Clare Whelan
Sales Insights Analyst at Google

Your name?
Clare Whelan

Your job title?
Sales Insights Analyst at Google

What are your main tasks / responsibilities as a Sales Analyst?

I provide reporting and analytics to our sales teams to allow them to monitor ongoing performance and to implement new initiatives.

How do you use mathematics within your job?

Defining new metrics; performing analyses; sense checking that queries are running as expected.

What type of mathematics do you use to solve problems?

Most frequently- algebra. We also do a small degree of statistical analysis.

What aspects of the mathematics curriculum or mathematics courses have proven most useful to you?

Problem solving – Learning how to approach a problem logically, to identify the information that is key to solving the problem and to have a clear methodology in performing calculations.

What is your education to date? 

BSc. (Hons) Experimental Physics,
Professional Diploma Accountancy,
Charted Accountant qualification,
Charted Tax Consultant qualification

What advice would you give to someone considering your job?

One of the aptitudes we assess candidates on when interviewing for a job at Google is general cognitive ability. This means we look to see how a person approaches problem solving. While some people are naturally better at this than others, it is also a skill that can be improved on through practice. Problem solving is a core feature of the mathematics curriculum so is a great opportunity to develop this skill.

What do you find most interesting in your job and what do you find are the main challenges?

Integrating what I do (reporting & analytics) with running the business is both the most interesting and the most challenging part of my job. We have a huge amount of data (as you can imagine) so ensuring we are focusing on and driving the right metrics is key to managing the business.