3 Virtues for leading projects

 

This chapter covers

  • Operating in the customers’ best interest as the standard of professional conduct in DS
  • Adapting to business priorities and confidently imparting knowledge
  • Practicing the fundamentals of scientific rigor
  • Monitoring for anomalies and taking responsibility for creating enterprise value
  • Maintaining a positive attitude with tenacity, curiosity, and collaboration

In leadership, virtues are often emphasized over capabilities. While we can round off gaps in capabilities with the right combination of talent on a team, gaps in virtues can cause a project to fail or, worse, negatively impact the business. The Greek philosopher Aristotle explained virtues as the individual’s habitual actions etched into one’s character, which come from years of practicing being good to benefit oneself and society. They are what others can trust you to do when no one is looking.

As a tech lead, practicing ethical and rigorous habitual actions with a positive attitude is crucial to forming your character to succeed as a DS leader. When you maintain acceptable practices in these three dimensions, you are more likely to deliver a significant impact on your organization and advance in your career. We have also observed that when data scientists neglect one or more of these dimensions, they can get into difficult situations they must be mentored through or, in some cases, be managed out of.

What do we mean by ethics, rigor, and attitude here?

3.1 Ethical standards of conduct

3.1.1 Operating in the customers’ best interest

3.1.2 Adapting to business priorities in dynamic business environments

3.1.3 Imparting knowledge confidently

3.2 Rigor cultivation, higher standards

3.2.1 Getting clarity on the fundamentals of scientific rigor

3.2.2 Monitoring for anomalies in data and in deployment

3.2.3 Taking responsibility for enterprise value

3.3 Attitude of positivity