Rochel Thomas
Summary
Results-driven Data and Insights Analyst with expertise in analytics, business intelligence, and statistical methods, leveraging tools such as Power BI, SQL, Python, and advanced Excel to deliver actionable insights. Skilled in corporate performance reporting, GDPR compliance, and system migration strategies, with a proven ability to design KPI frameworks and predictive analytics models. Adept at stakeholder engagement through board reporting, workshop facilitation, and data storytelling to drive informed decision-making. Committed to advancing organisational goals through innovative solutions and strategic governance.
Adept at managing and breaking down large volumes of information. Proactive at improving issues in operations, workflow and production by uncovering trends affecting business success, leveraging 10 years of analytical experience.
Overview
8
8
years of professional experience
Work history
Data & Insight Analyst
Shooting Star Children’s Hospice
2024.01 - 2026.08
- Established People Insights function, defining requirements and sourcing, cleansing HR data from Cascade and Finance FTE SharePoint into star-schema Power BI model, delivering leadership team’s first structured view of starters and leavers, headcount, workforce demographics and trends.
- Built and led the “For Every Family” dashboard, a Power BI suite giving the Board, Senior Leadership Teams, Care Leads, Fundraising and Communications teams live operational and strategic KPIs tied directly to the “For Every Family” organisational strategy. Enabled self-service reporting across non-analytical teams, reducing ad-hoc data requests and cutting days of manual reporting.
- Applied advanced statistical methods to organisational data for operational insight, using linear regression to model bed nights and time series forecasting to predict referral volumes, informing capacity planning and service demand discussions at leadership level.
- Applied statistical analysis in Python, alongside Power BI and SQL, to incident reporting data, identifying patterns that informed a new incident audit process associated with a subsequent reduction in reported incidents.
- Used Power BI’s geographic mapping capabilities to map community nursing caseloads by postcode area across Surrey and north-west/south-west London, informing efficient allocation of clinical teams across the catchment.
- Transformed data into narrative for external stakeholders, producing annual statistics for organisation’s public report and funder-facing materials, presenting monthly and quarterly trends to Senior Care Leadership Team.
- Led training and analytical upskilling, running organisation-wide workshops to introduce the dashboard suite and embed data-informed practice across teams.
- Represent Shooting Star in a multi-hospice data-sharing working group, instilling GDPR practices and Caldicott Principles into the process of safely sharing data on children across county lines, to improve fairness and efficiency of service allocation across the sector.
Impact Specialist (prev. Data & Performance Officer)
Your Place
2023.01 - 2024.01
- Produced performance insight and cohort analysis in advanced Excel and Power Query that evidenced service impact to local authority commissioners and secured local government funding for the homelessness service.
- Partnered with data teams across homelessness organisations, sharing data to enhance cross-agency intelligence, and developed KPI frameworks and benchmarking that fostered measurable service-wide performance improvements.
- Delivered a Theory of Change in support of the CEO, engaging around 70% of staff through organisation-wide focus groups and interviewing external stakeholders, mapping the charity’s systems, values and outcomes into a framework used to inform strategy.
- Led migration of housing ledger for homelessness charity from Salesforce to Omniledger, performing data cleansing, mapping, and validation to provide frontline services with a fit-for-purpose case management system.
- Led initiatives that resulted in improved understanding of service user behaviour through comprehensive analysis.
- Cultivated data-driven culture within the organisation by conducting regular data quality reviews and training sessions.
Data Development Officer
Suffolk County Council (Children’s Services)
2019.01 - 2023.01
- Applied primary, secondary and mixed research methodologies to embed best practice across complex, multi-stakeholder statutory environment serving children and young people with SEND.
- Designed and coordinated cross-functional, multi-agency audit process for Education Health Care Plans (EHCPs) with Progress and Quality Assurance Team, quality-assuring 40% of new plans and achieving 20% improvement in EHCP quality within first audit cycle.
- Established strong relationships with stakeholders through regular meetings and updates on project progress.
- Evidenced project improvements through routine analytical reports, containing constructive yet critical reflections and visualisations.
Education
Level 4 Apprenticeship - Data Analytics
Cornel & Imperial
09/2024 - 05/2026
Master of Science - Research Methods in Psychology
University of Essex
Colchester 09/2018 - 08/2019
Bachelor of Science - Psychology
Bournemouth University
Poole 09/2015 - 08/2018
Skills
- Advanced excel proficiency
- Analytical Tools: Excel, SQL, Python, SPSS, Power BI (Mapping, DAX, Power Query, star schema), Fabric
- Statistical Methods: Regression analysis, Time series analysis, Predictive modelling, KPI development
- Data governance and compliance, Data Quality Improvement, Man
- Strategic Tools: Management information (MI), Performance Reporting, Theory of Change, Quality Improvement, Research Methodologies
- Stakeholder management and engagement, Workshop facilitation, Focus groups, Data storytelling, Data proficiency training
- Tactful diplomacy and professionalism
- Analytical creativity and innovation
Volunteering
YMCA Trinity, Just Traid
Timeline
Data & Insight Analyst
Shooting Star Children’s Hospice
2024.01 - 2026.08
Impact Specialist (prev. Data & Performance Officer)
Your Place
2023.01 - 2024.01
Data Development Officer
Suffolk County Council (Children’s Services)
2019.01 - 2023.01
Bachelor of Science - Psychology
Bournemouth University
09/2015 - 08/2018
Master of Science - Research Methods in Psychology
University of Essex
09/2018 - 08/2019
Level 4 Apprenticeship - Data Analytics
Cornel & Imperial
09/2024 - 05/2026