In this episode of Tech Talent Today, I’m excited to be joined by Kirk Brote. Kirk is a seasoned user experience designer with over 20 years of experience in the industry. Throughout his career, Kirk has demonstrated a deep understanding of user-centered design principles and a passion for creating intuitive and engaging experiences for users. Listen as he shares his insights and experiences that have informed design decisions and driven innovation.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• What is DesignOps? [02:17]
• The limitations of 1990’s programming [07:47]
• The state of UX and UX ops [10:41]
• Relationships are key to DesignOps [20:44]
• Finding the common elements [23:49]
• Kirk’s journey to UX design [32:57]
• Seek out opportunities you love [45:11]

The development of DesignOps

DesignOps brings the rigor of operations to the practice of design. For years, design in organizations started with teams building software. Then, design was grafted into teams in various ways with different artifacts and disciplines. So long as that structure remained the same, then that solution was acceptable. However, as design teams became more successful and expanded, users were confused because the designs looked less like they came from the same company. The role of DesignOps is to operationalize design to make it smooth and seamless.

When Kirk gave his talk in 2019 about DesignOps, people wanted to know more. Many had encountered the issues that led to DesignOps’ principles. Some of these problems were the result of the expansion process. As design teams were successful, they needed to design more for other teams. This organic growth within an organization creates the need for standards in design.

DesignOps solves problems before they occur

Much of the DesignOps world finds a mirror or an amalgam in DevOps. DevOps realized that with an increased number of applications and environments, it was impractical to have someone in the office at midnight manually copying files between servers. The old development world ran software from a disk on a server. The new version would install itself from the disk, and then someone would change the file’s name and replace the old one with the newer version. Invariably, there was a lot of opportunity for problems to occur. DesignOps takes a proactive approach to resolving those issues.

Utilizing User Experience

In the past, User Experience (UX) was often lumped together with look and feel. It’s much more than that, which is made clear by the successes and impact on driving scale. Twelve teams working on different problems in their own silos can’t be expected to produce anything but a continuity mess. DesignOps brings those teams together and centrally coordinates their efforts.

The common misconception about UX is that it’s merely asking people what they want. Instead, UX asks users to talk about their experiences and how they impacted them. When enough of these stories are shared, common elements and pain points become apparent. This process also shows the areas where the company may have been working on a solution to something the users don’t view as a problem. Ultimately, UX helps companies know where to focus their efforts to create better products and results.

Resources & People Mentioned

• Love Lost on Cloud 9 – Kindle edition by Brote, K.C.
• Love Lost on Cloud 9 by K.C. Brote, Paperback | Barnes & Noble®
• UXLS

Connect with Kirk Brote

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

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The post How DesignOps Improves User Experience with Kirk Brote, Ep #23 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.

In this episode of Tech Talent Today, I’m excited to be joined by Pat Rasile, Vice President of Strategy & the Project Management Office of The Church Pension Group. Pat oversees the group’s project managers and supports executive leadership with strategic planning, prioritization, and implementation of business and corporate initiatives. Listen as Pat shares his experience leading teams to be more strategic business partners.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• Organizational health [02:14]
• Mindsets drive behaviors [07:07]
• Advice for those running a PMO [12:37]
• Hiring for organizational health [16:38]
• Pat’s journey to project management [18:25]

What is organizational health?

Organizational health is a company’s ability to sustain performance over the long term. The Church Pension Group focuses on alignment, execution, and agility. Those three attributes are supported by 37 different practices, all laddering up to drive health and sustained performance. Organizational health is the foundation of becoming a high-performing organization. Part of that is ensuring that employees understand where the company is going, the plan to get there, and the employee’s contribution to executing that plan.

Pat’s team has partnered with HR to find the best organizational health solutions. Working together, they realized that approximately 50% of their employees participate in projects. If organizational health could be embedded into the execution of these projects, that would be another way to amplify health across the organization. When employees learn and apply healthier mindset behaviors, they can also apply them to their day-to-day operations.

