Key Moments:

• A journey from intern to CEO (05:10)
• Encouraging a harmonized relationship between humans and AI (09:58)
• Why embracing stress can drive urgency and effective change (17:18)
• Generative AI’s impact on the skills landscape (30:39)
• Fostering a data-driven company culture (36:41)
• Embrace change, and quickly (40:25)

Key Quotes:

• “AI does amazing things, like summarizations and semantic search. Humans do amazing things like curation of knowledge, making sure it's accurate, connecting the dots, and creating relationships. So bringing the power of humans-in-the loop, especially given a broader trust deficit, felt like the right thing to do at this point in time.”
• “I think ultimately what guides us is we want to be useful to our users and our customers. That's the guiding light. Because why do we exist as an organization or a community? We should all just go home. If we don't actually have a mission and purpose that adds value, then we don't have a purpose. So the question is, what is that? What is the highest purpose?”
• “When you think about the future of software development, there’s a lot of doomsdayers about job losses. I think it's going to be the opposite. I think AI reduces the barrier to entry. I think a lot of people will be “developers”, even though they may be doing very different things.”

Mentions:

• WeAreDevelopers World Congress 2023
• OverflowAI
• Overflow API
• Stack Overflow for Teams
• Amp It Up Book

Bio:

Prashanth Chandrasekar is Chief Executive Officer of Stack Overflow and is responsible for driving Stack Overflow’s overall strategic direction and results.Prashanth is a proven technology executive with extensive experience leading and scaling high-growth global organizations. Previously, he served as Senior Vice President & General Manager of Rackspace’s Cloud & Infrastructure Services portfolio of businesses, including the Managed Public Clouds, Private Clouds, Colocation and Managed Security businesses. Before that, Prashanth held a range of senior leadership roles at Rackspace including Senior Vice President & General Manager of Rackspace’s high growth, global business focused on the world’s leading Public Clouds including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and Alibaba Cloud, which became the fastest growing business in Rackspace’s history. Prior to joining Rackspace, Prashanth was a Vice President at Barclays Investment Bank, focused on providing Strategic and Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) advice for clients in the Technology, Media and Telecom (TMT) industries.

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Key Moments:

• The emotional temperature for change in analytics (5:06)
• There’s no playbook for change management (7:53)
• Why Generative AI success requires a melding of expertise (17:20)
• Measuring the success of LLMs (18:58)
• How do you embrace the new when you’re facing technical debt? (33:27)
• How to fine-tune your career in today’s data and AI landscape (37:30)

Key Quotes:

• “Business intelligence tends to have this notion of looking backwards. It's not thinking about prescriptive or predictive analytics, or live analytics, powered by the new capabilities that we're seeing. I do think we're going to evolve to a new name.” (03:42)
• “You’ll find companies that were and are ahead of the curve will be able to take advantage of these new technologies, GenAI, LLMs, et cetera, much more quickly than other companies. So companies that have not invested the time, resources, money, attention, and prioritization into data governance, data use, and data literacy are at a serious disadvantage. And companies that have done the opposite, that have proactively invested, will be able to make significant gains.”
• “I think there's three pillars of success. One is understanding your data from end to end. What is it used for? What domain is it in? Understand it as much as possible. What is the product? What is the data product that you have in all aspects of it? Then, understand your business, right? How does data relate to your business? These people are going to be the ones that leverage the technology the most efficiently.”
• “Don't hesitate to take a lateral mobility move. I know people are always interested in going up, up, up, up, and up. However, you know, sometimes consider going sideways.” (40:46)

Mentions:

• Jamie Dimon Annual Shareholder Letter
• Data Literacy
• Data Storytelling
• Unfrosted Film
• Hacks TV Show
• Abraham Lincoln

Bio:

Scott Stevens is responsible for Intelligent Solutions, which empowers JPMorgan Chase employees through innovative data, Business Intelligence and low-code capabilities.

Scott has been with JPMorgan Chase since 2011 and has worked in Financial Services his entire 32-year career, with prior roles at MBNA, Bank of America and Sallie Mae. Scott has been in data and analytics roles since 1997.

Scott enjoys working with local universities on modernizing data science curriculum, guest lectures and coaching student teams on analytics projects. While at work, Scott enjoys mentoring and likes to help people advance their careers and skills. Scott serves on multiple non-profit boards, and Scott is the executive sponsor for the JPMorgan Chase Delaware Volunteer Leadership Group.

Scott lives in Delaware with his family. Scott’s personal interests include travel, wine-making, photography and rooting for the Philadelphia Eagles.

