Week 16 is here! We are at the end!
We have definitely been reminded by the people powering us, MIP, that we have reached a milestone, and collectively, I can say Cohort 2 definitely feels this way. We are proud to have made it through all the back to back client weeks, the stress of exams, dashboard week (we thought this was going to be an easy week…) and we are glad to have such a well designed program which has been tried and tested by our family in the UK.
These are the highlights from the 16 weeks.
Back to back client weeks
This caught us off guard the first time, but at the end of the program, I can see why this was important. Firstly, it really drilled in to us all to apply the Agile methodology of project management. The sprints were unconventional in the sense that it was shorter than the typical sprint length of 2 weeks. Clients come in Monday, we present on the Friday of that week. We had our daily stand-ups to make sure we know what we have been working on, because we would split the project up into tasks, which was completed by smaller teams. The back to back weeks really exposed us to a fast paced corporate environment, where results had to be delivered quickly.
Having a tough project sponsor
For one of the projects, we didn’t complete a key requirement, that being something that could be put into production after we hand our work over. This was a key learning. It really made me understand the importance of really listening to the client. Pretty dashboards are one thing but having something put into production is another. I learnt that it is better to work on one critical element for the client, rather than completing other tasks, just for the sake of completion. Lucky me, I learnt this critical aspect in a safe environment, so I will be able to take this with me after I move out of training.
The industry exposure
One of the main elements which attracted me to The Data School is the wide range of industries we will be exposed to. I never knew I would be working in the education industry or construction either. I gained insight in to how companies operated, their relationship with the data they obtain, and the decisions made by multiple stakeholders surrounding data.
Learning to work together
I felt lucky in the fact that everyone in the cohort worked so well together. During the last few client weeks, I noticed how we were all able to work on our individual parts, yet maintain enough communication to be in the loop with where we are up to. This is the beginning of a true agile team. We knew where we were both stronger and weaker, and we challenged ourselves with doing the parts where we were not comfortable.
Where to go from here?
I looking forward to the first of four placements! Excited to put the things I have learnt in to play in an ever-changing corporate setting. I hope I will be able to continually grow professionally throughout these placements and to keep on learning.
Finally, just wanted to thank everyone from The Data School, MIP as well as all our amazing Clients for joining us on the journey thus far!
Your support means everything!