Solving problems with a holistic approach

An organization wants employees to exercise a higher level of critical thinking, using facts to drive the questioning and analysis to solve problems. Human nature often leads people to go directly to the blame game, driven by emotions. That process diverts from the real issue at hand. Criticism thinking directs the spotlight onto a person and blames them. Rather than criticism thinking, it is better to focus on critical thinking by looking holistically for root causes and using the solution to drive better performance. Focusing on problems holistically has created a much healthier, productive environment for the Church Pension Group.

The healthier environment has helped with employee retention. When employees can connect to their work by being aligned with the corporate strategy and understanding how their work relates to that strategy, people are more likely to stay. People who are engaged with their work bring their whole selves to work day in and day out.

Organizational health and your team

Focusing on organizational health has changed how Pat hires for his team. While he does focus on the technical skill sets and the ability to problem solve, he equally looks for emotional intelligence. Pat wants people who can demonstrate and role model health day in and day out. He looks for people who not only embrace change but lead change, who can then have the ability to guide others to execute at a higher level of performance.

Pat’s greatest lesson so far is the value of discussing health at the onset of a project. The company is now making that discussion part of its standard practice. The company does a health assessment at the beginning of a project to identify those three to five key practices that would contribute. Another addition to the company’s practice is doing a midpoint health check. When health is ignored, it can become a detriment to performance and the project dynamics.

Resources & People Mentioned

• Beyond Performance: How Great Organizations Build Ultimate Competitive Advantage

Connect with Pat Rasile

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

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Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts

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The post How to Embed Organizational Health into your PMO with Pat Rasile, Ep #22 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.

In this episode of Tech Talent Today, I’m delighted to be joined by Curt Smith, a Senior Technology Executive with over 25 years of experience. Curt was the Chief Technology Officer at E-Trade for over 13 years, SVP Global Technology Operations at InterContinental Hotel Group, and SVP Global Chief Technology at Manulife. He currently runs his own partnership as a trusted and strategic advisor to firms specializing in infrastructure, internet, and cloud. Listen to learn more about his journey!

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• Trekking for Trevor [03:27]
• Career advice on the trail [13:50]
• The transition from Wall Street to E-Trade [15:57]
• Journey to C-level [20:29]
• The changing culture of working locations [30:07]
• The future of the tech hiring market [36:24]

Trekking for a purpose

Curt is from North Georgia and has visited the mountains in Georgia and North Carolina for years. Back in his E-Trade days, he and a group of friends would have weekend trips where they’d hike for a few days, and on the last night, they’d go to their base camp and play poker all night. All of that was on the Appalachian Trail, which caused Curt to become interested in the history and the idea of a six-month hike through the whole trail. But with his family responsibilities and a job, even if he had six months, there would be something else to utilize his time better.

Midway through the pandemic, Curt had the opportunity to retire from his corporate life. Suddenly, six months didn’t seem like such a long time. His family was settled and supportive of his adventure, so he started preparing mentally to go. The most challenging aspect of such an endeavor is the mental game. He needed to have a purpose.

Curt’s youngest son, Trevor, has special needs. The family has been involved with an organization in Georgia called Families of Children Under Stress (FOCUS). FOCUS helps thousands of families through challenging situations, and Curt has worked with them to help run a golf tournament and raise funds. To have community support, Curt told the organization that he was planning on doing the six-month hike. That’s when he came up with the idea of Trekking for Trevor. The trek would become a fundraiser for the organization that has meant so much to Curt’s family.

Career and passion

Along the trail, Curt found himself giving career advice to other trekkers in their 20s and 30s, though he tried to keep it light and not take away from the experience. One woman was a recent computer science graduate. Throughout their conversations, the woman mentioned not wanting to sit in an office all day. Curt’s advice was to find her passion and then match that passion to her skills as a computer scientist.

Curt’s career went through a couple of phases before he was able to match it to his passion. He decided early in his career that he didn’t want to be on the selling side of a business. After having worked in sales, he moved to an advertising agency. But in the late 80s and early 90s, there wasn’t much tech being used. Also, the tech budget would be the first cut if the company lost a customer. That’s when Curt landed at Lehman Brothers on Wall Street. Tech then became mission-critical to stay ahead in the business. Curt did well there for years when he decided to have a family and move from New York. He then had the opportunity to move to E-Trade, which he loved.

