Both data analysts and business analysts work with data and gather insights from it to drive business forward. On Hired’s talent marketplace, we categorize business analysts as a subrole of the data analyst role. While these positions often overlap, they have unique responsibilities, skill sets, and trajectories that separate them. Let’s delineate the paths of these two roles.
Typical tasks of a data analystRelated: Hired’s 2023 State of Tech Salaries Report
Integrating into business frameworksData analysts are the backbone of data-driven decision-making processes, helping organizations understand trends and phenomena, and aiding in strategic planning.
Business analysts, on the other hand, focus on optimizing business processes and ensuring that business objectives are met effectively and efficiently, thereby steering the business toward success.
Educational backgroundA Bachelor’s degree in fields such as computer science, statistics, or related fields is usually the starting point for both roles. The most common Bachelor’s degrees among the interviewed candidates on Hired are math and economics.
Hired data also revealed that more than having a degree or certification alone is often needed to secure a job in the current market. This is because most interviewees have at least a Bachelor’s degree, making it a common requirement.
We also observed an increasing number of people with Master’s degrees in data analytics, business analytics, and data science. Based on Hired’s data for 2023 so far, roughly half of the interviewed candidates hold a Master’s degree, while the other half have a Bachelor’s degree.
Note: Hired’s partners, like Ironhack, General Assembly, and Per Scholas, offer data analytics courses and/or boot camps to help candidates unleash their potential and pursue successful careers.
Top skillsData analysts possess a more specialized set of technical skills that are centered on manipulating, analyzing, and visualizing large or complex datasets to extract actionable insights and inform business decisions.
Related: Hiring a Data Analyst? What to Look for in Top Candidates Now
According to Hired data, the business analyst sub role was among the biggest movers (and the only role within data analytics) to see a positive change in demand, with a 15% increase from 2022 to 2023. Business analysts typically have a more diverse set of technical skills geared towards understanding and managing project requirements, business processes, and the broader implications of data insights for business strategies.
Related: What Tech Roles Increased Most in Demand in 2023?
SalariesSalaries tend to fluctuate based on experience, industry, and geographic location. However, the average interview request salary for data analysts on Hired is $124,000 and the average salary for business analysts is $116,000.
As a primary role, data analytics average interview request salaries saw the most substantial decrease from 2022 to 2023, dropping 3.2%.
Understanding data analyst and business analyst career pathsWhile there is a symbiotic relationship between data analysts and business analysts, each role has its distinct path and specialization. Think of it like this: Business analysts are typically more involved with the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of business needs and processes, while data analysts focus on the ‘how’ and ‘what’ in terms of data and its implications for business strategy and operations.
With the ever-increasing prominence of big data, understanding what to look for in these roles is crucial. Use this guide as a start in your search for a top business or data analyst.
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