2003: Diving for data

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Tags: business, summer-2011

Christian Bartens, Bachelor of Business Management

Christian Bartens

Christian Bartens spends his days showing others how data can be used to make smarter business decisions – when he’s not underwater that is.

The former scuba diving instructor turned entrepreneur moved from Germany 10 years ago to commence studies at UQ, and worked for Tourism Australia in the UK before setting up his own consultancy in Sydney in 2007 called Datalicious.

The company is now the Australian market leader in web analytics and offers a range of services from data warehousing to the planning and development of data-driven campaigns and websites. Datalicious’s clients include top brands such as Telstra, ANZ and Tourism New Zealand.

Mr Bartens said consumer data was invaluable to businesses, and provided clear competitive advantages if applied correctly.

He used the example of data agency Dunhumby in the UK that was bought by its client Tesco for a large sum due to the value of the intellectual property it had gathered.

“Companies that can capitalise on their raw data and figure out how to turn it into actionable insights win, simple as that,” Mr Bartens said.

“They’ll have the competitive edge, develop the best products and capitalise on their assets and customers in the most effective way.”

Mr Bartens said one of his favourite parts of the job was combining his passions for travel and business to present at conferences around the world.

“I enjoy interacting with the audience and teaching people new things. It’s a really gratifying feeling if you tell someone something new they didn’t know before.”

Mr Bartens encouraged entrepreneurial students to believe in their business ideas and stay focused on success.

“Keep trying, it’ll work out eventually but don’t expect the first attempt to be successful,” he said.

By Cameron Pegg

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