My Experience
Throughout my career I have been fortunate to build a rich set of experiences and learnings from managing diverse and high performing teams. Here are some of my highlights.
Strategic Thinking
I have a proven track record of developing and executing long term strategic plans to leverage data and AI driving both top line growth and operational efficiencies for one of the worlds largest retailers. I keep up with the latest trends and technologies in the field, and I am able to identify and implement innovative solutions to complex problems.
Leadership & Communication
I endeavour to motivate high-performing teams by providing clarity of vision and direction and giving space for autonomy to execute by leveraging their deep technical expertise. I am skilled at communicating complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences including to exec and board level. I have actively created global data and analytics communities and run annual conference events attended by hundreds of practitioners.
Talent Development
I am passionate about team development and I believe that strong and autonomous teams are essential for success in the field of data and AI. I have experience of scaling Data Science teams from a handful of specialists to hundreds of experts distributed across multiple global locations. I enjoy identifying and developing the talents of my team members and have led the development of technical Career Frameworks across multiple Job Families including Data Science, Analytics, Product Management and Software Engineering.
Diversity & Inclusion
I endeavour to create a positive and supportive work environment where team members feel valued and empowered. I am a strong champion of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the workplace. I believe that DEI is essential to creating a high-performing and innovative team. I am committed to fostering a work environment where everyone feels respected, valued, and included and I actively sponsor and mentor members of under represented groups.
Digital Transformation
I have a rich set of experiences of how data and AI can be used to drive digital transformation. I have developed and executed strategies to help organizations leverage data and AI to improve their operations, create new products and services, and engage with customers in new and innovative ways.
Impact through Productionised AI Products
I have a successful track record of building and deploying AI products that are interacted with by millions of customers every day improving their experience and having a significant impact on the bottom line of the businesses. I have expertise in managing teams across all aspects of the AI product lifecycle, from ideation and development to deployment and maintenance. I am also skilled at working with cross-functional teams to ensure that AI products are aligned with business goals and meet the needs of users.
Managing Uncertainty in ML Application Development
I have experienced first hand the challenges and uncertainties associated with developing machine learning applications. Over time, I have trialed different strategies to mitigate these risks and ensure that investments in developing machine learning applications are minimised for maximum reward.
Responsible & Ethical use of Data & AI
I am committed to the responsible and ethical use of data and AI. I have worked with experts to understand the ethical challenges associated with AI to develop and implement policies and procedures to mitigate these risks. I am also a strong advocate for transparency and accountability in the use of data and AI.
Fostering Research Collaborations
I have a strong track record of fostering successful research partnerships with world leading universities and other academic institutions. My experiences include establishing short term PhD Internships, sponsoring longer term PhD research projects, hosting visiting scientists and establishing broader collaborations with research departments.
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A key theme throughout all these collaborations is to channel our research findings back into the development of innovative AI solutions to real-world problems in an agile way.
Driving Innovation
I am driven to innovate and find new and better ways to use data and AI to solve business problems. I provide the space and time for my team members to explore new technologies and trends, and have established innovation pipelines to refine new business problems into focused hypotheses for testing. I am also a strong advocate for experimentation and failure as a means of learning and innovation.
Managing Complex Portfolios
As the size and impact of the teams I have managed has increased, it has been necessary to manage larger and more complex development portfolios across disparate business areas and product teams. To be successful it has been necessary to prioritise projects effectively and allocate resources efficiently in line with rigorous business and investment cases and tracking spend and performance at a granular level.