Dr. Niels Ohlsen

Data & Analytics — understand what matters. Do what works.

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I came to data through empirical social research. My guiding principle ever since: a good analysis is a chain of reasoning.

Today I translate between business and data. I build the bridge from fuzzy questions through driver trees and KPI logic to clear answers that teams can work with directly. I like the moments when a driver tree makes visible where value really comes from – and the moment when a good chart makes a long discussion unnecessary.

Day to day: SQL, R and Tableau, plus Databricks, Power BI and some Python.

FrameFrom the business question to the data question. KPI logic, driver trees, a clear thread through the analysis.
AnalyseStatistical craft that holds up to scrutiny.
CommunicateOverview first, filter and details on demand.

What I do

As Data and Analytics Value Manager at Cordes & Graefe (GC Gruppe) I am a strategic partner to the business: deciding which data and analytics products create the most value, prioritising the portfolio accordingly, and translating business logic into KPIs and driver trees. I shape the data strategy, derive business requirements for the data platform, and drive the data catalog and governance — with hybrid project management combining agile delivery and classic, plan-driven methods (IPMA Level D). In parallel I still work as a Data Scientist, which keeps me close to the data rather than only to the roadmap.

Before that I led the data team at Traum-Ferienwohnungen and built the first data marts and automated reporting at eurapon Pharmahandel. My statistical foundation comes from a PhD in the social sciences: structural equation modelling, latent class analysis, multiple imputation and survey methods — the topics I still write about on the blog.

Full CV →

Beyond work

Co-organiser of the Dataviz Meetup Bremen since 2023, with talks on data visualisation, visual analytics and business intelligence. German (native), English (C1). Away from the screen: photography and gravel biking, though the camera stays home on the bike.

Where to go next

  • CV — full career, education and certifications
  • Blog — statistics, R and data visualisation
  • Dataviz — selected charts with the code and data behind them
  • Gallery — a small selection of photographs