Data manager Interview questions

[Neville]

I have been asked to draft up some sims questions for a data manager interview can anybody give me some questions to ask please as I don't know enough about a data managers role to know what type of questions to ask them.

[vikpaw]

Not sure how SIMS specific to be, depends on the applicants. Here are some ideas:

Ask about aptitude with Databases in general. Aptitude with Excel and any VB / VBA coding experience. Presence of any qualifications in these respects would be useful, advanced excel course or ECDL or something.

Find out if they have worked with SIMs before, if so, what level of experience do they have with the reporting system, using assessment manager and the various areas, e.g. advanced reports with subqueries, using macros in the output; formulae in sims marksheets, or formulae in post production within Excel, again use of macros and or pivot tables possibly.

How are they at meeting deadlines? working with many staff, many of whom may not meet deadlines e.g. report writing cycle....

What is their attention to detail? can they proof read? Are they happy to work for long hours unattended, and sometimes in isolation, in a small darkened room with no windows or ventilation? . . .

[elsiegee40]

Anyone in a data manager role needs to be aware of the implications of the Data Protection Act - not necessarily in full detail, but definitely enough to make them very cautious about how/where the information is used and what information is actually needed for any given use.

[jcollings]

I'd also be interested in getting an idea how they see SIMS being used in the school. Is it just an admin tool or would you (assuming you haven't already) be looking to exploit behaviour management, lesson monitoring, academic reporting.

I would also want to be asking questions about the 2010 requirements and how data is reported/made available to parents etc.