◆ Data & Analytics

What a data operations analyst
really does.

19 tasks, each one witnessed by the sources that watched the job — and behind every one, a prompt you can use tonight.

19evidenced tasks
8,290in the US (2025)
$69,460median pay / year
7systems it runs on
See the 19 tasks ↓Open in the atlasThe full career map →
This is what one task looks like here
Collect data through surveys
Collect field responses for the coastal topography project by sending …3 sources agree

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The work, task by task

19 tasks
Hands on the work10
Implement data collection procedures.+
Put the data collection procedures into effect for the upland mapping job: distribute the standardized data entry template, attach the daily calibration log, assign two crews per quadrant, set a nightly upload window, and verify first-day uploads before midnight.
onetwiki2 agree
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Adjust survey design for practicality+
Revise the survey design for the marsh access constraints: shorten transects to 30 meters, switch to single-instrument baseline checks, adjust sample count down by 40 percent for safety, and update the field instructions before Friday's deployment.
jdonet2 agree
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
km/h RPMSurveying methods+
Draft a short methods section describing how I calibrated the total station, recorded horizontal and vertical control, used the level rod and prism for checks, logged raw observations with timestamps, and archived the field sheets so the permit reviewer can approve our survey methods by Wednesday.
esco
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Address sampling issues and nonresponse problems+
Fix the sampling and nonresponse bias in the coastal land‑use survey: compare respondent demographics to the frame, impute missing income and attendance using nearest‑neighbor on geographic clusters, document adjustments and uncertainty before release.
jdwiki2 agree
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Write proposals to win new projects.+
Draft a compact proposal to win the county topography contract: describe our survey methodology, list calibrated instruments and QA checks, include a three‑month timeline with milestones, and attach cost estimates for crews and deliverables.
onet
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Summarize survey findings visually+
Turn the last survey wave into a two‑slide visual brief: one slide with key indicators plotted by region and margin of error, another with top three takeaways and recommended next steps for field teams.
jd
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Collaborate with team members+
Set up a weekly team sync to resolve field issues: include the project lead, two senior surveyors and the data manager, circulate the agenda with outstanding instrument calibrations and open data queries, and capture action owners and deadlines.
jd
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Map marine environments+
Produce a geospatial map of the coastal survey sites showing bathymetry contours, substrate types, and instrument deployment points for the June transects, ready to hand to the field team for navigation and to the report author for review.
esco
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
Watch and assess4
Grow the practice2
Keep the record2
Work with people1

What the work runs on

named inside the evidenced tasks
11 tasksMicrosoft Worddraft the full survey method document with protocols, tolerances, and pilot scheduleOpen its task library → 7 tasksMicrosoft Excelcreate and track the list of households, response status, and calibration checklist for instrumentsOpen its task library →
4 tasksMicrosoft Teamscoordinate follow-ups and assign flagged incomplete forms to the team lead
1 taskMicrosoft Projectlay out the three-week pilot schedule and resource assignments
1 taskIBM SPSS Statisticshandles survey weighting, nonresponse imputation and diagnostics for complex samples
1 taskMicrosoft PowerPointcreates concise slide visuals combining charts and bullet takeaways for stakeholders
1 taskMicrosoft Accessimport multiple instrument logs, link records by timestamp and GPS, and produce cleaned, queryable datasets
Browse every evidenced software task →

The same task, four heights

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ExecuteDo today's task, with fewer mistakesyou are here → ImproveMake it easy for the next person to acceptin the atlas → DecideWork out the right move when it is unclearin the atlas → BecomeLearn the pattern so it stops coming backin the atlas →

Can AI actually do this job?

the honest answer

It can

where it genuinely helps
  • Explain the theory behind the work
  • Draft, tidy and structure your writing
  • Rehearse a hard conversation before you have it
  • Build a study plan that fits your gaps

It cannot

where it stops, completely
  • Be in the room where a data operations analyst actually works
  • Carry the responsibility when the call is wrong — that weight stays yours
  • Notice what no one wrote down: the hesitation, the thing left unsaid
  • Live with the outcome

What the work pays

two countries, two different measures

United States

this exact occupation · BLS 2025
  • $69,460 a year — the middle: half earn more, half earn less
  • The lowest tenth earn near $39,260; the top tenth near $130,860
  • 8,290 people employed in this occupation

Where the evidence lives

open any of it yourself
O*NETThe US Department of Labor's own record of this job6 of these tasks ESCOThe European skills and occupations register8 of these tasks Job descriptionsReal postings, in the wild8 of these tasks WikipediaHow the world describes this work4 of these tasks US Bureau of Labor StatisticsPay and employment, by occupation2025 figures UK NOS LANEnC5Analyse data from field surveys and report findingsnational standard UK NOS TECDT80851Design data processing systemsnational standard

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Questions people actually ask

You split time between planning surveys, running or supervising data collection, and cleaning the results. Mornings often mean checking schedules, calibrating instruments, and briefing recruiters or field staff.

Afternoons are for entering or importing data into Excel or Access, running basic checks in SPSS, and joining short Microsoft Teams meetings with the project team. Some days include site visits to verify measurements or to document operations for reports in Word and PowerPoint.

Expect heavy use of Microsoft Excel for data cleaning and simple summaries, Microsoft Access for storing structured survey records, and IBM SPSS Statistics for statistical checks and analysis. You’ll also draft proposals and reports in Word and PowerPoint and coordinate work through Microsoft Teams and Project.

If your role involves field survey instruments, you’ll still bring results back into these systems for calibration logs, documentation, and visual summaries.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports 8,290 employed in this occupation. Median pay is $69,460 per year, the lowest tenth earn about $39,260, and the top tenth earn about $130,860 (BLS).

Those are national figures; local pay varies with industry, experience, and whether you do specialized field work like underwater or marine surveys.

Compared with a market research analyst, Data Operations Analysts focus more on the technical collection, data processing, instrument calibration, and operational documentation rather than only interpreting consumer trends. You’ll run procedures and fix sampling or nonresponse problems.

Compared with a pure field surveyor, you still do field tasks like operating instruments and recording measurements, but you also spend significant time in databases, SPSS, and project documentation, and may write proposals to win projects.

AI can help draft survey questions, summarize findings for PowerPoint slides, or clean obvious formatting issues in Excel. Always treat AI output as a draft: verify numbers against raw data in Access or SPSS and check wording for bias or ethical problems.

Never use AI to replace consent processes, interpret sensitive survey responses, or make sampling decisions without a human. Keep documentation of choices and ethical approvals in Word and your project logs.

Learning to clean and validate data in Excel and SPSS will change your day-to-day productivity fastest. Be comfortable importing/exporting CSVs, running checks for duplicates, missing data, and basic cross-tabs in SPSS.

Add one practical skill: instrument calibration and documentation. Knowing how to calibrate electronic surveying instruments and record those measurements reduces field errors and stops wasted re-surveys.