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Key Moments:

• Leveraging Generative AI for work? Start by asking the right questions (04:13)
• What’s in store for the future world of work (18:18)
• How Generative AI can expand humans’ divergent thinking (26:16)
• Taking people and culture along the Generative AI journey (31:20)
• The value of diversity in data (42:00)
• A tale of mentorship (44:20)

Key Quotes:

• “With Generative AI, now we have a command line interface that’s allowed us to converse, which is so core and essential to who we are as humans. The ability to be able to talk to one another. That's allowed us to survive for thousands and thousands of years and evolve.”
• “I think that there's a lot of greater potential in terms of expanding our own creativity and strategic thinking. So while humans have flexible and moldable brains and we have neuroplasticity that allows us to learn new things, we have to put ourselves in those environments. AI is really good at divergent thinking. So when we think about creativity, a core aspect of that is divergent thinking. What comes to mind when you think of a tree? Maybe leaves and fruit. Divergent thinking is thinking of all the outside things, like sunshine and soil, that may be associated with the tree or that tree growth. There's a lot more potential that we've yet to unlock in terms of updating our own thinking to expand our own divergent and creative thinking”
• “We know that when we have more diverse teams where everyone feels that they can speak up, and you get better ideas. You get more collaboration. So having that core vision of what is that culture and environment that you want to have is really key”

Mentions:

• Women in Data
• Human Machine Collaboration Institute
• Beyond AI Exposure: Which Tasks are Cost-Effective to Automate with Computer Vision?
• Dialect Prejudice Predicts AI Decisions About People’s Character, Employability, and Criminality
• AWS: What Are AI Agents?
• Women in Data Climate Sustainability Datathon 2023
• The Creative Way: A Way of Being

Bio:

Sadie St. Lawrence is on a personal mission to create a more compassionate and connected world through technology. Having grown up on a farm in Iowa she witnessed first-hand how advancements in technology rapidly changed how we work and earn a living, which in turn affected the overall success of a community. In addition, Sadie was homeschooled her entire childhood which led to a unique perspective in self-directed learning approaches and out of the box thinking.

Sadie holds a diverse education having degrees in piano performance, psychology, and data science, but at her core she has always been a teacher. In 2014 she transitioned from working in a neuroscience lab studying emotional learning and memory, to working in data science. During her time as a data scientist, she went on to lead data science teams and consult for Fortune 500 companies in AI. Through her work, she noticed that while many organizations and individuals have good intentions when it comes to D&I in data careers, there was a lack of progress.

Today, Sadie’s work is focused on educating individuals in technology, increasing access and pathways for all people and creating a more equal future for all.

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Key Moments:

• The voyage to a data-driven US Coast Guard (5:21)
• Navigating data-driven approaches to US Coast Guard operations (20:28)
• Balancing experience-based decision making with data-informed decision making (25:34)
• In whose data do you trust? (30:10)
• Measuring the value of data (33:80)
• Should an AI ethicist be part of the team or should everyone really be an ethicist? (45:00)

Key Quotes:

• “Up until three years ago when we started this, some people – and really our entire organization – just thought data as IT. They didn't think much past that, because no one had ever really challenged them to think about it. So it wasn't really thought of as, ‘this is the data that we have, and this is the commander's business. This is how the business is going to run. It's not just letting IT figure it out.’”
• “I think that technology has helped us along the way to visualize data that otherwise would be difficult and time consuming to conceptualize and understand. And as we continue to find ways to make humans understand better what it is that they're looking at – especially in extremely dynamic and complex data situations – I think you'll start to see a shift of trust and that's really experience. It's experience in using data informed decision making activities.”
• “Would an ethics, an AI ethics advisor to the CDAO be a great thing? Absolutely. Are we all just ethicists? Yes, but I would say that there is a lot of understanding needed. There's a huge area where you could be an expert in the ethics of artificial intelligence and provide sound guidance day after day. I would think that this particular type of employee would be extremely valuable.”

Mentions:

• U.S. Coast Guard 11 Missions
• AI U.S. Executive Orders
• White House Orders Federal Agencies to Name Chief AI Officers
• America’s Cyber Defense Agency
• Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life… And Maybe the World

Bio:

Captain Brian Erickson currently serves as the United States Coast Guard’s first Chief Data and Artificial Intelligence Officer and is principally responsible for the coordination of data and artificial intelligence activities across the organization. His previous assignments focused primarily on engineering and operations, serving at five operational assignments piloting rotary and fixed wing aircraft performing search and rescue, law enforcement and other military mission profiles. Brian is a licensed Professional Engineer specializing in aerospace and also served in the Office of Budget and Programs working directly for the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). In 2020, he was selected as the Coast Guard’s MIT Sloan Fellow following service as Commanding Officer of Coast Guard Air Station Savannah, GA. Brian is a 1998 graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, and holds a Master of Science degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Purdue University as well as a Master of Business Administration from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is a 2022 DataIQ Top 100 most influential persons in data and the 2023 MachineCon AI Leader of the Year.

