Investigating the data science talent gap: Data practitioners’ perspectives

Abstract

Orientation: Data professionals are indispensable assets for companies, offering crucial insights that provide a competitive edge in economically demanding times.

Research purpose: The purpose of the study is to gain insight into the skills gap of South African data practitioners, explore job-related stressors and identify factors leading to job dissatisfaction.

Motivation for the study: Universities need to identify the skills their graduates are missing to adjust their data science programmes accordingly. To prevent the loss of skilled data professionals, businesses must understand the challenges these employees face and find ways to better support them.

Research approach/design and method: The study adopted a mixed-method approach, using online surveys featuring both closed and open-ended questions, with 46 respondents, data professionals mainly working in banking, insurance and consulting.

Main findings: The surveys aimed to determine what these professionals view as skills gaps, and what their job experiences, stressors and coping mechanisms are.

Practical/managerial implications: The results highlight the importance of using real-life data to empower students to practise data pre-processing. Students should be challenged to engage in data visualisation, report-writing and presentations. Universities and employers should implement soft-skill development programmes, incorporating self-care for mental health. Closer collaboration between universities and industries is needed.

Contribution/value-add: This study identifies critical skills gaps among South African data professionals and explores workplace stressors that affect employee retention and job satisfaction. By bridging academia and industry expectations, the study provides actionable insights for curriculum design and human resources strategies to support data practitioners’ well-being and professional development.