As a result of new technologies and regulations, the world of finance is in a state of constant evolution. While some positions are made obsolete—think about the traders in the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s open outcry pit—the flipside is that new roles are created.

Last year, I wrote about how the role of chief data officer (CDO) was gaining traction in Asia-Pacific. This position had previously seen more widespread pickup in the US and Europe, driven mainly by the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. However, in recent years, banks in the APAC region have also added it to the management suite.

The push for this role isn’t restricted to the financial sector; it’s also apparent in other data-heavy industries, such as telecommunications, retail, hospitality, and travel. The burden of identifying, standardizing, analyzing, and eventually monetizing large volumes of data within firms is increasingly falling on the shoulders of the CDO.

Banks also felt that establishing localized CDOs should be a priority. An Asia-Pacific CDO at a tier-one international bank with operations in Hong Kong explained to me that regional and country-level CDOs have become more important.

“You have to look at the country regulator, and face the challenges the organization has in terms of systems structure, processes, and data requirements. For that to happen, the CDO must be at the country level; it’s too theoretical an approach if it is executed at the group level, because the data is owned by the organization in the country it operates in, [and] it changes from country to country. I think you’ve got to have a very thin model at the group level for it to work,” the CDO says.

Enter the Translator

Now, another role has emerged in financial services: the data translator. Interestingly, while usually it’s Asia-Pacific firms playing catchup with their Western counterparts when it comes to new jobs in the capital markets, for my article on data translators, many of the people I spoke with who were based in Europe or the US hadn’t heard of the term before.

Instead, it was interesting to see that more Asia-Pacific banks are considering adding a data translator to their talent pool. Some, such as Singapore-headquartered DBS Bank, are actively hiring for this role, as well as training existing staff to fill positions.

Data translators are experts who sit between the data scientist and the business. They can communicate ideas and help push the firm’s data agenda along. Knowledge of the business, particularly of financial products, front-to-back processes, risk and analytics, are among the skills they should possess.

Idris Drief, data product architect at MUFG Investor Services, says data translators must have an inquisitive and entrepreneurial spirit, as well as “real respect” for the value of data. Great attention to detail, strong presentation and communication skills, and being open to change are also essential.

Chris Probert, partner and UK head of data at Capco, calls them “data ninjas.” Probert says these ninjas are becoming increasingly important at banks to help address the gap between skills and experience. “Those who have the skills to use data tend to be newer at a bank and younger, while those who can understand data tend to be older and have built up experience in the organization over many years,” he says.

This won’t be much of an issue if banks’ data is simple. But in reality, the data is often complicated and poorly defined—a challenge that many are still trying to solve.

An understanding of data’s nuances is essential. “There are situations at banks where the same term means different things in different businesses, or where different terms really mean the same thing. Less experienced data scientists aren’t well placed to understand these nuances,” Probert says.

The data translator role is just one of many starting points within a bank’s data journey. In the future, the job could morph into something entirely different. If so, it will be interesting to see what other new roles will emerge in the wake of the data translator era, and how firms will go about seeking to fill them.