MBA Job Profile: Senior Analytics Consultant
If you’re interested in big data, including developing and implementing analytics solutions at an organization, a job as a Senior Analytics Consultant could be ideal for you. You’ll be responsible for creating data mining projects and using that information to increase consumer brand awareness and revenue.
Currently, it’s still a somewhat developing field. However, many top companies regularly hire Senior Analytics Consultants, including Wells Fargo, Deloitte, Humana, Accenture, and KPMG. And, by 2020, the big data and business analytics market may reach $203 billion.
What is a Senior Analytics Consultant?
Senior Analytics Consultant are responsible for examining systems and recommending methodologies for improving data and usage. This includes executing data quality and data auditing plans as well as evaluating and presenting on your findings. In fact, one of your major job duties will be creating reports and suggesting business process changes for business users based on your analysis of large amounts of information and data. You’ll also be responsible for interviewing users to identify data needs and delivery mechanisms while also documenting process flows to fulfill business needs.
The role of a Senior Analytics Consultant is similar to most other consulting positions. You’ll be expected to demonstrate leadership qualities will also working well with a team. Regularly, you’ll work closely with other business departments on time-sensitive projects that you’ll have to prioritize in order of importance. In particular, you’ll be expected to demonstrate specific skills including:
- Data Analysis
- Web Analytics
- Data Modeling
- Project Management
- SAS
- SQL
- Statistical Analysis
In fact, according to PayScale, knowledge of web analytics, data modeling, and project management correlate to a pay increase of 23 percent, 17 percent, and 13 percent, respectively.
How Much Does It Pay?
As for what you can expect to earn as a Senior Analytics Consultant, on average base pay starts at $133,343 and generally ranges from $116,885 to $147,822. Top earners may expect salary around $164,298.
However, salary can vary greatly depending on experience. About 38 percent of Senior Analytics Consultants have between just zero and two years of experience, while another 38 percent have between five to ten years of experience. The remaining 25 percent have between two and five years of experience.
Pay also depends on where you’re willing to live. Boston pays the best with average salaries 28 percent above the national average while Minneapolis is one of the worst paying with salaries 7 percent below the national average. Other cities that pay well include:
- Seattle (5 percent above avg)
- Atlanta (5 percent above avg)
- New York (4 percent above avg)
- San Francisco (4 percent above avg)
- Chicago (2 percent above avg)
Getting Started
The minimum requirement to be a Senior Analytics Consultant is a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, statistics, accounting, or a related field. Typically, industry experience in analytics reporting and industry-standard analytics software is also preferred. There are also potential industry certifications that can improve your chances such as the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Certified Big Data – Specialty. Other potential certifications can be found here.
Another great place to start in this career is with an MBA from a top-notch program. Here are a few of our favorite programs to help you on your career path.
Harvard Business School
In March 2018, Harvard Business School welcomed its first cohort of students to its online certificate program in business analytics. This certificate goes into the latest research on how data analytics plays a role in business and brings together HBS with the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. MBA graduates are welcome to expand their analytics skills with this immersive experience.
The Wharton School
The Wharton School knows what it takes for a career in data and analytics—significant research and networking. That’s why for MBAs at Wharton there are many opportunities to expand your skill and background in this area. There’s the MBA Data and Analytics Club (WDAC) and the Wharton Customer Analytics Initiative (WCAI), both of which stress the field of analytics. Wharton MBA students also have access to workshops where they can learn coding languages including R (Open Source Software), SQL, and Tableau.
Tepper School of Business
At Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business, students can earn an MBA in Business Analytics. This specialized MBA program offers advanced courses in data analytics to improve business outcomes including theoretical and broad application knowledge. The program looks for business-minded students who want to develop their skills to make better data-driven business decisions. When students graduate, they walk away with hands-on experience in analytical tools and methodologies that will be valuable for their future careers.
UVA, Oxford, CEIBS Rise in All-New Financial Times 2019 Ranking
The latest Financial Times MBA ranking is officially out, with several international schools rising closer and closer to the top in 2019.
The Big Picture: The 5 Most Important MBA Numbers of 2018
Each year there’s a ton of new information that comes out about MBA programs. From new rankings to the latest GMAC news, there are a thousand little tidbits that can overwhelm applicants, students, and alumni. We’ve collected the most important MBA numbers of 2018.
To pare down the news into the information you need to know, we’ve taken a look at the big picture of the MBA for 2018 and outlined the five most important pieces of data you need to know. We’re talking about everything from the decline and U.S. MBA applications to the increase in female enrollment, the higher salaries and GMAT scores, as well as the increase in interest in technology. Continue reading…
Wharton Talks Marketing Lessons Learned from Payless Publicity Stunt
What would you do and what would you think if you paid hundreds of dollars for shoes that sell for less than $20? That’s the dilemma that faced a select group of social media influencers who were invited to a private launch party for Italian shoe designer Bruno Palessi. What they found out later was that the hundreds of dollars they thought they spent on fancy footwear was just a ruse by Payless ShoeSource.
