Shedding new light on the human side of big data through the lenses of emotional and social intelligence competencies, this book advances the understanding of the requirements of the different professions that deal with big data. It also illustrates the empirical evidence collected through the application of the competency-based methodology to a sample of data scientists and data analysts, the two most in-demand big data jobs in the labor market. The book provides recommendations for the higher education system to offer better designed curricula for entry-level big data professions. It also offers managerial insights in describing how organizations and specifically HR practitioners can benefit from the competency-based approach to overcome the skill shortage that characterizes the demand for big data professional roles and to increase the effectiveness of the selection and recruiting processes.