how to hire data scientists
TRANSCRIPT
How to Hire Data Scientists
Hirepalooza June 2, 2015
Director of Partnerships Zipfian Academy
Katie Kent @k80kent
Director, Educational Outcomes Galvanize
A Perfect Storm of Supply and Demand
Storage is cheap. And so much cheaper than it used to be.
Technology
Year Capacity (GB) Cost per GB (USD)
1992 0.08 $3,827.20
1997 2.1 $157.00
2002 80 $3.74
2007 750 $0.35
2012 3,000 $0.05
Source: http://www.jcmit.com/diskprice.htm
There is more and more data all the time.
Unprecedented Data Growth
Data = business value.
Incredible demand for data scientists stems from a perfect storm of cheap storage, data growth, and recognition
that data = business value.
The Demand Problem
Source: LinkedIn Analytics
Traditional educational institutions are not set up to produce industry-ready
data scientists.
The Supply Problem
‘I look for 3 things in data scientists: math, code, and business
understanding.’
- Hernan Asorey, VP of Product Intelligence at Salesforce
Data Science Unicorn
Math & Stats
Computer Science
Domain Expertise
Machine Learning
Software Engineering Research
Unicorn
Data Science
It’s hard to hire a data scientist.
3 Lessons from unicorn hunting in the wild.
Before you start, know what species of data scientist you
need.
1
“Data scientist” means different things to different people.
Example: A Data Scientist at Facebook is a different species compared to a Data Scientist at Netflix.
Software Engineering
Data EngineeringMachine Learning
Feature Development
AnalysisTransmission
Visualization & Communication
Project Scoping
Product Analytics
The Data Science Skills Map
The skills required for a specific role depend on the ultimate deliverables.
Software Engineering
Data EngineeringMachine Learning
Feature Development
AnalysisTransmission
Visualization & Communication
Project Scoping
Deliver business insights.
Deliver ML prototypes.
Deliver Data Products.
Different skills = different deliverables.
Product Analytics
Know what species of data scientist you need before you go hunting.
Know How to Snag Them2
Great data scientists often have 3 simultaneous offers, so salesmanship
is important.
Great data scientists want 3 things: interesting data, a strong team, and the opportunity to make an impact.
Large data sets
What (Great) Data Scientists Want
Interesting Data Strong Team
Different types of data
Opportunity to Make an Impact
Accessible data Mentorship
Collaborators
Opportunity to learn Data is a priority.
Greenfield opportunities.
Creation over optimization.
Sell what you have. Be smart about what you don’t.
Auxiliary sources
Maybe your data doesn’t sound like a selling point.
Small Data
Inaccessible dataFix infrastructure
first.
>
>
CHALLENGE SOLUTION
Training budget
Maybe your team doesn’t sound like a selling point.
No mentorship.
No daily collaborators.
Designate partners.
>
>
CHALLENGE SOLUTION
Seek an evangelist.
Maybe opportunity for impact isn’t a selling point.
Data not a priority.
Low-hanging fruit are picked.
Seek a researcher to push boundaries.
>
>
CHALLENGE SOLUTION
Optimization is a priority.
Seek an operations researcher.>
Get In Front of Them
3
Savvy data science teams share content about their work in places
where data scientists hang out.
This creates an engine to drive inbound applications.
‘I get about 300 applications for every posting.’
- Todd Holloway, Data Science Lead at Trulia for 4 years who runs the SF Data Mining Meetup
Where (Great) Data Scientists Hang Out
Airbnb Nerds
Tech Blogs
Netflix
StitchFix Technology
Tech Talks
Conferences
Data Science Meetups
Channels
DataTau
Competitions
Public Challenges
Most Active Data Science Meetups
SF Data Mining SF Data ScienceSF Machine
Learning
SF DataKind
http://www.quora.com/What-are-the-best-data-science-big-data-meetups-in-the-San-
Francisco-Bay-AreaLinks and
summaries!
Data Science for Sustainability
Bay Area Women in ML & DS
Interesting Data Science Conferences
O’Reilly Strata MLConf PyData
DataWeek PAWThe Data Science
Summit
Great Examples of Tech Blogs
Airbnb NerdsStitchfix
TechnologyNetflix Technology
•nerds.airbnb.com/data/ •http://technology.stitchfix.com/blog/2015/03/31/advice-for-data-scientists/
•http://techblog.netflix.com/
Public Open Data Challenges
Data Science Twitter Celebrities
• @hmason - Formerly Accel • @mrogati - VP of Data, Jawbone • @djpatil - Chief Data Scientist, The White House • @peteskomoroch, Formerly Linkedin • @josh_wills, Dir. Data Science, Cloudera • @johnmyleswhite, Co-author of Machine Learning for Hackers
• @hackingdata, Formerly Chief Scientist at Cloudera • @bigdata, Chief Data Scientist at O’Reilly Media
giladlotan.com/2012/11/mapping-twitters-python-data-science-communities/
Know How to Pick Them
4
*Bonus Lesson!*
The New Data Science Interview Process
Onsite Interviews
Check for a Pulse
Offer
Take Home Assignment
Less bias, less time, more accurate.
If you interview data scientists, go read this article:
firstround.com/review/how-to-consistently-hire-remarkable-data-scientists/
Galvanize Can Help5
*Double Bonus Lesson!*
Galvanize trains data scientists through immersive educational
programs.
12-week Immersive (fka Zipfian Academy)
GalvanizeU Masters’ Program
Alumni Employers
https://dshiringdaysf.eventbrite.com
Hire a Data Scientist from Galvanize
THANK YOUKATIE KENT| DIRECTOR, EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES @K80KENT
www.galvanize.com