“We have rapidly-growing pockets of deep expertise in various data science-related topics.”

Joined Capco: 2021
Role:                  Data science consultant
Primary skills:  Data science, machine learning, software development, data visualization  
Interests:          Swimming, open water swimming, mountain biking, photography, data science, astrophysics 

My name is Alex. I am Greek and grew up in Athens’ southern seaside suburbs. I am fortunate to have lived in four different cities in three different countries so far, pursuing my studies in applied physics and then a career in consulting & data science. All these experiences have enabled me to grow culturally, mentally, and professionally.

My most recent, and current, adventure is taking place in London. I came to the UK capital to become an academic, in pursuit of my long-term goal of completing a doctorate in physics. There are several reasons that this did not pan out as expected, which led me to explore both data science and consulting and trying to find the right place to combine the two. I feel like I have found that place in Capco.

For those of you currently in academia, following the intensity and dedication that one goes through when pursuing a PhD, consulting in many ways feels like a refreshing and welcome change. Projects are many and varied. You are also fortunate enough to work with a variety of people with lots of different skills sets. On the other hand, a career in data science can seem reassuringly familiar for those coming from a technical background with plenty of time spent in the comfort of statistics, R, Python and data.

Following the explosion in the availability of data at the start of the previous decade, but more importantly the recognition of the value of data, many companies and organisations started investing in data infrastructure and capable data professionals. Job titles vary between Data Engineers/Analysts/Scientists/Architects, but they share the same goal: to convert the volumes of data held in data lakes and databases and hard drives into some valuable insights.

Consultancies were quick to respond, setting up teams and pockets of expertise, to help their partners and clients make sense of all their data. With the rise of machine learning, deep learning and cloud infrastructure, many academics over the last decade have found a home in consulting firms. I am one of them; I was part of the analytics team in a Big 4 consultancy and then made the decision to join Capco.

Capco has built a fantastic Data Science (DS) team and we pride ourselves on a culture which feels more like a start-up, rather than a corporate financial services consulting firm. We have a rapidly growing pocket of deep expertise in various DS-related topics. 

What is particularly motivating, and not found in some of our competitors, is the flat hierarchy, which allows a direct channel of communication with senior leadership and removes the “small cog in a complex machine” feeling. Input is heard and considered across the board and learning is considered in both top-to-bottom and bottom-to-top direction.  This is enhanced by the lack of a corporate culture, where everyone is invited to “Be-Yourself-At-Work” and the office vibe is closer to what would be found in a start-up’s coworking space.

What I really enjoy is the fact that data science is its own vertical. All the DS expertise sits in the same team, making it easy to interact and reach out to some of our NLP experts or get some support on that annoying git error! There is no endless searching to find who has what data science experience or who worked on which topic - there is a readily available and tightly bonded team of like-minded data scientists! Through frequent data science check-ins and show-and-tells, as well as cross-collaborative internal projects, we share our experiences and expertise, irrespective of client commitments, maintaining a strong sense of community. If you are passionate about data science, you can see the impact of your work immediately, and there is a lot of freedom and support to do so! 

One more thing that I really appreciate is how Capco invests into the growth of each individual. This is symbolised in Capco’s focus on learning & development to help our people develop new skills and transition in new types of roles. We have created from the ground up a learning pathway aimed at supporting, upskilling, and arming aspiring data scientists with the necessary skills to succeed as a data professional. The firm also has a long established PhD fellowship to support people in academia transition to data and technology consulting. 

Each one of us has different ambitions and does not only want to be a data scientist, or a data professional altogether – we can truly explore our careers here. Sound good? Feel free to get in touch with me with any questions you might have about life at Capco.