What Is a Data Science Manager?

Key takeaways

Data science managers oversee a team of data science professionals and offer strategies, guidance, and support.

• The median total pay for a data science manager in the United States is $192,000 [1].

• Data science manager careers require strong knowledge of tools, including those for data analytics and data processing.

• You can prepare for a career in data science by obtaining a degree in mathematics, statistics, or computer science.

Learn more about what a data manager does, their job outlook, and how to become one. Afterward, consider enrolling in the IBM Data Science Professional Certificate. In as little as four months, you’ll have the opportunity to master practical skills and knowledge that data scientists use in their daily roles. Upon completion, you can add this shareable credential to your resume or LinkedIn profile. 

What is a data science manager?

A data science manager is an individual responsible for managing a team of data scientists. You'll typically reach this position after having years of experience working directly with data, as a data scientist, or in a similarly related position, such as a data analyst. As a manager, however, you are responsible for identifying and setting goals for your team.

This means a data science manager will need strong leadership, communication, and project management skills in addition to their knowledge of data structures, analysis, and other technical concepts to be able to properly implement their strategies.

You will be in regular communication with those in leadership positions to effectively identify what insights need to be found.

What does a data science manager do?

While having strong technical skills is going to be a requirement for obtaining a data science manager position, most of your time will be spent managing and organizing the strategy and development of your team. Your team members will do the majority of the direct work with data under your guidance. To provide direction and assistance, however, you must have the necessary data science abilities to help your team complete a given task. 

Data science manager tasks and responsibilities 

One important task you will have as a data science manager is building the best possible team. This means identifying the right people to add value to your data science team based on each individual's unique strengths, listening and acting on feedback, and addressing any skills gaps.

To do this well, you should have clearly defined goals for your projects, making it crucial for you to understand the needs of shareholders and other members of your business. Your responsibilities as a data science manager ultimately include the following:

• Managing data science team members

• Identifying objectives and goals

• Developing processes for your team to obtain given objectives

• Supporting data-driven decisions

• Building relationships with team members

• Measuring the direct impact of your team

What tools do data science managers use?

Data scientists need to have a working knowledge of a wide variety of data science tools. Since this job is multi-dimensional, understanding tools related to data visualization, data processing, statistical analysis, data analysis, and machine learning are all important for you to contribute to the success of a data science team. A data science manager should be familiar with each to use them effectively. Here’s a list of data science tools and their applications:

• Data visualization: Tableau, Matplotlib, ggplot2, D3.js

• Data processing: Apache Spark, Apache Hadoop, Matlab

• Statistical analysis: SAS, R

• Data analysis: Python, Jupyter Notebook, SQL

• Machine learning: scikit-learn, TensorFlow

Read more: What Is Python Used For? A Beginner’s Guide

Data science manager salary and job outlook

According to Glassdoor, the median annual total data science manager base salary is $192,000, which includes additional pay such as bonuses, profit-sharing, and commissions [1]. The industries paying the highest salaries for data science managers are information technology and financial services [1].

Data science positions also feature a strong job outlook, with the US Bureau of Labor Statistics projecting significant growth at 34 percent for data scientists from 2024 to 2034 [2]. California employs the most data scientists, followed by Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina [3]. 

How to become a data science manager

Progressing to the level of a data science manager comes with certain education, skill, and career experience expectations. The exact requirements will vary from company to company, as some may value technical expertise more heavily while others are more concerned with management experience. This section will cover various standards expected by employers, so you can put yourself in a position to become a data science manager. 

Education

Becoming a data science manager will typically start with a bachelor’s degree, but to progress to manager, you’ll likely need a master’s degree. When it comes to the major of your degree, however, you have some options. Degrees in computer science, information systems, mathematics, statistics, or data analytics are common and acceptable in addition to data science degrees. 

Training

To reach a managerial position, additional training options are available to boost your qualifications. Options for data science management jobs include Certified Analytics Professional programs. These certifications require passing exams. Obtaining a certification can help you gain a better understanding of management positions and develop your critical decision-making skills.

Experience

Making a move to become a data science manager will generally require several years of experience as a data scientist or a similar role in addition to one to three years of experience in a supervisory or leadership position. The ability to think strategically, beyond executing technical tasks and responsibilities, is an important characteristic for data science managers, and you can develop this skill through experience working in senior-level positions.

Skills

Your success as a data science manager requires both technical skills and leadership skills. Technical skills needed are analytical skills, computer skills such as coding, an understanding of data analytics and visualization tools, and math skills, including statistics and linear algebra. To effectively manage a team, you need excellent leadership skills. This will allow you to help team members develop their abilities, foster a positive work environment, and prioritize tasks. 

Data science manager career advancement

While reaching the level of data science manager is a great career achievement, you can take your career even further and strive to obtain other data science-related positions. For example, other positions you could potentially transition to include machine learning engineer or enterprise architect.

Discover data science career resources

Join Career Chat on LinkedIn to stay current with the latest trends in your career field. Continue your learning journey with data science with our other free digital resources:

• Watch on YouTube: Data Science for Beginners: Your 3-Minute Crash Course

• Find a course: Which Data Science Course Should You Take? Find Out in 1 Minute

• Learn from experts: Meet the 18-Year-Old Getting His Master’s Degree in Data Science

Whether you want to develop a new skill, get comfortable with an in-demand technology, or advance your abilities, keep growing with a Coursera Plus subscription. You’ll get access to over 10,000 flexible courses. 

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