Diversity of Career Paths at Videns Analytics: Meeting with Victoria Coletsos

At Videns Analytics, we pride ourselves on the diversity of our team. Our team is made up of many people with different backgrounds. Musicians, engineers, astrophysicists... you name it! This diversity leads us to ask the following question to several team members: Why did you change your career path to data science? 

This article is the third in a series of blogs, highlighting our team members to understand what led them to pursue a career in data science and what impact it has had on their journey.

Victoria holds a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from McGill University and a Graduate Diploma in Management and Sustainable Development from HEC Montreal.

She is passionate about data and has worked for over 15 years in marketing analytics, strategic consulting and business intelligence in various industries.

Hello Victoria! What was your professional background before coming to Videns?
I started my career as an industrial engineer in the manufacturing sector where I focused on process optimization. I had the opportunity to work both in an office and on the factory floor, which allowed me to make a real connection between business objectives and the reality of production activities.

Afterwards, I took an opportunity in the same sector as an analyst. That's when I got hooked on data science! I continued to develop my analytical and business intelligence skills in various organizations and departments, including sales, marketing, operations and logistics. Through my desire to meet business needs with data science, I naturally moved into strategic consulting roles.

My curiosity and thoroughness have often led me to become the go-to person for my team through my various positions. I have always loved helping people learn. In fact, I have been tutoring young students in mathematics and science for several years. Tutoring has allowed me to use my skills in synthesizing complex matters, which I still use today when translating technical observations into strategic advice.

Why did you change your field to data science?
I would say that the change was gradual. While working on process optimization, I realized that any informed business decision must be based on quality data. Through my professional experiences, I specialized in the different areas of data valorization. I have therefore broadened my skills and my interest in data science continues to grow!

How did you go about training? Did you go back to school?
I have taken a variety of training courses throughout my career to learn more about data and its valorization, including courses in programming and data modeling.  I also completed a Graduate Diploma in management and sustainable development to improve my project management skills and deepen my understanding of the needs and processes within companies. Finally, I have had the privilege of working with exceptional colleagues and mentors who have passed on their knowledge and know-how to me over the years.

What were the difficulties you faced?
I've always tended to see difficulties as challenges. Data science is an innovative field that is constantly evolving. It remains a challenge to keep up with new technologies and industry best practices.  I feel fortunate to work within a multidisciplinary team at Videns that allows me to stay on top of new trends.

What has been the positive impact on your career?
I feel very happy, fulfilled and well surrounded at work. I find it very motivating to be constantly learning. Also, I love the team, it's a pleasure to work with colleagues who have diverse backgrounds and clients from various industries, I learn from them every day. In addition, because I enjoy being a resource person, I found my place in consulting where I have the pleasure of supporting our clients on a daily basis.

What are the major differences between your initial career and your current role?
Since my current role is in consulting, I work on a wider variety of projects than in my previous positions. In addition, in the past I focused more on one portion of the data value chain, whereas now I am frequently involved in end-to-end work, from data strategy to solution implementation. This is also my first experience within a young company. I have the pleasure to grow with Videns and to develop my various skills thanks to the great proximity of the team.

How does your initial background help you in your role today?
I value the methodologies, the sense of rigor, the critical thinking and the social responsibility that I was taught during my engineering studies and my first professional roles. I continue to apply all these learnings to my work and to my life in general.

How did you discover Videns?
I was already following Videns on LinkedIn through a connection and knew their values were aligned with mine. When I saw that they were looking for a Data Strategy Expert, I applied as it seemed like the perfect opportunity to leverage my experience and serve a wide variety of clients. I am very happy to be part of the team today!

What an interesting journey! Thank you Victoria for participating in this interview, we are proud to have you on our team!

The Videns Analytics team is made up of several other members with varied backgrounds. 

Stay tuned to meet other members of our team who have made the shift to data science

In this series of articles: 

Tony Buffard, Data Scientist
Dany Labarre, Machine Learning Specialist