Spotlight on David
David Kane is a data scientist and researcher, who specialises in analysis and visualisation for charities and organisations with a social purpose.
He uses publicly available data, including from the Charity Commission, 360Giving and statutory funding sources, to create new insight for charities and funders.
Here we find out about how data can shed new light on your strategy as well as what makes David tick.
What was your journey to becoming a data expert?
I worked at NCVO, the membership body for charities, for ten years, collecting, analysing and presenting data about charities. I learnt the technical skills, but more importantly I learnt how important it is to make sure you ask the right questions and provide answers that help make good decisions. Since then I’ve been lucky to work with a wide variety of charities.
And why specialise in charities and foundations?
I’m in awe of the work that charities and foundations do every day. But I can also see that there are places where data could make those services even better. There’s a small but growing community of people who are helping charities make the most of their data, and I’m proud to be a part of that.
How can organisations use the insights you produce to make greater impact?
For some organisations, there’ll be an amazing visualisation that convinces a policy maker of the need for change. For others, it’ll be a trend over time that shows where their board needs to take a closer look. But the most inspiring change can come when organisations find out what works – and what doesn’t – and then adjust their services accordingly.
If you had a magic wand, what would you change in the social change sector?
Sometimes it’s assumed that this sector is less advanced than the private or public sectors, in terms of using data. But there are in fact many examples of social change organisations at the cutting edge: Full Fact checks the news in real time, MySociety provides civic technology, Democracy Club helps people know where to vote. So with my magic wand I’d spread the word about these examples, and make sure every charity had the skills and resources to use data to change the world.
Lastly, if you were to choose a Karaoke song what would it be and why?
If you follow me on Twitter you’ll know I have a weakness for terrible pop from the 90s and 2000s. So I’d probably pick the greatest pop song ever made: “Biology” by Girls Aloud.
Meet the rest of the Lucent team here.