“Data Scientist in Residence”, “Chief Data Officer”, “Big data engineer”…the data science buzzword du jour is “Data Scientist.” These data scientists are part data analyst, part statistician and part software developer. With data quickly becoming a top strategic business priority for many companies, the need for data scientists will only increase – especially as we move toward an ever more data-driven world.

If data represents a strategic asset for your company, then you should be wondering if a data science team is needed and is it better to buy or rent the talent? Data analysis can be done by anyone with analytical skills, right? Well, the functions of a data scientist on a data science team are broader than initially meets the eye….and they typically need to work closely with data analysts and subject matter experts.

Data Scientists are in demand, and the salaries for US-based professionals can easily reach six-figure levels (about $120K + benefits according to Indeed). The number of data science jobs is expected to grow by 24% over the next five years. But do you really need a team of data scientists?  

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