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Tune in to learn:

• Make your business strategy a data strategy (3:10)
• ‘Cover my back’ approaches (09:00)
• Straddling risks in data and business (11:28)
• Learnings from implementing myGPT (16:18)
• Activating your organization’s collective genius (24:05)
• Creating the right processes and culture to breed AI success (31:00)
• The current state of AI regulation (38:35)

Key Quotes:

• “You can have an AI strategy without a data strategy or without a business strategy, but it will not help you much. So your data strategy is your business strategy and vice versa. (04:42).
• “I would say we started with the collective genius or activating the collective genius. What we wanted to do is enable everybody to try things out and tell us what has the highest opportunity and possibility” (25:46)
• “We're now slowly going into a paradigm shift where we go away from more reports, from more dashboards, and into what's important for me to know today. I don't want to go through 200 dashboards in three different technologies. The one thing that I want is an intelligent model that has access to all of my data and tells me, well, there's five KPIs you should have a look at. Maybe it's a data quality problem. Maybe it's nothing. Maybe it's just a deferred invoice or whatever. But maybe it's something that needs your attention and you should now get active on it.” (30:26)
• “I think AI is a wonderful technology. I think it has a lot of potential upside. It has the high risk of being misunderstood and overestimated. But honestly, you can't blame it on technology. Often, that's part of the history of large organizations. It's not always the technology, it's the adoption of the technology. And this has a lot to do with maturity of the workforce, maturity of the organization, processes, culture. So you can bring the best technology in the world, but if you don't have fertile ground, if you don't have the right people on the ground that make sure that your workforce understands it and also that your processes are adjusted accordingly, then the technology will fail” (34:05)
• “My dream is that you don't need me anymore because I'm a transformational leader. And when everybody in this organization breathes data, breathes AI and applies it every single day, then my task is done, then you don't need me anymore. I still have a few days.” (38:00)

Mentions:

• Bring Your Own Documents
• Langdock
• Snowflake
• Gary Marcus
• Koshari Recipe

Bio:

Walid is Chief Data & AI Officer at Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, where he leads the company’s Data & AI organization, delivering value, governance, architecture, engineering, and operations across the company globally. With many years experience in startups, IT, and consulting major corporations, Walid encompasses a strong understanding of the intersection between business and technology. Born in Egypt and raised in three different states in Germany, Walid celebrates his multicultural background and leverages it to inform his commitment to DE&I. As a father of two amazing daughters, he advocates for a more equal workplace to ensure a better future for the next generation. Walid strives to be the best ally he can be, making these values the cornerstone of his leadership approach.

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In developed nations, corporations often rollup and eat independent mom and pop shops into big box retail or big .coms that centralize supply chains and logistics. Meanwhile, independent sellers are the backbone of emerging markets. But a collision is starting to occur and it’s happening fast. Big corporations want to bring the same strategy to these emerging markets, so how can the independent seller maintain their independence? To do that, they need technology partners like RedCloud. In this conversation, we learn how RedCloud sits at the forefront of the 3 key disruptions inside of emerging markets: employment, technology, and sustainability. Learn how Soumaya Hamzaoui, Co-Founder and COO and JD de Jong, SVP of Product combine data, technology and deep knowledge of emerging economies to help independent sellers.

Key Moments:

• A personal mission: Born in Algeria, Africa, Soumaya discusses how her childhood shaped her understanding of emerging markets.
• Unlike Amazon: Commerce has existed in emerging markets since the beginning of civilization. Yet independent sellers face existential challenges if big corporations are allowed to enter their markets and gobble up all of the opportunities. Learn how RedCloud hopes to not be like Amazon, and would rather focus on keeping independent sellers independent.
• Data for emerging market independent sellers: discover how the team developed the right products for these markets and how they overcame challenges unique to their customers.
• Challenges in emerging markets: Gain unique perspectives into how international marketplaces work.