It was all part of a marketing ploy by Payless to highlight their new shoes and inexpensive designs. The question that’s on everyone’s minds now is, “Did the stunt work?” According to Wharton Marketing Professor Barbara Kahn and Lehigh University Assistant Marketing Professor Ludovica Cesareo, it was an elaborate ploy that paid off big time.
In the most recent Knowledge@Wharton radio show podcast on Sirius XM, the professors discussed what marketers could learn from the success of Payless.
Plan Ahead
A prank like the one Payless pulled off takes lots of planning of every single detail. The marketing team had to make sure nothing was missed if they were going to dupe their influencers, and they got it right.
“They did an incredible execution,” Kahn said. “The location they picked, the way the store was set up, the way they filmed it, the way they highlighted the shoes themselves while hiding the original brand and [adding] this very clean black-and-white logo. They did a fantastic job, from Payless’s perspective.”
Perception Frames Reality
The Payless shoes that the influencers were presented were no different than you’d find in any of their other stores, but by changing their location, packaging, and environmental clues, they made the influencers think that what they were getting was luxury. Payless proved that fancy packaging and clouding the judgment of a consumer can impact how they evaluate quality. The reality is that shoe quality won’t be revealed until weeks of wearing them.
Social Media is Powerful
Payless utilized the power of social media to get their stunt out to a huge audience and generate buzz. They realized that social media influencers could be just as powerful if not more powerful than retail marketers, fashion journalists, and designers in getting the word out to consumers. Social media is also why the prank worked so well. “They made something surprising and emotional, and therefore it’s much more likely to be posted,” Kahn said.
Publicity is Priceless
Payless has had poor publicity for a while now, but the stunt helped to turn things around and garner the company good press that they’d severely lacked in recent months.
“There are two things you want to get” from this kind of stunt, Kahn said. “The first thing is to build [positive brand] awareness. Payless has been in the news for very bad reasons recently — a lot of stores are closing down; it’s facing bankruptcy. It’s all been negative press. This is really turning the press around.”
Don’t Expect Long-Term Change
However, in the end, both Kahn and Cesareo don’t think that the stunt will impact Payless stores in the long term. While it might help bring in young customers who may not have shopped there before, Payless stores are still cluttered and unappealing compared to the fake store, so the long-term customer experience won’t impact sales.
Still, both Kahn and Cesareo agree that Payless got a lot of “bang for their buck” with the stunt.
This Wharton marketing article has been edited and republished from its original source, Clear Admit.
The Best Energy Industry MBA Programs in the U.S.
With the current shift in global economics that coincides with climate change, business schools have seen the benefit of educating students toward a sustainable future. Whether through influencing public policy, investing wisely in carbon reduction technologies, or developing businesses that serve to adjust to global warming, MBA grads with a focus within the energy industry have limitless career prospects.
The Best Energy Industry MBA Programs in the U.S.
The University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business‘ Bay Area location (a center for innovation in sustainability) make it a clean energy industry leader. With an interdisciplinary approach that combines engineering, public policy, and law, Berkeley Haas MBA students have access to such initiatives as Cleantech to Market (C2M). This partnership between grad students, industry professionals, and researchers offers an annual symposium presenting the newest trends in clean technologies.
In C2M, professionals in such arenas as energy generation, storage, grid technology, and water purification guide students through past solutions. Students integrate their curriculum into real world solutions with the help of these professionals and leading researchers.
Cornell’s SC Johnson Graduate School of Management also offers a wealth of opportunities in the development of sustainable solutions for MBAs with the school’s immersion program, the Center for Social Enterprise. After receiving a sizable endowment in 2002, researchers and business leaders formed the SC Johnson Professorship in Sustainable Global Enterprise. Recently ranked 2nd overall by Bloomberg Businessweek, the sustainability curriculum at Johnson has achieved wide acclaim.
In addition, Johnson offers an Environmental Finance and Impact Investing Fellowship. With projects sponsored by corporate and government entities, students receive opportunities to work with the World Bank, Barclays, and The Water Initiative to address pressing issues in development and the increasing demand to find alternative energy sources.
UNC’s Kenan Flagler Business School offers an MBA that they consider “unique among major business schools.” The program, which exhibits a marked emphasis upon ROI, focuses on the energy value chain, and the intersection of oil and gas usage, renewables, and petrochemicals.
This degree focuses primarily on training future leaders in corporate sectors, power generation, renewable energy, investing firms, and consulting firms specializing in energy.
MIT’s Sloan School of Management takes an exemplary role in leadership development for the sustainable energy industry. According to Sloan’s Sustainability Initiative, the school “empowers leaders to act so that humans and nature can thrive for generations to come.” With a mission that includes a sustainability certificate, partnerships with NGOs and government agencies, and an ongoing lecture series, MIT Sloan offers a strong foundation in cleantech development.
In a recent roundtable, experts in renewable energy supply chain discussed potential solutions. These include wind farms and solar power for underserved populations.