Curt’s journey to C-level

Most of Curt’s jobs were just above his skill level. While he had to scrabble, he wasn’t afraid to take risks. Many roles he had the opportunity to take were offered because the other person saw something in him. He found the offers confusing because he didn’t see those things and knew that the position he was offered wasn’t his specialty. When he started at E-Trade, his role was in operations. He quickly picked up engineering. Then slowly, architecture was layered on top of that. Then he learned quality assurance and data warehousing. Eventually, one of his coworkers asked his boss why Curt wasn’t the CTO.

Through that process, Curt didn’t aspire to be CTO, but he enjoyed everything he was doing. The opposite can be true as well. If people jump into industries they’re not passionate about, they will become dissatisfied with their work, no matter the title. The notion of having the title will feel good at first, but that wears off quickly. People need to figure out what makes them tick and makes work enjoyable. If the only reason to take a job is money, then it might be best to skip it and find a better match of career and passion.

Resources & People Mentioned

• Trekking for Trevor – FOCUS
• Focus-ga.org

Connect with Curt Smith

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

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Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts

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The post Career Lessons from the Appalachian Trail with Curt Smith, Ep #21 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.

In this episode of Tech Talent Today, I’m excited to be joined by Caroline Frith, the Chief Strategy Officer at cove, a commercial real estate technology company. Caroline joined cove with an impressive twenty-year background in CRE, investment banking, and technology and now leads product and partnership development. During her career, Caroline has spearheaded valuable technology partnerships, led enterprise product strategy, and delivered transformative results by consistently maintaining a strategic view of operational efficiencies and future revenue growth. Listen to learn from her experiences.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• Caroline’s background [02:57]
• What is cove? [04:07]
• Hybrid workplaces [06:33]
• Why work for a startup? [10:49]
• Having a sounding board [16:10]

Caroline’s career

Most of Caroline’s background has been in investment banking. She worked on the trading floor for several international investment banks, built financial models, and rolled out messaging platforms. After she had her daughter, she wanted a schedule that didn’t start at 6:45 am, so she pivoted into real estate. Her first role at Cushman & Wakefield was in the valuations and advisory team, helping build financial models to value real estate assets. During the pandemic, she joined the asset services team because they needed someone with a strong analytics background.

A few months ago, Caroline joined cove as Chief Strategy Officer. She looks for gaps in the market and how cove’s product can meet those needs. She spends a lot of her time building consensus and aligning everyone on what business the company is going after, what areas of investment it will make in product development, and which direction to take with partnerships.

Joining a startup isn’t for everyone. There’s no place to hide in a startup because everyone is within sight of each other. If someone doesn’t believe in what they’re selling, the value proposition, or what the company is telling people, that working situation will not work out well. So before someone joins a startup, they must ensure they genuinely like the product and the team. Before Caroline started at cove, she liked the product, the culture, and the team, and she believed she had unique experiences she could bring to the table. That skill set and her entrepreneurial spirit ultimately led to her success in the company.

What is cove?

Cove is a commercial real estate technology provider that began eight years ago in Washington, D.C. When the company started, it was running many co-working locations, and it still has some beautiful retail spaces where someone can use a desk for a day, a week, or a year. Cove built its own software to check people in and manage communications while running those facilities. The software was so good that people asked if they could purchase it separately.

After the pandemic, the need for questionnaire-style apps that could be used for check-ins and manage tenant communications skyrocketed. With many employees working remotely, businesses needed less space. This situation still holds true as workspaces continue to be remote or hybrid.

The hybrid workplace

Each company has different needs and policies for a hybrid workplace. At Cushman & Wakefield, consultants interviewed staff and found that happiness peaked around two or three days in the office. The staff also shared that they need flexibility with arrival and departure times. Culture has changed since the pandemic, and people expect a more family-friendly environment. They also want to ensure that their friends and people they work closely with will be there when they work on-site. People don’t want to show up to an empty office.

Cove helps build a sense of community by encouraging people to be more engaged again. The company does online programming like trivia contests, giveaways, and tenant spotlights, so people learn who their neighbors are. People get together for wine tasting, chocolate tasting, and cookie decorating events. Some buildings have even had a bring your dog to work day.

