Comments on: Analytics & Search Contracting Market

By: Chris

Chris — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 15:00:48 +0000

Good. When and if I need it, I’ll rely on you to be the ones that have worked through the possibilities to the benefit of both parties, including this kind of flexibility.

By: Corry Prohens

Corry Prohens — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 02:05:06 +0000

There are certainly a lot of full-time / on-site positions out there, but we frequently have clients that offer more flexible arrangements. The problem is that it is not easy to find them when you need them (and vice versa). We try to build critical mass of relationships on both sides, but we certainly do not have access to every opening and every contractor…

By: Chris

Chris — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 01:14:05 +0000

The consulting opportunities I’ve seen tend to be six month (plus or minus) on site gigs, and those are unappealing for seasoned people like me, who have roots and are willing to work long distance – but not move somewhere for six months. I’d like to see employers show more flexibility – two weeks on site to get things on a solid footing, then working remotely with a trip every month or so. Without this kind of arrangement, I’m not surprised that employers aren’t finding the right, experienced talent.

By: Kiran BM

Kiran BM — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 19:41:28 +0000

Hi Corry!
Agree with you completely. I’d like to highlight another gap that the analytics industry is facing across the world. Companies that have ventured into setting up their own captive analytics teams are of late realizing the mistakes they have made in hiring the misfit talent. Most of them had sought after MBA’s and seasoned Business Analysts while we know a good analytics professional is a mix of both strong business acumen and solid quantitative/statistical skills. These companies are now feeling the skill set mismatch. They are either changing their hiring strategy or investing heavily in training their current analysts in tools like SAS and in advanced statistics.

On the other hand, the analytics outsourcing companies though possess exceptional analytics competency, they most often lack strong business sense. Due to which their solutions would not be as actionable.

This is the gap I’m talking about. On one hand we have high analytics competency and on the other, a need for strong business acumen. The fact that most often one does not get these two together, is creating a gap in the industry.

No doubt the demand for analytics is growing but the ‘true’ supply is not growing at the same rate. I’ll say the industry has still got a long way to mature. Because of this, I’m not sure how effective your ‘independent contractor’ will be. I see there is a stronger need for a better solution as you mentioned in your closing statement.