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Data & Berlin: Looking to 2020

Author: David Webb
Posting date: 10/23/2019 1:26 PM
Following our recent Data & Analytics meet-up at our new Berlin offices, I’ve been reflecting on some recurring challenges faced in our industry. A number of our speakers all touched on the same topics and, having looked around, it seems they aren’t the only ones who are concerned about staying ahead of the curve. 

In a market of constantly shifting priorities and 2020 just around the corner, I’ve highlighted some of the main themes that keep coming up, and are worth bearing in mind as you begin to look at your Data & hiring strategies for next year:

Retention


Retention remains a highly important issue for businesses, as covered here, and we heard a number of insightful talks on the topic at our event. In particular, both the optimisation of workloads and the essence of customer centricity and autonomous teams were highlighted as key issues. Both providing interesting approaches to ensuring your workforce remains engaged and happy and  we will be releasing further information on these talks soon so, if you missed the event, watch this space or sign up to our mailing list to keep up to date.

Cyber Security


Following a number of high-profile data leaks (including the sensitive data belonging to hundreds of German politicians, celebrities and public figures less than one year ago), security really is at the forefront of everyone’s minds. Integrating Security into the DevOps cycle is becoming more and more popular as businesses increase their security and reliability alongside their speed of deployment. If you're interested in knowing more, the Puppet “State of DevOps Report 2019,” is well worth a read.

Analysing Data


How we analyse and use Data as a business is becoming more and more important as enterprises look to stay at the forefront of their fields and remain relevant in this Data-centric world. With so many different technologies and techniques used to quickly process & analyse data, Data Science, Machine Learning & Business Intelligence professionals are becoming more and more sought after.

Recruiting & onboarding


The recruitment and retention of staff is frequently the most important thing on the agenda of many businesses, not just in Data. Making sure your recruitment process in a candidate-led market is as streamlined and relevant as possible is something that should be a priority for any expanding business. From my experience, many companies write up their process, then stick with it for years and, whilst this can create consistency, in such a fast-paced and evolving industry is this necessarily the right thing to do? Here's one of my colleagues on attracting the right candidates and I also intend to put together my own article on creating an effective Recruitment Process for your business next week. 

If you’re looking for support with your Data Science hiring process, get in touch with one of our expert consultants and we'll able to advise you on the best way forward. 

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With over 10 years experience working solely in the Data & Analytics sector our consultants are able to offer detailed insights into the industry.

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Weekly News Digest: 1st - 5th March 2021

This is Harnham’s weekly news digest, the place to come for a quick breakdown of the week’s top news stories from the world of Data & Analytics.  Analytics Insight: Top 10 analytics and business intelligence buzzwords in 2021 If you are a fan of both buzzwords and analytics, then look no further, this article from Analytics Insight is for you! The team at the global publication identify and explore the top buzzwords that are being used to define business intelligence and analytics techniques across the industry in 2021. A few of these include: Predictive AnalyticsEmbedded AnalyticsCognitive ComputingData ScienceX Analytics Ultimately, there are a whole host of buzzwords and key terms being used in Data & Analytics at the moment, but professionals should keep up to date with the core (and most influential) technologies and insights in their area of expertise. Find out more about the top 10 buzzwords and view their definitions here. Forbes: Diversity is what you see, Inclusion is what you do Writing for Forbes, Paolo Gaudiano discusses how to really examine the values and culture of an organisation: you need to change the way in which you think about – or approach – understanding the unique contributions of your team. “Being forced to think about recreating an organization from the inside out, i.e., by actually thinking from the point of view of the individual employees and their experiences, helped us to clarify how we can think about—and define—diversity and inclusion.” It is in considering diversity and inclusion in two separate approaches, that an organisation can truly make this a core area of focus. Afterall, Gaudiano highlights that, “Diversity is a measure of how an individual’s personal characteristics differ from those of the normative majority of an organisation; inclusion is the act of ensuring that people’s experiences within an organisation are not impacted negatively as a result of their personal characteristics.” We need to provide more support, education and tools to ensure that our companies can sustain a growing level of diversity, and to enjoy an inclusive environment. Read more on this here. Computer Weekly: It’s now or never for UK fintech, government told The contributors at Computer Weekly have this week reported on how a Treasury-commissioned review of the UK’s future in financial technology (fintech) has told the government that it must urgently introduce effective policies in five key areas if the fintech industry is to continue to thrive. Policy & Regulation To include creating a new regulatory framework for emerging technology.Skills To include retraining and upskilling adults in support of UK fintech.Investment To include introducing a global family of fintech indices.International To include driving international collaboration and delivering an international action plan for fintech.National Connectivity To include accelerating the development and growth of fintech clusters. The review was comprehensive and provides a startling call to action for senior government officials. Read more on the future growth of the UK’s fintech sector here.  AdAge: First-party data strategies for advertisers and publishers in the age of privacy Can brands partnering with publishers discover better Consumer Insights? That’s the question that this insight from AdAge explores, as brands consider shifting their marketing strategies to align with privacy regulations (and maintain or regain consumer trust). Some of the ways brands are responding are by looking at: First-party Data Strategies Marketers need to pinpoint the right customers to target for different messages. One way to do this is by partnering with publishers and other companies that can offer granular consumer insights built from first-party data in a privacy-safe way.Direct Relationships With Publishers By creating ties with publishers, through trusted networks or direct relationships, brands will be operating in a premium environment, thanks to the data and insights the publishers can provide.Creating A New Digital World Marketing’s priorities now need to shift to first-party data strategies and building trusted networks of first-party data owners. This gives brands an opportunity to not only gain more control over their advertising but also to rebuild consumer trust in advertising. To find out more about how brands and marketers are working together in a digital world, take a look at the article in full here. We've loved seeing all the news from Data & Analytics in the past week, it’s a market full of exciting and dynamic opportunities. To learn more about our work in this space, get in touch with us at info@harnham.com.