Forward-thinking property owners are obtaining the software to offer future tenants an opportunity to lease less space and for that space to be hybrid-ready. If a tenant can take over space and has the tools to map out their floor plans, reserve desks, and see who else is coming in, leasing activity is helped tremendously. Tenants don’t spend more than they need to, and leasing activity is high.

Resources & People Mentioned

• cove
• Cushman & Wakefield
• CREW Network

Connect with Caroline Frith

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

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Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts

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The post PropTech and Finding the Sweet Spot with Hybrid Work with Caroline Frith, Ep #20 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.

There are a variety of problems large companies face when it comes to managing their workforce. From finding the right people to fill the positions on their teams to retaining them, the challenges are real. My guest on this episode is Amy Lackey, A Human Resources Executive who has spent the last 27 years of her career at Accenture. In 1995, Amy answered an ad in the paper for a project financial analyst at Anderson Consulting and was hired. In 1998 the company became Accenture and she moved into a role in Human Resources. There, she made her primary focus HR related to Accenture’s Technology practice. She was there until September of this 2022, when she left to pursue her next adventure.

Amy’s role in helping Accenture find the right employees – through innovative and groundbreaking new initiatives – and her years of experience helping team members find and implement the right resources for their career needs, makes her the perfect person for me to talk with on this episode. If you listen, you’ll learn how Amy has helped companies with issues relating to diversity and inclusion, women in the workforce, hiring and retention, and more.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• Discovering a new source for experienced, needed employees [1:39]
• The Accent on Technology Women program Amy has spearheaded [11:20]
• Approaching the diversity issue in a fresh way (using data) [15:52]
• Mental health awareness and removing the taboos so we can move forward [19:10]
• HR as a safe and trusted advisor within the organization [22:08]
• How to navigate your career at a large company [26:30]

Tapping an unrecognized source of personnel for needed positions

While Amy served in her role at Accenture, the team there was having trouble finding qualified people to fill the roles they had at the time. Her team developed a program to address the issues with the help of a new company (at the time), iRelaunch. The program was focused on finding people who had been out of the workforce for a time but who were qualified and ready to re-engage their careers. After identifying individuals that looked promising, they hired them as temporary workers, led them through a 12-week on the job experience program, and completed the track with a job offer, which was made to all nine of the original participants. 60% of them are still with the company today.

Diversity decisions through better data

When addressing the need for greater diversity in the workplace, many companies make the mistake of not being clear about the problem they are trying to solve. Amy learned to use data to discover the real issues and then address them. Metrics can help determine if there is a discrepancy in the way that diverse individuals are being treated compared to other employees. This information in turn, can be used to make changes that result in fair treatment of all employees.

Besides utilizing data as a primary tool for addressing inequities in the workplace, Amy is a strong proponent of companies taking the extra step to invest in the culture of their organization. This allows not only the leadership, but also the employees, to take a stand and voice their opinions on issues like diversity, and to be the catalysts for positive change from within the organization.

Retention and job satisfaction can be facilitated through better HR practices

In large organizations, employees can easily feel lost. They need a way to understand the company’s culture and procedures, and to learn how to chart their career path in the company. Amy refers to this as the effort to “make big, small,” and says it’s a matter of everyone, from the top down, being held accountable for their stewardship and their building of relationships within the company. Once established, those relationships need to be nurtured and maintained in order to truly make a positive impact on the company, long-term. It’s key to both hiring the right people in the first place, and retention of employees.

The HR department plays a vital role in this “make big, small” approach. As trusted advisors, the HR team should know how to connect the right resources to the team’s needs. The result of a company empowering the HR team with the right education and training is a workforce that feels safe, seen, connected, and courageous.

Resources & People Mentioned

• Jodi’s blog post about “gaps in the resume”
• iRelaunch
• Accenture’s focus on women in technology

Connect with Amy Lackey

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/ 
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

Subscribe to Tech Talent Today on
Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts

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The post How Employees Can Make a Big Company Small and Advance Their Career, with Amy Lackey, Ep #19 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.

