Driven by Data: The Podcast

In Episode 43 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Jon Cooke, Founder of Dataception, where they discuss the benefits of the data mesh and the value it brings, which includes;What is a data meshHow it differs from other data platforms Why it’s faster, cheaper and less risky The commercial value which a data mesh brings The type of organisations it suitsHow it improves Speed & Scale of capability Its relationship with self-serve, experimentation and data management Fail fast mentality  The importance of organisational change The ownership considerations Build V BuyThe talent requirements Success Stories to check out

In Episode 42 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Doug McConchie, Head of Data & Analytics at HSO, where they discuss how to sell the value of your Data Strategy, which includes;The separation of data from technology Why companies start their Data & Analytics journey without a strategyThe major risks of doing soThe requirement of brutal prioritizationThe importance of continuously selling the value of your strategy How to articulate the value in different ways to specific audiences Any strategy should exist exclusively to support the business objectivesWhy you need to understand levels of maturity to articulate value The importance of incrementality in seeing the value of your strategy  Why financials will often determine the strategyThe timescales of developing the Data StrategyA framework of how to develop a Data Strategy Why the ability of data consumers is critical to a Data StrategyWhy technology shouldn’t be your first conversationHow to assess how you’re tracking against achieving value against the strategyThe importance of culture within a Data Strategy The relationship between culture and maturity  Why he wrote a book on this topic

In Episode 41 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Daniel Hulme, TedX Speaker and CEO at Satalia, where they have a truly fascinating conversation about the current Artificial Intelligence landscape and what the future holds, which includes:His TedX experience Why organisations don’t have ML/Data problems, they have decision problems Asking machines to resemble human behaviour isn’t “intelligence”Why he hasn’t seen a single complex system in production The true paradigm of AI is systems that can adapt themselves in production Why there are less than a handful of companies in the world that can do this at enterprise level How AI has been wrongly synonymised with technology The concept of digital twins Why humans are trying to solve problems that they’re not capable of solvingWhy services companies are the walking deadThe mistakes that most organisations make with AI Why you shouldn’t be hiring Data ScientistsThe scaremongering around AI EthicsWhy you shouldn't invest in Data Lakes if you’re serious about AI Why the term “quick win” is an oxymoronThe PESTEL singularity The goal of democratising innovation by open sourcing

In Episode 40 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Jason Krantz, CEO/Founder at Strategy Titan, where they discuss how to demonstrate the business value and financial impact of our Data & Analytics initiatives, which includes:Our job is to create clarity on how data can help the business reach its goalsWhy we need to find a balance between data literacy and business literacy    The importance of business context  Why its impossible to translate how D&A initiatives benefit the business without business literacy Push Versus Pull: why you’ve got to embrace the pull model     Why you need to get out from behind your keyboard to set yourself apart We are in a battle of hearts of minds, not technology   Why you should start by creating demand and how to do soThe importance of knowing how the score is kept and keeping score!How to quantify the financial benefits and/or business benefits before starting a project    The importance of understanding the decision making culture within your organisation      Why it reflects on you as a leader if change doesn’t occur The “cost” of data & analytics capabilities are simply table stakes to remain competitive Why we should calculate the financial value as opposed to ROI Why it’s on the organisation to gauge the financial value generatedWhy offensive initiatives are easier to quantify the financial value generated How to be in alignment with decision-makers that are acting on your recommendations to be able to claim added value

In Episode 39 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Errol Koolmeister, Head of AI Foundation at H&M, where they discuss how to successfully productionize Artificial Intelligence at scale, which includes:Why they established the foundation as an external function and then integrated it into the businessWhat the companies that are succeeding with AI are doing versus the ones who aren’tWhy you should focus on incremental value delivery as early as possible The 3 key factors for scale: Value, Feasibility, ReusabilityWhy you should start with the most flexible use case, not the best or most valuable The importance of creating infrastructure that supports AI How they returned all of the investment in AI within 12 months The importance of having clear ownership within the business Why Reusability is the key to success to scale AI Why the POV has replaced the POC Merging Long-term thinking with short-term gains How upskilling initiatives across the organization aided the evolution of AI How to get the balance of skills within your AI team What they did to create a compelling brand/narrative in the marketplace

