Global Courant
My Pivot Journal is a Ventures Africa weekly series documenting people’s career transitions from one industry to another, especially to technology.
Tina Okonkwo’s journey is a testament to the power of consistency and adaptability. She has gone through several career transitions and despite challenges, including the lack of fulfillment in some roles and the fallout from a pandemic, Tina has remained committed. This journey led her to her current position as a data analyst. Here is Tina Okonkwothe playbook.
How it started
I have a degree in Mathematics from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka but it was not the field I really craved for. I wanted to study computer science. Despite my best efforts, I was not able to get into the course. Unable to risk staying at home for another year, I reluctantly accepted to study Mathematics. Throughout my four years at school, I have carried a sense of dissatisfaction with me.
After graduation, one of the things I did was look for a suitable career path for a math graduate student. At that time, however, I lacked a strong inclination towards those areas and lacked the motivation to do in-depth research into acquiring the necessary skills.
Fortunately, the mandatory youth service program, NYSC, provided an opportunity for me and I got a job as a customer service representative. The customer service role suited my natural problem-solving skills, and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of communicating with people and helping them solve problems. Unfortunately, the pandemic has disrupted work.
Revelation
However, once the pandemic passed, I found another job as a Business Development Officer at an oil and gas company. The role turned out to be quite challenging and demanding. It involved entering an entirely new domain. The workload became overwhelming and it became clear that the job was not a good fit for me as I felt a lack of personal, professional growth and fulfillment. I left the position and found myself back to square one.
During this period there was a growing buzz in the field of technology, and many people advised me to venture into it. So I started researching different technical roles. During the search I realized that I have no interest in building or designing websites. During my exploration, however, I came into contact with data science and that immediately piqued my interest. Given my background in math, it seemed like a natural fit and a promising path to follow.
Tina Okonkwo
Transition
I have a very interesting journey. The first thing I did was outline a step-by-step plan of what I wanted to learn. In the initial phase, however, a major challenge arose: the lack of a laptop. So I resorted to learning on my phone. Despite this limitation, I got to work IBM Data analyst course on Coursera. Unfortunately, I encountered difficulties progressing through the course as certain chapters required downloading specific applications, which proved to be infeasible without a laptop.
Fortunately for me, Ingressive for good organized a data camp scholarship program during this time and I was one of the beneficiaries. This allowed me to start learning on the Date Camp platform, learning on my own terms and at my own pace became much more accessible through datacamp. I chose to start with Python, which some might consider an unconventional starting point. However, I committed to learning Python consistently over a four-month period. Each person has their own unique learning pace and skills. Some people may find Python more difficult compared to working with tools like Excel, so some suggest starting with Excel and gradually moving to Python.
Even as I delved into Python, I was actively seeking projects, seeking feedback, and constantly striving to improve my skills. During this time I was fortunate enough to acquire a laptop which further facilitated my learning journey. In addition, I was given a role as a data analyst. As I settled into my new position, I expanded my knowledge by learning Power BI, Excel and SQL, further enhancing my data analysis skills.
Some of the courses and platforms I used during the learning process were the Data analyst track with Python, SQL basics And Data communication concept also at Data Camp. YouTube also served as a valuable learning platform for mastering Excel.
But the learning process was not without challenges. I encountered unique challenges due to my location in Nigeria. Aside from the initial limitation of not owning a laptop, the unreliable power supply made it difficult to control when I could spend time learning.
How are you
I’m currently working with FanBants, a company that organizes virtual contests for fans. My role revolves around analyzing data from various sources to facilitate fan scoring. I work closely with the product and engineering teams to introduce new products and features that increase user engagement. I contribute to identifying innovative strategies for optimizing conversion rates and user retention.
Looking ahead, I am interested in the increasing prominence of artificial intelligence (AI) and would like to move into it. For now, however, I am still committed to exploring and expanding my data analytics expertise.
Career Hack.
My number one career hack is consistency. It has been my watchword ever since I started my learning journey. I show up every day to talk about dates. Even in the midst of the noise and information overload within the ecosystem, my focus has always been on data. That’s why my advice to anyone looking to make a transition is to create a clear roadmap, ignore distractions, and maintain unwavering consistency.