In this episode of Tech Talent Today, I’m delighted to be joined by Rob Diamond, VP of Security Architecture at Two Sigma. Before Two Sigma, Rob served as Chief Architect at SafeNet Assured Technologies through various incarnations of the company. He was the creator and lead product designer of the MDeX System, which was used extensively to protect the most sensitive and highly classified data of the U.S. government and other entities. Listen to learn how to be successful in the constantly evolving world of cybersecurity.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• What is Two Sigma? [02:40]
• Two Sigma’s hiring process [08:33]
• Advice to those new in cybersecurity [14:29]
• Rob’s journey to cybersecurity [15:43]
• Similarities between hedge funds and government security [20:12]

The interconnection of finance and technology

People who want to be top-tier security professionals need to understand the technology they’re securing thoroughly. Even companies that do nothing but security consulting have customers in other industries, so becoming familiar with other businesses will help them be successful. Rob suggests that people should become familiar with a few business concepts in the areas they’ll be concentrating on to understand their needs. The needs drive the technology, which drives the security aspect.

Two Sigma uses machine learning and data science to discover value in the world’s data. The company then uses that information to invest its clients’ funds and make money for them. This fascinating intersection of computer science, data science, and finance means that Two Sigma is primarily a technology company. Around half of the employees are engineers, and many of the rest are data scientists.

Two Sigma’s hiring process

The rigorous hiring process at Two Sigma starts right after an applicant applies. Usually, there are at least two phone screens. Typically someone from recruiting and the hiring manager will conduct the initial phone screen. Then the applicant will move to the day-long interview process. The morning session tends to focus on technical skills. Altogether, the day consists of around eight interviews. This process is highly selective and has good results.

Because Rob is responsible for the security team, he typically begins an interview with questions about security fundamentals like cryptography, PKI, and authentication authorization. He presents a simple service architecture of an imaginary business process, then discusses a scenario based on that process with the applicant. Rob looks for a strong computing background in the people working in security. Still, he primarily looks for a good understanding of networking, from the Ethernet level to the application level, and the security aspects that come with each of those levels.

In addition to experience, Rob looks for people who would be a cultural fit in the company. Most importantly, the individual has to have the ability to learn. One of the ways Rob tests learning is by finding a security subject the candidate may be less familiar with, teaching a little about that topic, and seeing how quickly the candidate picks up the concept and integrates it with their existing knowledge. There are constant changes and new information in Two Sigma’s business, so people must be willing to learn new things, absorb them, and apply them. If someone can’t do that, that person is not the right fit for the company.

The value of data

Both governments and financial institutions have extremely valuable information that would cause a massive loss if it were to be disclosed. In the intelligence community, disclosure of information leads to people dying. In the financial world, disclosing information leads to substantial financial losses for investors, such as university endowments and retirement funds. Either scenario is devastating to people.

Another similarity is the data’s value, which can incentivize insiders to make money by disclosing the information. People want this data, so the threat exists in both the government and the financial environments. Data models can be worth millions of dollars, so institutions must protect them. Neither of these environments operates in vacuums. The IC intelligence community and financial science companies must ingest vast amounts of data from all different sources.

Resources & People Mentioned

• Two Sigma
• Gyms for the Mind: Two Sigma’s Hacker Labs
• Hacker Lab Class Building a Home VPN Server

Connect with Rob Diamond

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

Subscribe to Tech Talent Today on
Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts

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The post How to Attract, Hire, and Retain Top Cybersecurity Talent with Rob Diamond, Ep #18 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.

In this episode of Tech Talent Today, I’m delighted to be joined by Mark Marshalek. Mark has worked in the insurance and financial services industry for over 25 years. During his tenure, he has held various roles ranging from claim representative, internal audit, finance, strategy, and risk management. Currently, he’s the Head of Data Governance, part of the Chief Data Organization at Farmers. Mark has followed a non-traditional path to the data space and firmly believes that self-development, curiosity, and willingness to take risks are crucial keys to success. Listen to learn how he continues to apply these principles to himself and his team.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• The education aspect [01:43]
• Improving skills through hackathons [07:31]
• Benefits for the presenter [11:51]
• Attributes Mark looks for in a team member [17:04]
• The most important aspect of data governance [26:17]
• Mark’s journey to data [32:04]
• The future of office environments [41:15]

Data and analytics for everyone

Many companies are looking to increase the use of data within their organizations. One of the biggest challenges these organizations are facing is overcoming the education aspect. When people look at data and analytics, they often become overwhelmed. They don’t see themselves as “data people.” These mindsets and assumptions need to be broken down in light of the many available avenues to learn about data and analytics. People can tap into resources such as webinars, YouTube channels, and podcasts to learn that analytics is a skill they can acquire.

