Member Article

Investment in data skills could help boost UK productivity by 3 per cent

New comprehensive suite of data training programmes designed to prepare workers, from school-leavers to business leaders, for demands of data‐led economy

According to a recent study by Nesta, investment in data skills could help boost UK productivity by 3 per cent, equivalent to roughly one‐fifth of the UK’s productivity gap with other G7 countries. A separate report by PWC found 69 per cent of employers will demand data science and analytics skills from job candidates by the year 2021.

Tableau, the leading software analytics platform, is partnering with digital transformation and leadership training specialist AVADO, to develop a new range of interactive courses designed to help organisations and individual’s upskill and become more data literate. Currently being piloted by several UK companies, the Data Analytics apprenticeship, via AVADO’s apprenticeship business, Arch, is the first course to launch in the UK, in partnership with Tableau.

Tableau and AVADO say the courses they have developed, which include an apprenticeship programme, an intensive course aimed at business leaders and, ‘bite‐sized’ learning for the wider workforce, have been designed to ensure that every worker, from school‐leavers to business leaders, has access to relevant training that will equip them for the demands of an increasingly data driven economy.

The data analytics apprenticeship program will offer bespoke training on data analytics and data visualisation techniques to students studying relevant courses funded through the apprenticeship levy. Tableau will provide students with free software licenses, along with specific case‐studies, practical exercises and an array of guest‐speakers.

The partners aim to train over 3,000 new data analysts by 2020 through the apprenticeship programme.

Mark O’Donoghue, CEO at Avado said: “The future competitiveness of UK PLC will increasingly be tied to the data literacy of its workforce. Whilst it’s not practical for all employees to be data scientists, it’s crucial that everyone can boast a good level of data literacy across the board. If data is the new oil, then creating a common language and enhancing understanding of how data can be best put to business benefit is a key objective for all organisations.” He continued, “Quality data focused apprenticeships and top‐up courses provide a practical and attractive route for businesses to access new talent and reskill current employees in an increasingly data driven environment. When it came to developing training programmes to satisfy this demand, we wanted to work with a leader in the space. Partnering with Tableau made absolute sense.” Tableau and AVADO will also collaborate on the development of a course to help business leaders and managers learn vital data literacy skills as well as opening their minds to the opportunities data presents in their organisations when they start to ask the right questions. A digital certificate will include relevant data analytics and visualisation examples from Tableau as part of a structured course delivered by AVADO through its online training platform.

AVADO says it also plans to launch a separate, dedicated programme of ‘bite‐sized’ learning modules aimed at providing the wider workforce with specific training on data and its importance to business, including examples of data visualisation techniques from Tableau. The partners aim to reach more than 200,000 people in the first three years of this programme, which will be delivered through AVADO’s Dot Native platform.

James Eiloart, SVP EMEA, Tableau Software, commented: “It’s our mission to ensure that everyone is able to see and understand the data around them. Tableau Academic Programs already have a long and proud tradition of building partnerships designed to equip the workers of tomorrow with vital skills. The courses we have developed in partnership with AVADO will enable us to enhance the data literacy of a diverse spectrum of organisations and individuals at hitherto unimaginable scale.”

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