My Transition Journey: From Customer Service to Data Analysis
Transitioning from one career path to the other is not something novel. With the advancement in technology, many people are switching from one career path to another to meet the demands of the industry and to find career fulfillment. Mine was a little of the former and more of the latter.
I started my career in customer service by convenience. I had been a teller in a commercial bank for 3 months during the period of waiting for my NYSC. The most enjoyable part of my day during that period was having to interact with customers in such a way that put a smile on their faces. I would welcome them with a beautiful smile and made up my own greetings. I did this every day. I didn’t want the service I provided to be a bad part of their day. My manager was impressed with my new habitude.
It was no surprise when I went to the interview that was meant for Sales and told the interviewer I didn’t want to do sales. He asked why I had come for the interview, I explained to him that I initially did not know it was a sales role when I applied, however, I felt the need to come and sell my other skills to them. I sure impressed him that he invited me to the Customer Happiness interview two days later.
During the course of my career in customer service, I wanted more. It was an interesting work that I loved but it became repetitive, boring, and unchallenging to me. Because I can become too relaxed, I tend to love work that challenges my comfort zone. A colleague introduced me to Python for Programming. It was really difficult to learn as I had a faulty laptop at that time and couldn’t get enough time to learn. I was off and on in my learning for months till I finally stopped learning. It was easy to halt my learning because I didn’t see myself as a programmer and there was no immediate use of the skill.
A year later, I started to learn content creation with a focus on writing. During my early years in school, I used to love writing. I would write poems, short stories, and articles. Three months into perfecting my content creation, I concluded it was not something I wanted to put my head in. I decided to put my focus on my customer service and be as good as I could in it. I wanted to learn the different forms of customer service and how I could add value to diverse organizations.
I was keen on leaving the customer service field as I felt stuck in my growth. I took an online career test at one point and got some career suggestions in Research Analysis, Financial Analysis, Data Analysis, and so on. I didn’t pay attention to the data analysis because I was unaware of the field at this time. I decided on Financial analysis, this decision was also borne out of a discussion with a friend who told me I’d be good in financial management. During my research on this field, I learned I needed to take a couple of professional exams in finance. This discouraged me to continue with this field. Another factor was that while I was good with money management, I was certain I did not want a career out of it.
The turning point
In 2020, just before the Lockdown in Nigeria, I was reviewing a report for a colleague when I observed that there were so many insights drawn from the data collected that weren’t captured in the report. I discussed these insights and I was permitted to make the necessary changes as I deemed fit. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire process of the work. It was at this period I decided I was going to be a data analyst.
I started first with python. This decision was made due to my previous experience learning python. I learned for a few months, took a break when I got stuck. I learned SQL, and Power BI. In the first few months of my transition, I joined a data analyst community on Telegram called “Dear Analyst”. The group Admin would host weekly sessions for people transitioning or starting their data analysis journey. It was a good start for me as I got to learn a lot to help my transition process.
In January of 2021, I saw the opportunity to apply for the Microsoft Leap Apprenticeship program via LinkedIn. I was skeptical about applying because I did not feel confident in my ability to participate in the program. One of the personal quotes I tell myself when I am doubting my decision to do something is “there is no harm in trying”. This was what I said to myself to encourage me to apply to this program. It was a life-changing opportunity when I got accepted into this program. The acceptance was the launchpad for the career pivot I needed.
There were a lot of learning materials I used during my journey. I have embedded the links for some of the ones that I found the most helpful below.
Data Analytics with Power BI Bootcamp
Mastering DAX for Advanced Power BI reporting
SQL Masterclass: SQL for Data Analysis
SQL Server Tutorial for Beginners
Final word
There is no limit to learning, development, and growth. It’s okay to be confused. It’s okay to take a break. In the end, you’ll figure it out.
