pablohere/public/writings/if-i-started-a-data-team-again.html
2025-02-04 14:20:37 +01:00

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Hi, Pablo here
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<h2>If I started a Data team again</h2>
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When starting a data team at a startup, there are several key considerations that can make or break the
team's success. One crucial aspect is the existing reporting and dashboard setup. If there are any
issues with the current system, it is essential to address them immediately. In my experience, leaving
existing problems unattended can lead to significant headaches down the line. For instance, when I
joined SuperHawk, the company already had a few reports in Power BI, which had been developed by the
development team. However, I was not satisfied with the way these reports were built, as they exhibited
bad patterns, were not scalable, and were too closely tied to the application. Despite my reservations,
I chose to focus on other tasks, leaving the Power BI reports as they were. This decision ultimately
proved to be a mistake, as we continued to build upon the existing system, making it much more
challenging to transition to a new platform later on.
Another critical factor in the success of a data team is hiring. I joined SuperHawk in November, and it
took approximately seven months to bring our first data analyst on board. Although we had aligned with
the C-level team on the need for additional personnel within the first few weeks, I prioritized other
tasks, such as infrastructure setup, team planning, and getting to know the company. In hindsight, I
realize that I should have focused more on hiring, as having the right people on board would have
significantly improved our efficiency and speed. With the budget and resources available, it would have
been feasible to hire talented individuals earlier, potentially within two or three months.
Involving people from other teams in the data analysis process is also vital. Our setup is fairly
standard, with the data team owning a data warehouse and providing reports to other departments.
However, there is often a need for additional analysis, which can be time-consuming for the data team.
To mitigate this, I would have benefited from identifying and training "domain analysts" or "satellite
analysts" within other teams. These individuals would have been capable of working with data, providing
insights to their own teams, and potentially even owning certain aspects of data analysis. By empowering
these employees, we could have delivered more value and avoided becoming a bottleneck.
In retrospect, there are three key things I would have done differently. Firstly, I would have addressed
any issues with the existing reporting and dashboard setup immediately. Secondly, I would have
prioritized hiring and focused on bringing the right people on board as early as possible. Thirdly, I
would have involved people from other teams in the data analysis process earlier, by identifying and
training domain analysts or satellite analysts.
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