In any business and any team there should always be a focus on prioritising the teams’ wellbeing, prioritising data team wellbeing leads to success.
It’s almost a romantic notion, your project is greenfield, and your business doesn’t really ‘get it’ yet – you’re going to pull together as a data team to realise value, working collaboratively to overcome challenges and influence those all-important stakeholders.
Your strategic and technical prowess as a team will overcome all the odds. This idea appealed to people, Data people are natural problem solvers, and human beings love to feel like they’ve earned their praise and their living. But as the data landscape matures, so do data practitioners’ expectations of how effective a data landscape they’re going to be walking into.
These past 3 years have been a rollercoaster for everyone, particularly within the data community – the market rebounded with such a fervour that organic movement from role to role became the rule rather than the exception, as data practitioners saw the favourable market as an opportunity to increase their remuneration or leave behind teams where they felt stagnant. But now, with the settling of the market, comes a shift in the needs of its occupants – people know more than ever that health is wealth – where a focus on work/life balance and taking care of mental health is a focal point for many people.
Additionally, as the data market has matured, so have the instances of good news stories of where data teams are successfully and consistently realising value for their businesses. Combined, they become powerful talent attraction and retention factors to be considered.
Having the ability to attract, and then retain the best talent in the market to execute your data strategy is the single most important factor in realising value for your business, and there’s no getting away from the fact that personal and work life are intrinsically linked, one has a fundamental impact on the other.
So where can you start on this journey, if the time taken to fill your roles is too high, or your attrition rate isn’t looking too healthy?
People first. Every time. How can you make your team members’ lives that little bit better?
…How does being a part of your team make your staff members feel? Do you know?
…Can they enjoy their family time and home life because everything at work feels productive and forward moving??
…Do they feel stressed or do they feel like the work is manageable and achievable?
…Do they feel confident their career is on an upward trajectory because the work they’re doing, and the tech they’re working with is market-leading, interesting, and more importantly, being adopted by the business?
It may feel like small steps, and subjective of course, but ultimately we’re all humans wanting to do good work well, and to enjoy the journey.
Sarah Bostock
Sarah is an accomplished professional with years of experience in the talent industry, specializing in data and analytics. Currently, she serves as the Director of Talent Solutions for us here at Orbition.
In her role, Sarah leads a team of highly skilled talent partners & consultants who are committed to identifying and placing top talent in the data and analytics industry. Read more.
