Data & Analytics Consultant, Author & Coach. SCORE Volunteer.
Data analytics expert working with insurance, financial services and healthcare business and information technology executives to improve profitability and business performance. Author of book, Applied Insurance Analytics published by FT Press; available on Amazon.
Specialties: business development, data warehousing, business intelligence, management consulting, insurance industry, product management.
What attracted you to data management or IT, and why did you choose to pursue this career?
It was a natural evolution from operational management to becoming a business owner of systems within the business, then into IT as a business analyst and finally into consulting.
What has been your greatest career accomplishment so far, and why has it been important to your career?
Being able to learn from others across all industries and from companies of all sizes has been a privilege. The ability to share my knowledge and experience both through my data and analytics book and through hands on consulting have enabled me to truly achieve life long learning.
What are the two or three biggest challenges you face as a data management professional / CDO and how can we address them?
Top three challenges are:
- Obtaining senior management leadership and sponsorship
- Achieving an overall data driven culture and organizational data analytics literacy
- Implementing sustainable data and analytics processes and operations
The key to all of these is a Business Analytics Competency Center and Chief Analytics Officer partnering with the Chief Data Officer.
How do you see data management / the role of the CDO / IT changing in the next 2 – 3 years?
As data continues to grow and become ever more relevant, it will become more monetized. I foresee a separate profit center based on data with its own P&L, led by the Chief Data Officer reporting to the CEO.
Do you have any planned next steps for your career?
More learning, writing, advocating and consulting.
I’ve created a video course based on my insurance analytics book and am currently working on a cross industry version of the book and a companion video course.
I will continue consulting to organizations on advocacy, strategy, change management and implementation.
What is the single best piece of advice you have received in your data management / IT career so far? Why has it been so important to you?
Follow the money, e.g., find the business value.
Can you share something about yourself as a person that people wouldn’t know about you?
I do pro bono mentoring of small businesses through SCORE and I do ESL tutoring.
