The good, the bad and the ugly: What I learned while consulting across the business as a data scientist

A collection of data science stories about current problems that data scientists might face while working in academia, industry, and government.

rstudio::conf 2020

The good, the bad and the ugly: What I learned while consulting across the business as a data scientist

January 30, 2020

A collection of data science stories about current problems that data scientists might face while working in academia, industry, and government. Some lessons learned, some situations avoided, what I learned, and how I survived my journey. First, I discuss the struggle of advocating for R when senior leaders decide Python is the only appropriate product. Then, I describe why donut charts are superior to pie charts, and why we should all be using them. Finally, the case of the uncatchable “drive-by” stakeholder and where to find them. The fight is real, and the path is long for the evangelical data scientist.

About the speaker

Ben Barnard

Ben is a Data Scientist at Wells Fargo and a Statistics Instructor at the University of South Alabama. When he is not working he is chasing around his toddler son, going to the beach, and being awesome. Ben earned his PhD in Statistics from Baylor University.