Even though many of our graduates will have progressed in their careers since completing a case study, they are still of interest to students who wish to gain an understanding of the world of work.

Understand what the organisation is trying to do, where their current pit-falls are and if there is any external data that could help bridge this gap.
Make the most of their current data by helping companies to understand their customer base / operations better, through segmentation or behaviour driving analysis.

I will arrive at work at 9, usually answer a few emails about some small queries that people have. These are normally very quick queries about progress or maybe a small request for a number for a business case. I usually plan my work a good week in advance so the majority of the day is spent doing analysis into a specific pre-planned area, with weekly presentations on progress and new findings.

Making a difference to a company just by changing how they look at and use their data. It is very rewarding to see how maths on a screen can turn into money in the bank.

Every company is different, so every company needs different treatment and it is impossible to know what kind of errors data will have in it. You need to be very thorough. Also, the industry is moving so fast that it is hard to keep up with new techniques.

I loved conducting analysis and being the first person in the world to know something about customers in a company. And you then get to use this truth to fight myths in the organisation and make their operations better reflect what their customers want.

My maths degree from Sheffield was invaluable. Not only for the analytical techniques you get used to using, but for a logical approach to problem solving. The second biggest skill is presentation. If you do a great job but people don't understand how or why, you may as well have stayed in bed. I love bringing maths and analytics to life for people who are not specialists.

Left Uni 2009
Sept 2009 - Jan 2011 Ministry of Justice - Business Analyst
Jan 2011 - Aug 2012 Vodafone - Insight Analyst
Aug 2012 - Oct 2014 dunnhumby - Insight Analyst
Oct 2014 - May 2016 Wunderman - Strategic Insight Manager
May 2016 - Present Running my own company

I am halfway through an MBA with the Open Uni, which is so interesting and helping me grow in a completely different way.
I want to keep running my consultancy but also hopefully diversify into some other business areas.

Learn to present. Learn to plan and communicate your work. You have the ability to do almost anything in this world but if you can't plan where you need to get and trace it back, or show people why what you want to do is a good thing, you'll take a lot longer.