Hackathons are one of the mechanisms for improving data skills that have had a successful response. Hackathons encourage employees to work together to solve problems. Because these problems are often issues the company already needs to address, the company also benefits. The groups of employees tend to be a cross-section of individuals from various parts of the organization, so they have a cross-pollination of activities, ideas, and skill levels. Also, the employees can develop by asking questions of those individuals who know specific things about data and analytics.

The key to data engagement

Some people are understandably uncomfortable presenting in front of a larger audience. However, if they choose to proceed, they will gain a skill that will help them as they grow in their careers. Sometimes individuals downplay what they’ve created or what they’re doing. Encouraging coworkers to reach out to presenters is helpful for everyone. The presenter sees that sharing skills is helpful to others in a way that perhaps they were too close to see before. Learning this skill and its benefits in a safe environment is a great way to discover one’s individualistic style rather than waiting to be in a situation that doesn’t permit so much flexibility.

Creating interest in data and analytics isn’t necessarily done with training and technologies. Interest depends more on having the right people leading the way who are encouraging and willing to help. These people have the right energy level and technical knowledge to show and help people navigate. One of the essential factors in any sort of data and analytic journey is having the right group of individuals with the right energy, passion, and willingness to interact with those who are learning. The more enthusiastic people in an organization, the more other employees will be engaged.

Interviewing for curiosity’s sake

When Mark interviews for his team, he’s not necessarily looking for a candidate’s technical knowledge. While those things are important, he tries to gauge the individual’s energy level. The type of questions people ask and how they behave is usually a good indicator of how curious they are. When people are curious, they ask questions and have an inquisitive look about them. The mindset of curiosity, constantly looking and exploring, is one of the best skills an employee can have. Curious people are willing to be successful and willing to fail. They will constantly ask questions to find ways to improve things.

Mark likes to ask candidates what they’re working on from a developmental perspective. The answer can be personal or professional. Having examples of both can be helpful because Mark doesn’t want to hire someone solely focused on work. Personal development is an indication of curiosity. In the same line, Mark asks candidates about their greatest accomplishments and disappointments. Some people will jump into what they believe the interviewer wants to hear, but some will share personal experiences. Sharing those experiences shows Mark that a person is more balanced and grounded. Mark wants that type of person because he can trust them to do a great job and take care of the business.

Change management and communication are the foundation of any successful data governance program. #DataGovernance #Data
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Resources & People Mentioned

• Data Strategy Training 
• ML Ops Engineering 
• Bella’s Instagram Page

Connect with Mark Marshalek

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

Subscribe to Tech Talent Today on
Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts

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The post Using Curiosity to Increase Data Utilization with Mark Marshalek, Ep #17 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.

In this episode of Tech Talent Today, I’m delighted to be joined by Heather Fitzgerald. Heather is an SVP of Business Intelligence and CRM Strategy for a large retirement and financial services firm. With over 20 years in driving innovative global solutions and data-driven insights, she has deep expertise in business automation, data technology platforms, digital transformation, sales, marketing, and storytelling. Listen as she shares her passion for providing holistic data, measurements, and insights to tie online and offline platforms for insight-driven storytelling.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• Bringing everything together [02:34]
• What is a data storyteller? [04:37]
• Connecting business and technology [08:42]
• Insights in resumes [12:41]
• Heather’s journey to data science [16:21]
• Retention of employees [18:27]

Data storytelling

Information and data surround us in our personal and professional lives, and sometimes the amount of information can be challenging to sift through. Automation, technology, and innovation can extrapolate data, but more must be done. The final step is synthesizing data to translate and understand what those numbers actually mean. Combining data with a narrative and visualization will influence the decision makers’ minds. That is data storytelling.

