Something that stood out to me on my first day at The Information Lab was their approach to open communication.
Even during the application process, I browsed through a myriad of Data School blogs covering the interviews and desired skills. Compared to other job applications, this transparency was so impactful for me. I didn’t feel like there was some kind of ‘secret formula’ to work here.
Fast forward to my first day. This is the first time I’ve been in a professional work environment, and, as you can imagine, I was quite nervous. However, everybody was so welcoming that it made onboarding a breeze.
A point that was emphasised over and over and over (and over) again was to ask questions!
Typically, I’ve been in environments where this has been superficially encouraged. I can recall many university lectures and school lessons where I’ve asked questions. At the best of times, I’m given basic, curt responses, but usually, I’ve been ignored or reminded that I should already know the answer. This can feel very humiliating, making me less inclined to ask questions in the future.
This all changed on my first day. We were shown our internal communication platform where we would stay updated on company events and projects. We were also encouraged to post any questions we might have to everybody on the platform...
At first, I thought this was absurd. Why would I want to make a fool of myself in front of the whole company? But they started to explain the logic behind it and my perspective shifted.
Sending an email is inherently exclusive as it is between two people only. That means you deny other people from helping, as well as denying others the opportunity to learn. The odds that someone else wants to know the answer to your question are pretty high, so the idea that your questions are 'stupid' is unfounded. While an email guarantees one response, opening up your questions allows for different responses from a wide range of perspectives, from recent data schoolers to top leaders in the industry.
So, to conclude, if you have a question, just ask anyone—literally. It is the best opportunity to grow and develop. Being a consultant means you need to be asking your client the best questions in order to fulfil their needs, so this is great practice. Not only that, but you are making connections with the wider TIL team and industry (win-win!).