What do data science companies do?
Actually, come to think of it, what is data science?
Today's business world is chock full of data sets. We store more data than any other advanced civilizations ever have, and much of that data is stored within computer systems. It’s one thing to have all of that data stored somewhere, but it’s another to understand that data and be able to use it to the fullest extent.
What do data science companies do?
1. Understand & Interpret Your Data
Data science describes the set of techniques and methodologies for working with large data sets, discovering patterns and relationships where none were apparent before. It is the applied science of data visualization, but quite simply it all boils down to understanding what all of the numbers on your analytics suites mean, what a good reading is for these numbers, what a bad reading is, and so on. If you can do that, then you’re partway to doing task number 2 below as well.
What do data science companies do?
2. Make Plans Using That Data
Once you know what all the analytics data means and you can understand the messages that it’s trying to give you, you can go on to use those messages and insights to assess the success or failure of the thing you’re measuring wit a high level of accuracy, and use those findings to plan out your next moves - both in terms of what you’re going to do and how you’re going to do it
What do data science companies do?
3. Data Quality Assessments
In the old days, management usually assumed that data corresponding to an enterprise functioned properly. If it didn't, the management probably didn’t worry about it too much - but in the modern world we know that’s a mistake.
Data (and the databases it is stored in) have an in-built quality to them. They can be good, they can be bad, and they can fall somewhere in-between too. A good data science company will be able to tell you if you have good data that you can rely on to give you insights you can really put your faith in, or if you don’t. And if you don’t, they should be able to tell you what to do about that, too.
What do data science companies do?
4. Validate Your Data
There are many aspects to today's data management dilemma. It is after all, one thing to simply have access to huge amounts of data - but if that data is inaccurate, it won’t help you draw meaningful conclusions or make effective plans for your next moves.
Data validation combats this. Data validation is work undertaken by data science companies with the goal of verifying that each piece of data entered into a database has been entered in the right place, that it’s in the right format, and that it is factually correct. If this is the case, then you should indeed be able to count on the conclusions drawn from that data.
What do data science companies do?
5. Complete Your Data
A database that’s missing data can never be as effective as one that is complete - that is, a database that has entries for every field in every record. As part of their services, data science companies can use their skills to complete your data - finding missing phone numbers, names and the like and adding them to your database.
What do data science companies do?
6. Data Mapping
"Mapping" your data allows you to better understand your existing data and how it is related. For example: mapping your contact information to a person's primary phone number. If you have a contact form where employees can search for their phone numbers, you can map that to a person's phone number. The process is straightforward and should produce a readily usable result.
What do data science companies do?
7. Advise on Data Storage Approaches, Methods & Hardware
Because they’re working with data and the technology used to store it on a daily basis, data science companies are the best people to turn to for advice on the hardware and software you should be using to store your data, as well as systems and methods of organisation, and more.