'I encounter many data scientists and analysts whose sole focus is solving analytical problems and developing accurate models. They all need to read this excellent book and adopt its recommendations!'. - Thomas H. Davenport, Distinguished Professor, Babson College, Research Fellow, MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy 'This book provides a compelling, credible and sound narrative to de-code complexity by developing a set of competencies (action, social, awareness, cognitive, exploration and organizational) supported by emotional intelligence. A must read for Leaders and HR practitioners, for the intellectual curious eager to understand that Human Beings will have to remain central to Human Development'. -Paolo Gallo, Former CHRO at World Economic Forum, World Bank and European Bank Shedding new light on the human side of big data through the lenses of emotional and social intelligence competencies, this book advances the understanding of the requirements of the different professions that deal with big data. It also illustrates the empirical evidence collected through the application of the competency-based methodology to a sample of data scientists and data analysts, the two most in-demand big data jobs in the labor market. The book provides recommendations for the higher education system to offer better designed curricula for entry-level big data professions. It also offers managerial insights in describing how organizations and specifically HR practitioners can benefit from the competency-based approach to overcome the skill shortage that characterizes the demand for big data professional roles and to increase the effectiveness of the selection and recruiting processes. Sara Bonesso is associate professor of Business Organization and Human Resources Management at the Ca' Foscari University of Venice. She is also one of the founders and the Vice-Director of the Ca' Foscari Competency Centre. Elena Bruni is a post-doc researcher at the Department of Management, Ca' Foscari University of Venice. Fabrizio Gerli is Associate Professor of Business Organization and Human Resources Management at Ca' Foscari University of Venice. He is also one of the founders and the Director of the Ca' Foscari Competency Centre.