Key Quotes:

• “We are not only here to develop the technology, but we are also here to educate these businesses on the value of digitization, on the value of data. [According to a World Bank Report] 90% of these businesses need training and upskilling to keep up with the pace of the evolution of how the economical world and technological world is evolving. 88% need support in digitization on how to take their business from traditional businesses to fully digital business. And another 80% need mentorship and support on how to transform their business. - Soumaya
• “It is one thing to give a user access to create their own visualization. It's an entirely different thing to create not just the visualization, but an interpretation of what that visualization means. - JD
• “When companies look at emerging markets and the lack of digitization, they think there's a reluctance to digitize and there really isn't. It's not about the adoption of technology, but the simplification of and the cost of that technology.” - JD

Mentions:

• World Bank Reports
• M-Pesa in Kenya
• Large Language Models (LLMS) with Dialects
• Marketplace Counterfeit Challenges
• Book: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life

Bios:

Soumaya Hamzaoui describes herself as an Entrepreneur and Product Strategist. She has a strong track record of developing products across Enterprises focused on the fintech and commerce global industries. She has deep sector expertise built over the last 15 years across Africa, Asia, and EMEA in mobile money, digital financial services, and FinTech launches. She attended prestigious universities in France and Algeria.

Juandre (JD) de Jong is a seasoned Product professional and Chartered Management Accountant, currently serving as the Senior Vice President of Product at RedCloud. Juandre combines his financial acumen with a deep understanding of customer needs to drive product strategy and innovation. He has a proven track record of successfully launching and scaling innovative products that meet market demands. He was born in South Africa and currently resides in the UK.

Hear more from Cindi Howson here. Sponsored by ThoughtSpot.

Hear more from Cindi Howson here. Sponsored by ThoughtSpot.

Description:
Cindi Howson is joined by Valerie A. Logan, CEO and founder of the DataLodge and Chief Strategy Officer at DATA SOCIETY GROUP, and Jason Beyer, Vice President of Data and Analytics at Bridgestone Americas. They delve into the vital concepts of data literacy and AI literacy, sharing their insights and experiences in fostering a data-driven culture within organizations. Valerie, widely regarded as the "godmother of data literacy," sheds light on the three key pillars of her approach: mindset, language, and skills. Jason provides a behind-the-scenes look at how Bridgestone is cultivating data literacy, including partnerships with HR, creating a data marketplace, and fostering a community of data enthusiasts.

Key Moments:

• Valerie Logan explains the three pillars of data literacy: mindset, language, and skills (06:16)
• Jason Beyer shares Bridgestone's approach to scaling data literacy, including partnering with HR and creating a data marketplace (22:10)
• Valerie highlights the importance of leadership in modeling the right mindset for data literacy (29:28)
• Cindi, Valerie, and Jason discuss the evolution of data literacy to AI literacy (33:48)
• Lightning round with fun questions for Valerie and Jason (38:26)

Key Quotes:

• ISL (Information as a second language) is really a foundational methodology for how we look at the enablement of people, the empowerment of people with this capability. And when I talk about data literacy in ISL, I look at it really as three things, mindset, language, and skills. - Valerie A. Logan
• Terms, Techniques, then Tools. If you're trying to drive a different behavior, a tool is part of that. But how somebody thinks, how someone engages is also part of it. - Valerie A. Logan
• Leaders need to think about data fluency different from those that may be using data in their role or may have data as a role and recognize that there's different levels of fluency, proficiency, and the core literacy that go along with that. - Jason Beyer
• Even before we called it a data literacy program, we had this mindset and approach as a COE team and our value contribution to the organization is we need to raise the water for the entire organization in how we use and make the most of our data assets. - Jason Beyer

Mentions:

• Data Literacy Movement
• Information as a Second Language (ISL) methodology
• The Data Lodge and Bridgestone Data Literacy Webinar
• Generative AI and prompt engineering classes

Bios

Valerie A. Logan
Founding The Data Lodge in 2019, Valerie is as committed to data literacy as it gets. With train-the-trainer bootcamps, and a peer community, she’s certifying the world’s first Data Literacy Program Leads. Valerie is excited to also serve as the Chief Strategy Officer of DSG. Valerie has more than 30 years of experience in consulting leadership and telecommunications. She lives between the Adirondacks in Upstate NY, and Sarasota, FL with her husband Brian, and their yellow lab, Cooper, the Lodge mascot.

Jason Beyer
A Data, Analytics, & Technology pioneer with a proven ability to lead transformational change. Jason brings global experiences from automotive, retail, industrial manufacturing, construction, medical, and government industries. He believes what’s good for society is good for business. Jason serves on multiple boards for his community of Nashville, and for the data industry

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