In Episode 38 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Christina Stathopopolous, Analytics Lead at Google, where they discuss how to build your personal brand to stand out in the crowded Data & Analytics market, which includes:Getting hired by Google The importance of positivity and persistence Why building a brand is overlooked and not taken an advantage ofHow to build a personal brand despite being an introvertWhy consistency is keyWhy you should look at this as an investment in yourselfThe importance of contributing to the community Don’t try to learn all of the "hard" skillsThe importance of SQL in Data Science Take every opportunity to present in public The difference between, communication, people and commercial skillsWhy sharpening your commercial skills is beneficial even if you don’t need them just yetHow we can tackle the gender imbalance within the world of Data Why she promotes the 'Book a Week Challenge'

In Episode 37 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Cindi Howson, Chief Data Strategy Officer at ThoughtSpot, where they discuss how the CDO can create a data culture, which includes:85% fail to achieve the full benefit, not fail full stopOnly 14% of organisations are measuring ROIHow to measure ROI: Leading Indicators V Lagging Indicators 61% of Data Leaders suggest that culture is the biggest barrier to creating a truly data-driven organisation85% of boards have expectations to become data-driven The relationship between leadership styles and culture, and the success of Data & Analytics initiativesThe evolution of the CDAOThe differences in achieving cultural change between leaders and users So What – what’s in it for me?The perfect environment to create a truly data-driven culture Two sides of the same coin: The relationship between Technology and CultureDoes it matter where the CDAO reports?The correlation between the team you build and the culture you create The relationship required for a CDO with other members of the C-suite

In Episode 36 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Adrian Kingwell, CEO of Mezzo Labs, where they discuss what the future of insight looks like and if we've seen the death of the dashboard, which includes:His journey into running a successful Digital Analytics business How staff churn was his biggest problem in the early days Why actionable insights are the crown jewels of analytics The importance of the presentation of insights Why we spend too much time on Data Visualisation How there is something missing “in the final mile” which makes insight actionable How to be more data-driven by getting insight immediately to the point of actionWhy self-serve is only as successful as the appetite to find insight Push V Pull Culture The Analytics Exoskeleton – delivering insights that empower individuals to make data-driven decisions Why shift from traditional consultancy to a product-based business Have we seen the death of the dashboard? What the future of insights looks likeWhy we should create a warehouse of insights that act as a playbook for stakeholders

In Episode 35 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Caroline Worboys, Data, Digital & AI NED, where they discuss why the Data, Analytics and AI industry needs independent NED's, which includes:Why we need to be creative as well as analytical The need to be outcome-focused but understanding how you'll get there The Art of the Possible: Why business leaders often want us to provide insight to identify the opportunity The role of corporate bias Why budget ownership can create constraints for CDO’s The golden question: What do you wish you could predict?The importance of keeping it high-level for as long as possible The role structure can play on how successful we areThe importance of helping business leaders prioritise What it takes to be a successful NED  The benefit of being free from day-to-day constraints Why you reap what you sow with regards to culture Why context is so important even at the execution level

In Episode 34 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom is joined by Graeme McDermott, Chief Data Officer at Tempcover, where they discuss one of the most debated topics in the industry right now; how hands-on should a data leader be, which includes; Defining what we mean by “hands-on”The two types of Data Leader: Hands-on V Agent of Change Why being hands-on will get you buy-in and credibility from D&A teamsThe benefits of remaining hands-onThe role that scale plays in making the decision Why the industry needed that agent of changeWhat areas outside of “technical" or “strategic” should Data Leaders focus onThe relationship between Data Maturity & Data LeadershipHow to quantify "better questions" and why we need to ask them Why Data Literacy is a journey and not a destination Why context is important to provide solutions Utilising nudge theory and the 5 Why’sHow to develop diverse friendly recruitment practices Is Agile fit for purpose in Data & Analytics How much time is split between being hands-on versus strategic