Work by Victoria's Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions to remove flawed logic, bias and other manual processes from the job application process to promote inclusivity has earned Brad Petry, executive director – technology and insights the number one spot in the country's premier analytics rankings.
Petry and his team employed data analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to overcome biases to deliver more efficient employment services matching of applicants to vacancies – and positive feedback from both applicants, partners and employers, according to IAPA managing director, Annette Slunjski.
“While we recognise 25 analytics leaders tonight, they can only achieve excellence and deliver insights that improve the organisation with the full support of the c-suite. And that can be problematic,” said Slunjski.
“There are too many reports of senior ranks in Australian organisations only paying lip service to data-driven strategies under funding data and analytics, restricting resources and ignoring identified data quality issues. That makes it hard for an analytics leader or chief data officer to shine – and impossible for AI aspirations to deliver anything of substance," she said.
“We must get better at bringing the c-suite on the data-driven journey. That’s on us as the analytics industry to better engage, educate and build understanding with business and c-suite executives,” stated Slunjski.
Australia’s only analytics association, formally recognised 25 analytics leaders in Australia last night.
IAPA, the Institute of Analytics Professionals of Australia is the peak body for data and analytics in Australia, incorporating data analytics, data science and analytics-driven insights for better business decisions. This is the fifth year of the Top 25 Analytics Leaders Program recognising excellence in analytics leadership.
The top ten analytics professionals recognised by IAPA include;
- Brad Petry - Executive Director, Technology and Insights, Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions, Victoria Government
- Lionel Kho - Vice President, Data Transformation, Merkle
- Janice Carey - former Head of Data Strategy and Operations, Bupa APAC
- Elisa Koch - Head of Data and Analytics, AFL
- Sandhya Iyer - Chief Data Officer (Acting), Latitude Financial Services
- Rachel Scott - Manager Marketing Science, Suncorp
- Andrew Woods - Strategic Analytics Manager, Sydney Water
- Kshira Saagar - Senior Director, International Data Science & Analytics, DoorDash
- Jonathan Shen - Head of Data & Analytics, Teachers Health
- Dhivian Govender - Chief Data, Analytics & Strategy officer, Recoveriescorp
According to Petry, “The past two years have provided a catalyst in government for greater data-driven decision making.” He described the culture at the department as one where data is central to decision-making.
A complete list of the IAPA Top 25 Analytics Leaders cohort for 2022 can be found at iapa.org.au
