• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, February 12, 2013

Questions concerning the future of data science came from the audience at the Social Media Insider Summit -- specifically with jobs.

By 2014, there will be 150,000 data science jobs needed, according to one attendee. 

"There is a lack of investment in data science," agrees Fahad Khan, Founder and CEO, One Public. "But there is risk involved because typically to get really good at the deep analytical level you have to invest a lot of time in implementation."

Khan says you have to decide, for example, "what you think positive sentiment is versus negative sentiment." And then have the ability to scale it.

Panelist Teresa Caro, vp of social marketing for Engauge, says "it's a choice for each brand... You need the marketers to make that data actionable."

There's a bigger issue says Eric Berkowitz, head of product innovation, Tracx: "Is there support from the top down?"