Ready to boost your career in analytics?

Mark your calendars for the INFORMS Insights: Exploring Industry Career Paths and Experiences webinar series brought to you by Certified Analytics Professionals (CAP)!

Held on the third Thursday of every month at 1pm Eastern time, this series is tailored specifically for early career professionals looking to succeed in the rapidly evolving field of analytics.

Join top leaders in the industry as they share valuable insights and practical career advice on a wide range of topics, including interview and hiring strategies, personal branding, and emerging fields for analytics professionals. With a focus on best practices and real-world examples, these monthly webinars will provide you with actionable insights and tangible skills that you can immediately apply in your career.

Whether you're just starting out or looking to advance, the INFORMS Insights: Exploring Industry Career Paths and Experiences webinar series is the perfect resource for professional development and growth. Don't miss out on this amazing opportunity to learn from the best in the business! Register now to secure your spot and take your career to new heights.

Free for INFORMS members; $19 per webinar for nonmembers.

Dr. Jennifer Lewis Priestly has recently retired from Flock Specialty Finance where she held the position of Chief Data Officer. Previously, Dr. Priestley was the Associate Dean of the Graduate College at Kennesaw State University and served as the Director of the Institute for Analytics and Data Science. Her career also includes overseeing the development of the first PhD in Data Science (launched 2015), being the Statistician of The Year in 2012 (SAS Institute) and named “one of the top data scientists to watch” in 2016. She is an expert on what it takes to succeed as a data scientist, authoring dozens of articles on advanced analytics and co-authoring the book “Closing the Analytics Talent Gap: An Executive’s Guide to Working with Universities.” Dr. Priestly has been a featured speaker for many events addressing issues related to advanced analytics and the challenges and opportunities of "Big Data".

April 18, 2024

Four Practical Points for Aspiring Data Scientists

Jennifer Priestley | Chief Data Officer, Flock Specialty Finance

Learn more

Andrew Blake

Managing Director
Opening Bell Ventures

Success is NOT a straight line!

The importance of building your personal "Board of Advisors"
Identifying your strengths and building on them
Enjoying the journey and taking risks

BIO
Andrew has more than 25 years of experience leading digital transformation in the financial services, insurance, and consumer sectors. Prior to joining Opening Bell Ventures, Andrew led data transformation efforts for Ally Financial, including the establishment of Ally’s award-winning Data-To-Intelligence Program, focused on enabling data to be a competitive organizational asset. Prior to Ally, Andrew led digital transformation initiatives at LPL Financial, Wells Fargo, and OneBeacon Insurance Group, dramatically improving the customer experience by empowering stakeholders to leverage data insights more effectively.

Nirmit Chetwani

Manager, Data Science
Amazon

Finding success in
e-commerce

Cross-cutting data science and analytics concepts as applied to e-commerce industry (what you need to land a job in e-commerce/tech companies).
Pros and cons of working as an analytics professional in a startup and tech giants (helpful for shortlisting what roles could suit you).
Difference between identifying what your stakeholders want vs. what they need (in the context of science/analytics problems), which is critical to success in any role.

BIO
Nirmit is a scientist at Amazon with experience in analytics/data-science domain, both as a team leader and an individual contributor. He is passionate about applications of data science to the problems in e-commerce and likes working in a fast-paced environment. He is inspired by the work done at Code.org, and envisions an education system for the underprivileged in India that helps them rise beyond "making their ends meet."

Janine Kamath

Executive Director
Mayo Clinic International

Janine is the executive director at Mayo Clinic International. Over the last seven years, she served as chair of the Department of Management Engineering and Consulting, and is an assistant professor in Health Care Systems Engineering in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science. Prior to Mayo, Janine was a manager in two large pharmaceutical companies. At Mayo, she has advanced and led multiple strategic initiatives. Janine is engaged with various Mayo national and international leaders and governance committees. She has a passion for entrepreneurship, diverse talent growth and driving results in a dynamic environment through empowered high-performing teams.

Mechie Nkengla

CEO | Chief Data Strategist
Data Products LLC

ASK ME ANYTHING - Industry insights: Gain valuable knowledge about current trends, emerging technologies, and best practices in data and analytics. Career guidance: Receive advice on essential skills, job search strategies, networking, and professional development to enhance your career prospects. Real-world case studies: Learn from my successes and challenges.
BIO
Mechie is focused on helping organizations improve performance, effectively leverage their data assets, and understand the possibilities of emerging technologies including data science, machine learning, artificial intelligence, big data, and the Internet of Things. Aligning technology vision and strategy with business goals and objectives in creating holistic continuous solutions that drive continuous ROI.

Kermit Threatte

Kermit has experience in strategic supply chain network design and the creation and automation of supply chain and call center decision engines, including call-center scheduling, inventory balancing, and inventory placement. Kermit spent most of his career (16+ years) as a consultant focused on optimization, machine learning, and analytics. The majority of his consulting experience was working on various aspects of retail supply chains.

Kermit holds an SM in Operations Research from the MIT Operations Research Center and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Doug Trent

Senior Data Scientist
NASA

Doug is a senior data scientist in the Office of the CIO, leading intern teams to accelerate adoption of AI technologies in support of NASA’s digital transformation strategy. Projects include data mining, machine learning, computervision, information retrieval, natural language processing, robotic process automation, model-based systems engineering, knowledge analytics, IoT devices, and augmented/virtual reality.

I can't make the webinar at the scheduled time. Can I view the webinar at a later time?

Yes, we will be recording the webinar and will post the video recording and slides afterwards in the library of the Open Forum in INFORMS Connect. We'll send out an email to all registrants within 5 business days after the webinar with a link to the video and slides.

What day/time is the webinar?

The INFORMS Insights Webinars are held on the third Thursday of each month starting at 1pm EST. There will not be a webinar in December but will resume in January.

Can I get a copy of the slides being used in the webinar?

Yes, all of the INFORMS Insights webinars and their respective slides are stored in the library of the Open Forum in INFORMS Connect. We will also send out an email to all registrants with a link to the webinar video and slides once they're posted.

How do I log in to the webinar?

The zoom link will be sent to you in a confirmation email at least 24 hours before the start of the webinar. If you register within 24 hours of the start of the webinar then you will receive the zoom login information no later than 1 hour prior to the start of the webinar. On the day of the webinar, about 15 minutes before the webinar, you will be able to login to the webinar from the provided link. Audio for the webinar will be streamed via your computer speakers. Make sure that your computer speakers are on and test your system when you login to ensure you can hear the speaker. If you do not see an email from zoom in your inbox, please check your spam folder as it may have been filtered automatically as spam. If it is not there, please contact our customer service team (Aysha Saqib at ASaqib@informs.org) for assistance.

Do I need to mute myself on the webinar?

No - we'll take care of that for you. As an attendee, you are automatically muted.

I’d like to ask a question during the webinar. How can I do that?

Any content related questions you’d like to ask the speaker can be submitted through the Q&A feature during the webinar. Any technical issues or questions can be asked via the chat feature and an INFORMS Staff member will work to help troubleshoot.

I’d like to sign up for future webinars. How and when can I do that?

Registration for next month’s INFORMS Insights Webinars will be available after the current month’s webinar happens. You will sign up through the registration link on the INFORMS Insights website (this URL) and follow the registration process on the screen.

How do I submit this time for PDUs towards renewing my aCAP or CAP certification?

You can login - at https://app.prolydian.com/organizations/INFORMS - to your CAP/aCAP profile and submit your PDUs through the My Certifications Tab on the left.