Data storytelling requires someone who can take an organization’s information, understand it, and communicate it with actionable recommendations. The individual needs to understand the technology, innovation, where the data comes from, and if the data is accurate. To translate that information and bring it to life for the organization, that person must also understand its business side.

Starting the last mile

The data space has been hot for over a decade. However, many companies have missed considering data storytelling, much less hired for it. They tend to keep their business intelligence and analytics people on the tech side of the organization. While that’s where the majority of resources should be, understanding the business side of things is also imperative for context, to be able to ask the right questions, and to be able to structure data in the best way for the business.

The business and technology teams must have a natural synergy and connection, which could look like cross-functional meetings or cross-functional education and training. The Agile process allows for that type of collaboration. When product owners understand the business side, they can help and guide everybody on the technical end in developing the best business-centric products possible.

Finding a data storyteller

Data-related careers aren’t limited to people with technical education or a data science degree. When Heather graduated college as a political economy major, she had no idea she would end up in data analytics. As a result of her degree, she gained exposure to the economic side, giving her an immersion into numbers and stats. One of the requirements within the program was to have an internship, which she had at a company that was creating a brand new analytics function using first and second-party data. Since then, every role she’s had within an organization has been data-centric or analytics-centric.

Curiosity is the most important characteristic of someone in a data storytelling role. If people aren’t naturally curious, then there’s no way they’ll be curious about the numbers, reports, or information in their roles. They need to want to ask questions and be unafraid to dig into the numbers.

Curiosity is the most important characteristic of someone in a data storytelling role. #Curiosity #DataStorytelling
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Resources & People Mentioned

• MSU RO: Academic Programs:Digital Storytelling

Connect with Heather Fitzgerald

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

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The post Achieving the Last Mile: How To Use Data Storytelling to Drive Decision-Making with Heather Fitzgerald, Ep #16 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.

In this episode of Tech Talent Today, I’m delighted to be joined by Joe Vellaiparambil, Chief Data & Analytics Officer at Equitable. Joe is responsible for creating, implementing, and maintaining the enterprise data strategy that enables Equitable to be a data-driven company. Most recognized for his outstanding ability to plan and build analytical capabilities that support business strategy, he has saved companies millions of dollars through developing strategies, eliminating unnecessary expenses, and consolidating disparate functions. Listen as Joe shares his extensive insight.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• Data-driven companies [02:24]
• AI and data [06:14]
• Talent needed in data [11:31]
• Joe’s beginning in data and IT [14:50]
• Relaxing outside of work [18:22]

The importance of data literacy

Every leader in an organization looks at the data ecosystem before making a decision. If a marketing executive understands the attribution, he can decide where the company needs to spend money and for which media. A sales executive with data can know precisely how profitable sales were. When every executive and leader can easily have data-driven metrics, that’s when a company is data-driven.

The journey to becoming a data-driven company is involved. One first step is ensuring the company has a good data literacy program. Developing a curriculum pertinent to the organization, and using the organization’s data, is a large part of that. The data needs to be easily accessible. Waiting two weeks for a data request is unreasonable. People need to have readily available data and tools to analyze the data. Having that ability is a massive step towards data literacy.

Enabling citizen data scientists

Often the onus is placed on the executives in an organization to drive adoption, but that overlooks an opportunity. Recent graduates are well-versed with data and AI, and that’s a constituency that needs to be developed. The data and IT teams cannot attend all meetings. The citizen data scientists step in during those times.

When a company hires highly talented and educated people and shows them archaic systems, these college grads’ enthusiasm is killed. Alternatively, if those people can translate what they’ve learned and channel their creativity into finding insights, they will thrive, and the company will benefit immensely.

Starting with data and AI

Some companies have chosen to build massive data warehouses. When finished, they realize that they missed several requirements or that what they made is now years behind the organization’s needs. Other organizations bring data fit for purpose, building point to point. Later they understand that concept is only as scalable as the number of resources they have. Data mesh and data fabric provide a middle ground between those two ideas. They harmonize some of the data needed from an enterprise perspective into enterprise assets. Then they build data products for easier consumption.

