Data technician

This occupation is found in all sectors where data is generated or processed including but not limited to finance, retail, education, health, media, manufacturing and hospitality. The broad purpose of the occupation is to source, format and present data securely in a relevant way for analysis using basic methods; to communicate outcomes appropriate to the audience; analyse structured and unstructured data to support business outcomes; blend data from multiple sources as directed and apply legal and ethical principles when manipulating data. In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with a wide range of stakeholders including colleagues, managers, customers and internal and external suppliers. They would typically work as a member of a team; this may be office based or virtual. An employee in this occupation will be responsible for collecting and processing data under the guidance of a senior colleague or multiple colleagues across the business. This may vary by sector and size of the organisation. An employee would mainly be responsible for their own work but may have the opportunity to mentor others. An employee needs to have access to data, to understand the importance of data to their organisation and handle it accordingly, with an awareness of how the data was collected and how it is likely to be used. Employees in any data-oriented role should keep abreast of developments in digital technologies such as Internet of Things and Generative Artificial Intelligence , with their implications on data volume and data quality as well as potential uses or mis-uses. A data-focused employee needs to be aware of the potential harm to an organisation's reputation if data is found to be handled inappropriately.