“When you’re inside a startup and talking to your colleagues all the time, it’s easy to lose sight of the big picture,” says Sandhya Murali, a recipient of the Sustainability Certificate. “Being able to talk with experts in the field and share ideas with veterans in the industry was extremely helpful.”
Murali, ’15, is the CEO of the Solstice Initiative, which provides solar energy to communities in every economic strata.
Finally, University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business is at the forefront of energy efficiency, offering an MBA major in Business, Energy, Environment and Sustainability. Combining a focus in tech, regulation, finance, and business modeling trends, this degree prepares MBAs for leadership roles in energy, clean-tech investment, energy banking, consulting, government, and the sustainable non-profit industry.
Courses include Energy Markets and Policy, Energy Finance, Environmental Management, Law and Policy, Social Impact Marketing and Energy Law.
In addition, there is a dual degree option for Wharton MBAs. In which, students can combine an MBA with a Master in Environmental Studies for career opportunities in energy management.
Wharton School Receives Largest-Ever Gift: $50 Million to Go Toward Faculty
Marc J. Rowan (W’84 & WG’85) and Carolyn Rowan recently gifted $50 million to The Wharton School, the largest-ever single gift to the business school. The generous Wharton donation will be used to help attract new world-class faculty, appoint new Rowan Fellows, and support the Penn Wharton Budget Model (PWBM), a groundbreaking economic policy analysis program.
“With profound gratitude to Marc and Carolyn Rowan, I anticipate the tremendous impact of their philanthropy on the University of Pennsylvania,” Penn President Amy Gutmann says in a university press release. “Their investment in Penn’s future will strengthen our intellectual resources, provide our students with life-changing mentors, and mobilize our knowledge for the advancement of society.”
Wharton Donation For Faculty
A good portion of the $50 million will be used to enhance faculty at the Wharton School. The goal is to help Wharton compete for the most talented business school professors in a highly competitive market. Specifically, the gift will be used to enhance Wharton’s ability to address complex global challenges through research and teaching.
Specifically, the $50 million will go toward faculty recruitment and betterment in two ways:
- Wharton will recruit three new Rowan Distinguished Professors. These individuals are leaders in their field and will help connect academia and business.
- The gift will also help the School appoint a select number of Rowan Fellows. These individuals will serve five-year terms and will receive support for the innovative research and teaching.
In a press release, Marc Rowan spoke about the gift’s impact on faculty, saying, “Carolyn and I are honored to join the vision of the Wharton community to bring the School’s outstanding students face to face with the most important thinkers of our time,” Rowan says. “As top Wharton researchers advance and shape their fields, they transform the lives of their students, preparing them to make a difference in the business world and beyond.”
Penn Wharton Budget Model
The gift enhances the Penn Wharton Budget Model (PWBM); a nonpartisan, research-based initiative that provides accurate, accessible, and transparent economic analysis of public policy. The project uses research briefs as well as interactive budget tools to analyze legislation. PWBM works directly with policymakers to provide the most effective insight on policy changes on Capitol Hill.
More Than Ever Fundraising Campaign
The gift comes to the school as part of the More Than Ever fundraising campaign, of which Rowan is the co-chair. The campaign started with a goal of raising $850 million. However, in part thanks to the latest gift, the goal is now $1 billion.
The More Than Ever campaign launched earlier this year with the goal of helping Wharton become synonymous with innovation, analytical decision making, entrepreneurship, and global leadership. The fundraising will go toward two flagship capital projects:
- A state-of-art academic building, which will stand beside Steinberg Hall-Dietrich Hall and the Mack Pavilion. This building will bring together Wharton’s cutting-edge research in business analytics, innovative learning, and teaching spaces.
- A new Venture Lab, which helps Penn students interested in launching new startups.
The gift from Rowan provides an excellent start for all initiatives.
Marc J. Rowan, Wharton W’84 & WG’85
“I am deeply grateful for Marc and Carolyn’s extraordinary gift, which reflects their passion to bring to Wharton the most innovative researchers working on the world’s most pressing and important questions,” Wharton Dean Geoffrey Garrett says. “Their commitment is the cornerstone of a campaign that will empower Wharton, more than ever, to create leaders who will change the world.”
Marc J. Rowan
Rowan is the Co-Founder and Senior Managing Director of Apollo Global Management, a private equity firm with $247 billion in investor commitments. The firm is a leading alternative asset manager with focus on private equity, credit-oriented capital markets, real estate, and insurance investments.
Beyond his work at Apollo, Rowan is an active member of the Wharton community. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from the school with a BS and an MBA in finance. Then, since 1994, he’s been contributing to Wharton’s success in a variety of ways.
Through philanthropy, Rowan has supported both undergraduate and MBA aspects of Wharton. He has contributed to financial aid, faculty, the Dean’s fund, capital projects, Wharton Customer Analytics, The Wharton Fund, the football program, the Institute for Contemporary Art, and more. Rowan is also the chair of Wharton’s Board of Overseers as well as being a Penn trustee.
To read more about the Wharton donation, check out the original press release at Wharton News.
