (IDP), where we outlined the current level of my competencies, strengths and growth areas.
Based on this, they identified the skills that require additional development, and also prescribed specific goals and steps that would help me with this. Among hard skills, I paid special attention to studying Python libraries at an expert level (pandas, seaborn, requests, etc.), as well as the ability to develop strategies and make decisions independently. As for soft skills, I actively worked on leadership skills, interacting with junior and middle analysts, coordinating their work.
I also focused on how to motivate a team, communicate effectively and manage conflict. The services helped me a lot Coursera And Steppewhere courses in various areas are collected, which are developed by employees of the largest international companies and universities.
- Step 2: Study the company’s global business goals
To work successfully, a team lead needs to understand not only the narrow segment of his work, but also the global goals of the company. I suggested to my manager that we organize regular meetings to analyze results, initiatives, and also to discuss the general goals of our direction.
This provided an opportunity to identify current product priorities and understand how I could be of assistance. I also, on my own initiative, analyzed available reports and company news, thanks to which I was able to offer more effective solutions and improve the team’s results.
- Step 3: Take on tasks specific to the team lead level
One of the company’s key problems was the high cost of attracting couriers. I decided to demonstrate the qualities of an analyst team leader, starting with an analysis of processes in this area. My task was to deeply analyze all acquisition channels, identify ineffective ones among them, and create analytical dashboards for managers.
This required coordinating multiple teams, making presentations, and working closely with colleagues. I also organized work with a task backlog, made decisions on key issues myself and delegated other tasks, finding performers and negotiating with them.
As a result, it was possible to reduce the cost of attracting couriers and increase the efficiency of the team, which confirmed my readiness for the role of team lead. This project is just one example of how you can be proactive.
- Step 4: Prepare thoroughly for the review
A review is an assessment of employee performance over a certain period of time, based on the results of which you can get a promotion. The frequency of reviews depends on the company.
During the review, it is important to clearly and reasonably present the results, supporting them with numerical data, and not just a listing of responsibilities. In the six months leading up to the review, I collected and documented evidence of my achievements and growth, including successful projects, feedback from colleagues and management, and my own observations of my development.
My successes were also noticed by my manager even before the review: I was entrusted with hiring new employees for the project. This was a signal that I was moving in the right direction.
Instead of a resume
Following these steps, I was able to move to the position of team lead and continue to develop in the managerial track. Subsequently, I wanted to work with a new product, and I moved to another company.
When choosing a new employer, I focused on companies with a clearly structured annual evaluation system. For example, now in my company, an employee’s career growth occurs through calibration and performance reviews, which are held every six months: at a collegial meeting, where team leads and division leads (team leads) are present, the results of each employee’s work are discussed, and a collective decision is made.
This approach minimizes bias. If a company doesn’t have clear growth prospects and doesn’t have a regular performance review process in place, development may not be transparent, so it’s important to clarify these points during the interview stage.
I hope my experience will be useful and perhaps inspire you to further develop your career.
Read on topic: Team lead and his team: how to prevent burnout
Cover photo: Unsplash
Source: rb.ru
