Glen McCracken

Managing cloud costs effectively has become a significant challenge for organisations relying on public cloud services. ☁️ 💡With Vantage, your organisation can cultivate a robust cloud cost governance and efficiency culture, ensuring your cloud investments yield maximum value. 🎙️In this episode of the EM360Tech Podcast, Kevin Petrie, VP of research at BARC US, speaks to Ben Schaechter, CEO and co-founder of Vantage, to discuss:  👉FinOps 👉Vantage’s platform  👉Cloud costs and FinOps practices 🎧Listen now: https://lnkd.in/ehShKxEM #Data #Cloud #CloudCost #CloudCostManagement

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AI isn’t the end for data practitioners. Very much the opposite. Barry McCardel, the co-founder and CEO of Hex, is bullish on a new golden era of data teams, because, “There's an infinite demand for insight and an infinite demand for data work.” Barry joins Tristan Handy on the Analytics Engineering Podcast to discuss the hype cycle of data science, how AI is different, the experience of building AI products, and how AI will impact data practitioners. https://lnkd.in/d-hfmisr

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How Data and Analytics power a £12bn dollar business at the UK's oldest employee-owned company 🤯 Hear from Anna Aleshko at the latest Data Engineer Things event in London who headlined and gave us a great talk about how John Lewis Partnership leverage technologies like Snowflake and dbt Labs to provide insights to the business. Watch here 📽 https://lnkd.in/ewUn2Ybh Sign up to DET! Link in comments #dataengineering #johnlewis #startup #orchestration

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The path to a single source of truth isn’t just technical; it’s ethical. By cultivating virtue in data governance, we don’t just manage information better - we become better stewards of the truth itself. As organisations increasingly rely on data to drive/inform their decisions, the real challenge isn’t collecting more information - it’s fostering the right principles. Organisations often focus on technology and tools to manage their data, but at the heart of every successful data governance initiative lies something far less tangible: virtue. Data governance is not just a technical challenge; it’s a moral one. It asks us to balance competing priorities, overcome silos, and create a culture of trust - none of which can be achieved without virtue-driven leadership. Aristotle taught that virtues are habits of character cultivated through deliberate practice. In the realm of data, these virtues might include: - prudence: ensuring decisions are well-considered - justice: balancing the needs of different stakeholders - accountability: taking ownership of data integrity To build a foundation of truth, organisations must encourage collaboration across departments, prioritise clarity over convenience, and reward behaviours that uphold shared standards. Tools and policies alone cannot create alignment; it takes people embodying these virtues to transform fragmented data into unified insight. #Data #AristotleKnows

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There's a saying that I love from Sally Bigwood - "graphs are like jokes: if you have to explain them they have failed". Below is a great example of where the graph shows one thing - but with a more detailed explanation is found to display the complete opposite. #datavisualisationfail

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We really enjoyed listening to this recent ResearchLive podcast episode - Host Liam Kay-McClean and guests discussed whether there is a data quality crisis in the market research industry, how to fix weaknesses in data quality, and the possible repercussions of AI in market research. Listen here - https://buff.ly/3Z4qkws #marketresearch #ai #dataquality #data #marketresearchindustry

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Interview: The power of data storytelling in modern business Most people will know I love data visualisation and storytelling and most of you will be familiar to my disliking of the old pie chart. After finding myself in the Raconteur | B Corp™ Data Leaders 25 list, the lovely people over there and I had a nice chinwag on data viz, storytelling, leadership and data literacy. Article is in the comments... #DataLeaders #DataVisualisation #DataStorytelling

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The Databricks Data & AI world tour in London was brilliant! I still need to synthesise my thoughts and notes, but a key observation is that data is still king. From retail, to aviation, to energy, the big challenges across industry are, largely, centred around data quality, data governance, and siloed data. #Databricks #Data #AI

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This week's post looks at how poor data culture (behaviours, tools, talent, & processes), not only prevents organisations being more data-driven but can create a drag on productivity. https://lnkd.in/ekEtinkY

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🎙️Catch your favourite episodes of #UnlockingLeadership Season 6 Clare Carpenter PCC sits down with David Reed, Chief Knowledge Officer and Evangelist at DataIQ. They discuss how data management has evolved, the role of a CDO, and the importance of regularly upskilling one's leadership capabilities. Key takeaways include: 📣 #DataLiteracy has never been more crucial for organisations to empower their teams and drive innovation 📣 The role of the Chief Data Officer is essential in leveraging data for transformational impact 📣 The data paradox that exists between our professional and personal lives must be bridged 📣 The events of the past four years have highlighted the need for credible and objective data in decision-making to deliver better insights and opportunities 🎧 Listen to the full episode on your favourite podcast player for more insights and inspiration 👉 https://lnkd.in/es5qbwQp #UnlockingLeadership #Podcast #DataDriven #DataLeadership #DataStrategy #InsightsForCDOs