Sam Maughan

Sam Maughan

05. March 2021

The Reliability Of Sleep Trackers For Sleep Data

One in three of us regularly suffer from poor sleep. By this we mean not entering the correct stages of the sleep cycle often enough. During the optimum eight hours of slumber, we should be getting per night, the body should enter three different stages of sleep on a cyclical rotation: light, deep and rapid eye movement (REM). The most important stage of this being deep sleep, of which a healthy adult should be entering for around one to two hours.  Unfortunately, it is often the case, for a vast number of reasons, that many adults struggle to wake up feeling refreshed. From absorbing too much blue light from screens before bed, poor dietary habits or increased levels of stress, there are many factors into why good sleep eludes nearly a third of us daily. Over the past year especially, as a direct result of the pandemic, our sleepless nights have become increasingly worse. It seems anxiety related to COVID-19 has spiked our inability to get good rest. What are the dangers of persistent low-quality sleep? Continual restless nights can have profound effects on both our bodies and our minds. It can place immense stress on the immune system, increasing the risk of becoming seriously ill. Other life-threatening diseases also linked with poor sleep include obesity, heart disease and diabetes.  Our mental state can also be incredibly damaged by consistent poor sleep. Not only does our ability to concentrate reduce, but our susceptibility to mental ill-health, such as depression, increases too.  It is no surprise then that, as a global population, our obsession with the amount of sleep we get per night has skyrocketed in the past few years, consequently seeing the boom of sleep tracking technology. From wearable tech such as the Fitbit and Apple Watches, to other bedside devices and bed sensors, the market for sleep trackers is estimated to reach $62bn in 2021 alone. But is this technology a reliable source of data for our sleep patterns? The problems with sleep trackers Wearable technology can only go so far when it comes to measuring our quality of sleep. Watches especially can usually measure aspects of our body such as heart rate and movement – all of which can be used as indicators of restfulness. However, their consistent accuracy is questionable. According to research, sleep trackers are 78 per cent accurate when it comes to identifying whether we are awake or asleep, which is a pretty good statistic for developing technology, however, this drops dramatically to 38 per cent when estimating how long it takes for users to fall asleep. For true accuracy, sleep should be measured through brainwave activity, eye movement, muscle tension, movement and breathing – all of which can only be looked at through a medical polysomnogram.  Additionally, much like many other sources of technology, sleep trackers have become a troublesome culprit for obsessive behaviour. In 2017, scientists coined the term Orthosomnia, the recognition of a real problem many were, and still are, having with become obsessive, to the point of mental ill-health, around tracking sleep. As stated by neurologist, Guy Leschziner; “If you have a device that is telling you, rightly or wrongly, that your sleep is really bad then that is going to increase your anxiety and may well drive more chronic insomnia." However, sleep trackers aren’t all bad. While not a tool to be used for sleep disorder diagnosis, they can be useful gadgets to help rethink our sleep habits to aim for a better night’s sleep.  The positives of sleep trackers While questions around the accuracy of this technology are prominent, trackers, overall, are pretty good when it comes to recording total sleep time. If used as a guide rather than an aid, sleep trackers can help users get into better sleep habits which in turn will undoubtedly improve their quality of sleep.  If the data is showing that users are only achieving five hours of sleep per night, and they are going to bed very late and rising early, then users may be encouraged to practice better sleep hygiene. From removing any blue light from the bedroom space, to taking an hour before bed to engage in less stimulating activities, such as reading, and practicing methods such as mindfulness or meditation to induce relaxation.  Sleep data from trackers can also be a useful tool to begin conversations with health professionals. Someone who regularly finds themselves groggy in the morning, with the notion that their sleep is badly disturbed, may find solace in sleep tracking data and it may give them the confidence to seek relevant help. While this sort of technology and its data will not be the end point for a diagnosis, it may give both the user and their doctor insight into any potential problems or issues they may be having with sleep.  Ultimately, those using sleep trackers shouldn’t be losing sleep over the data they present. Instead, ensure you are taking the analysis provided with a pinch of salt, and explore this in tandem with how you feel in yourself to assess whether you need to make changes to your sleep routine or seek help for a potential sleep disorder. Data is an incredibly important too, but using this in the right way is absolutely critical. If you're looking for a new role to get you out of bed in the morning or to build up your dream data team, we may be able to help. Take a look at our latest opportunities or get in touch with one of our expert consultants to find out more. 

Lauren Harris

Lauren Harris

04. March 2021

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