Returning to Vietnam after 4 years studying abroad in the US, Duy Cao chose Home Credit as the starting point for his career in Data Science. Such starting point was to join the Young Talent Incubation Program – Home Racer 2022.
Let's delve into Duy 's journey of pursuing a career in Data Science: from a Computer Science fresher to a Data Analyst at Home Credit Vietnam!
-----------------------
❔ Hi Duy, can you introduce yourself?
💬 I'm Duy and I am a Data Analyst at Risk & Payment Advisory Division. My job involves building and monitoring artificial intelligence models based on machine learning and statistical algorithms to support the company's risk management activities.
❔ Graduated from the Computer Science major at the University of Dallas (Irving, TX, USA). What led you to choose the path of data analysis?
💬 I chose this field simply because I felt it suited me. However, Computer Science has a variety of outcomes, and knowing exactly what I would become after the program was a huge challenge.
In the first years, I was inclined towards network engineering or cybersecurity, as the combination of hardware and software fascinated me. During the pandemic, by getting to study online, my roommate and I decided that we would spend our saved time on side projects. At the same time, I learned about Machine Learning, and we wondered why not apply Machine Learning for something useful. So, forecasting the number of COVID-19 incident cases in the US was the most viable option. Although many had already made predictions, we noticed that they were doing so on state-level. Such great scale posted significant challenges in government’s decision making for state level was huge. Collecting data from various sources, we created a model that predicted daily and weekly incident cases on county-level. We even built a website to visualize the forecasts and made it more accessible for the public. When the U.S. CDC contacted us a month later to incorporate our predictions into their website, we were surprised and delighted. This experience started my enthusiasm for Data Science that lasted till today. At Home Credit, I get to fulfill such enthusiasm every day.
❔ What prompted you to return to Vietnam for your career development?
💬 In my final year of university, I spent great amount of time thinking carefully about the next chapter of my life. After weighing various factors such as career, migration opportunities and financial aspects, I decided to come back to Vietnam, choosing a more familiar place to start my career.
❔ At that time, you must have had many options. What factors led you to choose Home Credit Vietnam?
💬 My university was quite flexible in allowing course enrollment, enabling me to dedicate most of my credits in earlier years for the core curriculum. During the final years, I began taking courses in Economics & Finance courses using the remaining free credits, sparking my interest in the field. When introduced to the Home Racer 2022 Program, I researched it extensively and was drawn to it. Firstly, the program aligned with my Data Science direction. Secondly, as a multinational company originating from Europe, I believed Home Credit would provide an open, innovative, and compatible environment (which it certainly did!). I applied and started working at Home in October 2022.
❔ How has your real-world experience at a digital finance enterprise like Home Credit been?
💬 Home is truly a digital enterprise, operating everything based on data in an effective and automated manner, notably evident in customer credit appraisal. Unlike many institutions still relying heavily on traditional methods that require physical presence and documents, such process is made fully automated at Home, which allows customers to get their appraisal in less than 5 minutes.
Each project that I have undertaken offers fresh and exciting challenges. Daily questions demand extensive thought and time for answers. Though some projects may span weeks or even months, finding solutions always brings me immense joy and pride at the end of the day. Furthermore, though my team members are responsible for their individual projects, we conduct regular meetings and sharing sessions quite often. This is crucial for they facilitate and encourage knowledge sharing, thus saving time, mitigate risks and often enhance project outcome.
The workplace environment is open, modern, and international, aligning with my previous description. Language, gender, and hierarchy pose no barriers; sharing viewpoints and ideas is always encouraged.
❔ What challenges do you commonly face when working at Home Credit?
💬 Cross-functional communication has been my main challenge. I am glad to have overcome most of it, yet it remains a habit to practice every day. At college, we easily take such important skill for granted. However, in a business, communicating between different departments, or between you and stakeholders, is challenging for we all have different expertise and interests. Such interaction requires recognizing these differences: a speaker should highlight any parts that are of the interest of his audience. Nevertheless, overcoming it is manageable by aligning with project goals, investing time in learning relevant terminologies, and adapting information sharing methods.
❔ Do you have any advice for young enthusiasts pursuing a career in Data, especially Data Science?
💬 First and foremost, maintain an unwavering commitment to continuous learning and adaptability to absorb new knowledge. No one can assert that they know everything, especially in the ever-evolving realm of Data Science. This field changes rapidly, unveiling novelty almost every day.
Secondly, embrace every question and seek answers from diverse sources. Articles, papers, and even unrelated fields might hold answers. Recently, I completed a project by employing algorithms from seemingly unrelated domains such as Ecology and Network Traffic Monitoring. Out-of-the-blue questions are often solved with out-of-the-box answers.
Lastly, adopt a risk management mindset. Plan project execution meticulously with contingency planning before the project even starts will save you from risk and time wastefulness at later stages. In many cases, such small change in mindset can also differentiate between success and failure of a project.