Eighty percent of AI is data. Much of the remainder is modeling the exploratory data analysis and finding suitable models. That aspect is also vital in getting good data scientists who can build models and understand behavior and propensity. Then the IT organization needs to have the skill to implement and make incremental changes based on what the data programs are showing. Making this change is a phased approach that can’t wait three to four years. It has to start now, and the ROI needs to be proven within the first three to six months.

When every executive and leader can easily have data-driven metrics, that’s when a company is data-driven. #Leader #DataLiteracy
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Resources & People Mentioned

• CDAO Fall

Connect with Joe Vellaiparambil

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

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The post How to Actually Grow into a Data-Driven Culture with Joe Vellaiparambil, Ep #15 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.

In this episode of Tech Talent Today, I’m delighted to be joined by David Zweier, Vice President of the Enterprise Program Management Office at Selective Insurance. David has over 20 years of experience in engineering and management, delivering business value across several industries such as defense, financial services, consulting, publishing, and insurance. I invited David to the podcast because of an intriguing post he made about the common misperception that project management will become obsolete. Listen to learn more!

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

• Changes in business frameworks [03:39]
• Effective risk management governance [07:24]
• Interviewing for soft skills [09:30]
• Rebecca’s Homestead [11:34]
• Employee retention through relationships [14:42]
• David’s career journey [21:03]
• Diversity and inclusion at Selective [24:19]

What is Selective Insurance?

Selective Insurance is a 96-year-old property and casualty insurance company based in northwest New Jersey. Selective’s distribution is exclusively through an elite group of independent agents who provide tailored coverage. The supportive culture at Selective has kept David with the company for many years. Employees are encouraged to be authentic and true to themselves, so they feel valued and develop meaningful relationships.

One great benefit Selective Insurance provides for its employees is that each year, every employee has one volunteer day they can use that doesn’t count towards their paid time off. The PMO team coordinates and spends a whole day working with the local non-profit organization Rebecca’s Homestead, which provides resources for differently abled adults. Supporting volunteer work is just one way Selective is generous to non-profit donations and contributions to local communities.

Interviewing effectively

When searching for a project manager, a candidate’s soft skills are just as important as understanding the science, processes, and procedures of project management. Selective Insurance looks for people who are more entrepreneurial in spirit and bring different types of competencies forward to succeed. Strong business acumen and a focus on the customer are as important as deep technical project management knowledge.

Interviewing for soft skills isn’t easy. In interviews, David asks about previous work or volunteer experience unrelated to project management to encourage candidates to open up. This process provides insight into what they are passionate about and how they think and communicate. Early in his career, David asked this question of a candidate. This candidate shared his experience as a young employee in a video game store, where he became the top salesperson, despite being so young. He shared his tactics and how he established relationships with the customers as they came in. That sort of storytelling and approach to people is an indication of how the candidate is going to work long-term.

Project management of the future

Organizations are moving from projects to products, changing their methodologies from waterfall to agile. There’s no specific role for the Project Manager in these new frameworks. Some assume that project management is no longer required for success or to achieve that business agility everyone is looking for in the business age. However, the opposite is true. The PMO value proposition is changing with the move to digital, and project managers can play an even more strategic role than they do today.

Traditionally, project management’s role was managing and developing detailed project plans and understanding cost, schedule, and quality. While these are still significant aspects, project managers can now help drive efforts such as effective governance, benefits realization management, risk management, developing capability-driven roadmaps, and being an investment store for the organization. These capabilities with the evolving value proposition are ways the PM can play a much more strategic role in the organization than traditional project management.

Having PMs understand the business well is the most important part of being successful in terms of managing benefit realization. #Business #Success
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Resources & People Mentioned

• Rebecca’s Homestead
• Selective Insurance
• The strategic future role of PMO
• PMI

Connect with David Zweier

• On Linkedin

Connect With Jodi Kulek Mayer

• https://clearmonttech.com/about/meet-the-team/
• Follow Jodi on LinkedIn

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Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts

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PODCAST FAST TRACK
https://www.podcastfasttrack.com

The post Is the PMO Becoming Obsolete? with David Zweier, Ep #14 appeared first on Clearmont Technologies.