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Why Most Data Analytics Training Falls Short—and How FYT Academy Bridges the Gap

Derrick Yuen, MBA
Jun 28
2 min read

Updated: Jun 29

In today’s data-driven world, being “data literate” means more than knowing how to use a tool—it means understanding how to think with data. Yet, most analytics training programs focus almost entirely on the technical: Tableau, PowerBI, Python, R.

While these tools are powerful and widely marketed, they represent just a fraction of what it truly takes to perform effective, real-world data analysis.

The Problem: A Narrow View of Analytics Training

Many learners leave analytics classes energized but unable to replicate their success with real data. Why?

Because what’s taught is often just a technical skillset, divorced from the critical thinking and contextual understanding required for actual analysis.

The common analytics training model:

Prioritizes popular tools over core competencies
Delivers siloed workshops with little connection between them
Often overlooks the “softer” but vital skills that lead to true data fluency

These workshops may be easy to follow in the classroom, but they rarely prepare students to deal with messy, complex, real-world data problems.

What’s Missing?

To truly thrive in analytics, professionals need more than tool proficiency. They need to understand:

Critical thinking: How to define problems and ask the right questions
Mathematics and statistics: For rigorous, evidence-based conclusions
Hypothesis development and testing: To structure analysis logically
Art and communication: To craft compelling, clear data stories

These skills are harder to teach—and often avoided by many training providers. But without them, tool skills become brittle and incomplete.

FYT Academy: A Holistic, Practical Approach to Data Capability

FYT Academy was built to address these gaps. Our mission is to help professionals not just learn analytics tools, but to become confident, capable thinkers who can apply data meaningfully in their work.

Here’s how we do it differently:

1. Comprehensive Curriculum

Our workshops cover the full data value chain—from Data Management and Analysis to Visualization and Data Storytelling. The curriculum is modular but cohesive, so learners can address specific skill gaps while also seeing how everything fits together.

2. Excel as the Gateway

Rather than overwhelming beginners with complex platforms, we start with Excel—the world’s most accessible and widely-used analytics tool. It gives students immediate visibility into how data behaves, making it easier to understand core concepts before scaling up to more advanced tools.

3. Foundation First

We emphasize platform-agnostic skills like critical thinking, problem definition, and storytelling. These foundational abilities make learners adaptable, resilient, and far more effective—regardless of which tools they use in the future.

4. Advanced Tools, Taught Practically

Once the foundation is laid, students progress to modern platforms like PowerBI, Tableau, Python, PowerQuery, and even LLMs. But these are framed within practical, real-world use cases to ensure their relevance and applicability.

Empowering Professionals, Not Just Training Them

FYT Consulting is not just a training provider—we are a capability-building partner. Our approach blends theory with real-world application, helping individuals and organizations create meaningful change with data.

We don’t just teach tools. We teach people to think, to challenge, to communicate, and to lead with data.