Saravana Velayudham
1+ of articles published
Words Crafter / Idea Explorer / Insightful Critic
Domain:
upGrad
Current role in the industry:
Head Of Solutions at UNext Learning
Educational Qualification:
Master of Computer Applications (MCA), Computer Science from National Institute of Management
Expertise:
Team Management
Vendor Management
Training
Employee Engagement
Robotics Process Automation
Management
Leadership
Project Management
Talent Management
Capability Development
Building Organizational Capability
Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
Machine Learning
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Automation Anywhere
Certifications:
AA Certified Advanced RPA Professional from Automation Anywhere
About
Saravana heads the program delivery for upGrad Enterprise and works closely with key customers to enable learning outcomes at scale.
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How to Make Data Drive Your Organization?
Today, every organization is capturing exploding amounts of data. Be it customer memos in retail, or flight data, the number of responses to an ad campaign, or sales generated. Data is being touted as the new oil by the industry leaders. Estimates suggest that 7.7 septillion gigabytes of Data are generated every day; hence, it becomes important to choose the right metrics and analyze it to extract value from it. (Source) Data Literacy: Why it needs to be prioritized With almost all organizations bringing data scientist’s expertise, it is also equally important for every employee to understand the importance of captured data and be able to convert data to information to knowledge. A study by Mckinsey Global Institute suggests an acute shortage of “data-savvy” analysts and managers capable of making data-backed decisions. When an organization is Data literate, it can not only back decisions with information but also uncover new insights and drive the company’s overall strategy. A study by HBR of 20 well known blue-chip companies revealed crucial fallouts in data skills among their employees. The companies pointed out to the following learning requirements: ✔ Ability to ask the right questions. ✔ Ability to choose the right data sets and ways to validate them. ✔ To generate information and actionable insights from the generated data. ✔ To create simulations and conduct scenario-based testing. ✔ To create a bigger picture with visualizations to drive decision making in the company. Correctly chosen data sets can help organizations study customer behavior, analyze sales patterns, improve efficiency, reduce inventory, enhance operations, remove supply chain bottlenecks, and empower overall decision-making. Understanding Data Literacy with some use cases By definition, data literacy is the ability to read, work with, analyze, and communicate with data. It’s a skill that empowers all individuals to ask the right questions to collect the right data, which they can then comprehend to generate presentable knowledge and insights. Figure 1: Use of data to study Consumer Behavior Source As explained in the figure, consumer analytics can lead to targeted marketing and generate more value from sales, with correct chosen Data, such as web queries, product usage, transactional data, and data collected from existing consumers when verified and then analyzed correctly generated valuable insights about the consumers. A marketing approach derived from the studied consumer behavior generates greater value. It targets the right potential consumer base, ensures repeat sales, generates a feedback loop, allows for cross-selling, and helps to lean the approach. Figure 2: Real-time data employed for predictive maintenance Source Another classic example is of employing real-time data. IoT enables sensors in process and manufacturing industries to send data on a real-time or near real-time basis, stored over the cloud, and then analyzed to generate predictions. One such application is of predictive maintenance of Hydrocarbon transporting pipelines. Correctly chosen metrics like pH and CO2 levels help predict the corrosion levels in the pipeline and help the operators conduct maintenance ahead of breakdowns. Predictive maintenance exponentially reduces the losses due to down-time and helps in cutting down the maintenance expenses. In-turn, predictive maintenance ensures the safety of the environment and stakeholders by avoiding accidents due to equipment failure. BP’s deep-water horizon oil spill incident costed lives, and $67 billion in payments over the years explains why predictive maintenance is crucial. How upGrad Enterprise’s systematic approach towards data literacy can help As data becomes an integral part of every industry, it has become even more crucial to make data a part of our day-to-day job functions. Just collecting data isn’t the same as understanding it, and this is a critical skill gap that’s stalling the digital transformation of your enterprise. Data Literacy is a skill that empowers all levels of workers to ask the right questions of data and machines, build knowledge, make decisions, and communicate meaning to others. One fundamental culture shift for this change will be to empower and educate your workforce with data literacy. Data literacy is defined as the ability to identify, collect, evaluate, analyze, interpret, and present data to support your decision-making and increase the efficiency of your work. The upGrad Enterprise team works closely with businesses to custom design the Data Literacy Program that leads to improved decision-making, a competitive edge, and enhanced products, processes, and performance. We contextualize data specific to your business needs by bringing industry experts from their fields and complement the learning experience with real-time workshops and live boot camps. This program is targeted at closing the skill gap in your enterprise and ensure a data-driven culture. The 6-week (48 hrs) blended program, designed for professionals from any background, will help your enterprise gain the necessary skills and knowledge to make data your lingua franca or second language. The program is also curated for different industries and helps in: ✔ Building a Data Culture. ✔ It enables them to seek the right information and collaborate. ✔ Empowers your employees with tools, models, and techniques to make informed decisions. ✔ Generate more value by increasing productivity, efficiency, and ultimately the profitability. Industry leaders will deliver the program via live sessions, recorded sessions, with self-learning lessons and assessments, explained with examples and illustrations. The program can be split into five key areas: ✔ Program Orientation Covers the overview of the program, platform walkthrough, and objectives of the program. ✔ Data Science, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence: Genesis, Value and Future – Live The industry leaders take the course beneficiaries on a journey towards data culture. They will briefly explain the existing technologies like Machine Learning and AI. This will help your employees get an overview of the data lifecycle, data strategy, and design thinking with data. ✔ Data Science and the Industry: e-Learning In this, your workforce will understand the application and scope of data related technologies in your industry, be it BFSI, ITES, Manufacturing, Telecommunication, Oil, and Gas, and so on. ✔ Data Analytics- Hands-on: e-Learning and Live The longest module of the course enriches the learning with tools and techniques by covering – Data analysis in Excel, Statistics and Hypothesis Testing, Exploratory Data Analysis, and Data Visualisation. ✔ Data-Driven Decision Making: Live Workshop The capstone to the program is application based. Using a case-based approach specific to the industry, the beneficiaries will be part of problem-solving in a real-world scenario. The current business scenario is driven by competition, regulations, compliance, safety, and innovation. What should drive your organization, a hunch, or a decision backed with data? This is how we demystify data by building the right data culture through real-world case studies/examples from a particular industry and helping learners understand, learn, and appreciate it in their business context. We promise our customers to deliver them a future-ready talent pool of project-ready professionals. Together, we can create a new online learning paradigm At upGrad Enterprise, we are obsessed with learners’ success. For us, it’s not just about them completing the program; it’s about strengthening their core concepts and providing exposure to the latest software development tools so they can keep adapting to the changing tech landscape. Our unique human-assisted learning experience, best-in-class mentors, access to the industry experts, and our alignment with the most renowned academies mean that your employees will not learn in isolation. And when you combine that with our best-in-class AI to keep the learners engaged, our industry-defying rates of over 85% course completion will not surprise you. To date, over 500,000 learners have been successfully deep skilled via upGrad at industry-defying rates of over 85%. Our cutting-edge curricula and collaboration with the leading global faculty and industry experts make us the pioneers in helping enterprises create a workforce that is ready to conquer tomorrow, today. Still, need convincing? Download the brochure. Download Brochure Or reach out to us on enterprise@upgrad.com
20 Aug 2020