I grew up in a major industrial city in Communist China just east of Beijing in a world where information was scarce. I was born into a pretty traditional Chinese family back in the 1960s and lived with my five siblings and parents in a small, crowded house.
When the Cultural Revolution hit in 1966, the schools never officially shut down, but essentially nothing was taught at the time since students were expected to participate in the revolution.
Throughout that period, almost all novels and movies were banned because they were not considered appropriate for educating students. But rather than causing me to lose my interest in learning, the ban led me to develop a habit for reading anything I could get my hands on, and my natural hunger for information grew.
As my love for collecting and consuming information continued, I decided to become a data scientist. I moved to the U.S. to complete my Master’s degree and Doctoral Program. Today I work with “Big Data” at Experian, developing analytical solutions for financial telecommunication and insurance companies.
What’s amazing to me about my job is the fact that 90 percent of the data in the world has been created in just the last two years. Data Scientists like myself retrieve, sift, analyze, process and store all the data according to a business or consumer’s needs.
I believe that data tells a story; it’s business intelligence that can help an individual or business identify where they may need to change or adjust in order to move forward. For consumers, it can help them improve their credit scores and secure an affordable loan. It can help protect identities by detecting and stopping suspicious activity.
For businesses, the data can mitigate risk, help prevent fraudulent transactions or even ensure they’re marketing to proper audiences.
I believe that data has the power to transform lives and societies for the better. My job is to help clients and consumers understand the story of their data so they can take financial control, achieve their goals, and help meet the needs of customers.
I have always told myself, “no matter the situation, do your best.” For me, doing my best is using this lifelong passion to help others succeed.