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🚀 Exciting #Partnership Announcement: Eden Smith and #XcelerateIQ Join Forces! In an era where companies are heavily investing in data infrastructure and AI, many face challenges such as underutilisation, poor adoption, and a critical skills gap. This leads to missed opportunities and unrealised return on investment. To address these pressing needs, Eden Smith is thrilled to announce our strategic partnership with XcelerateIQ. What This Partnership Brings This collaboration is more than just aligning resources; it’s about reshaping how organisations approach data and AI transformations. By merging Eden Smith’s extensive expertise in talent development with XcelerateIQ’s innovative focus on data culture and mindset, we’re setting a new standard for sustainable Data and AI enablement. Our Clients Can Expect to: Build robust talent strategies that attract and retain data and AI experts. Embed data-first thinking and foster a culture of continuous learning. Develop adaptive habits and behaviours that thrive amid technological evolution. Why XcelerateIQ? XcelerateIQ, led by the brilliant Rosanne Werner, is known for integrating cognitive psychology, organisational behaviour, and change management to elevate Data and AI initiatives. Rosanne’s remarkable leadership in data transformation at Coca-Cola and her innovative, science-based approach make XcelerateIQ a perfect match for #EdenSmith. A #PeopleFirst Approach to Transformation Our combined goal? To ensure that technology and human capability grow hand in hand. Eden Smith and XcelerateIQ are committed to empowering organisations with the right skills and culture to navigate and lead in the fast-paced digital world. 🔗 Join us as we redefine Data and AI transformation. Here's to driving forward-thinking and impactful change! https://lnkd.in/eESbXHp7 With Jez Clark Matt Smith Rosanne Werner Christa Swain Nicholas Deveney #DataTransformation #DigitalTransformation #DataCulture

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🦆 What makes a Great Data Leader? 🦆 Data Engineers London recently had the pleasure of hearing from Nik Walker, Head of Data Engineering at Co-op, who delivered an absolutely quack-tastic talk on the power of human-centric leadership for data teams. Nik certainly brought his learned own views, but not just that; he guided us through a thoughtful exploration of how empathy, trust, and open communication are the real engines driving successful teams. And yes, there were a few quacks along the way to keep things lively! 🦆😅 The best part? Nik’s insights aren’t just for those leading teams - there’s something valuable here for anyone working in data. Trust us, it’s worth a watch! Some of the highlights! 🎥 Human-Centric Leadership 🤝  People over technology. Understanding your team’s emotions and needs is key to tackling any challenge. Trust & Vulnerability 🚀  Effective leaders build trust by being open and showing vulnerability—this creates a space where teams feel empowered to innovate and take risks. Psychological Safety 💬  Safe spaces aren’t just buzzwords. They’re essential for fostering honest conversations, admitting mistakes, and driving innovation. Inclusivity 🌍  Valuing every voice on the team leads to richer ideas and solutions—diversity truly drives creativity. Continuous Learning 🧠  Never stop learning! Encouraging ongoing development keeps the team adaptable and engaged in a fast-changing field. And perhaps the most resonant takeaway? Servant Leadership 🏅 Prioritising the team’s needs above your own cultivates a loyal, motivated, and highly effective team. Check it out now! - https://lnkd.in/eN8d4rye Thanks to our sponsors Kyndryl for your support, and Zego for hosting us! And thanks from us to you all in the community! Make sure you join our community page for the next event! Anna Aleshko, Jamie Marney & Harry Duddridge #DataEngineering #Leadership #EmpathyInTech #Data #TeamCulture #ContinuousLearning #Humancentricleadership

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Data Storytelling Inspiration: A great example of Data Storytelling from the BBC last night. Great data stories have many facets, some of which include Tension, Impactful Reveals and Simplicity. Tension: To help showcase the scale of what was to come, just after the exit polls were announced, Jeremy Vine brought up a visual of all of the current seats pre election - a wall of Blue. The news coverage had already set the expectation of a big shift to Labour, but hadn’t yet truly visualised the scale. For about a minute he set up the context, teased, and kept the audience waiting for what was to come. Impactful Reveals: And then, boom! In less than a second, that blue was wiped out and replaced with a wall of red and orange. Just a simple table, but the scale of the visual and the contrast and speed of the change was incredibly impactful. Simplicity: Election coverage can be full of fancy graphics, swing-o-meters etc. I personally love a fancy visual that gets you thinking, but, at times, a simple conditionally formatted table can be just as effective. Good inspiration for your next story to find.

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Out with the old, in with the new.... To shake off the stigma attached with “Governance” and the negative perception that Data Governance adds complexity and layers of red tape, we have rebranded our function to Data Enablement, effective immediately. In an industry so data centric, Data Governance is still widely misunderstood and seen as bureaucratic, control driven, blocking innovation with red tape. However, Data Enablement provides a safe path to navigate the road ahead, enabling efficiency, innovation and accelerating scalable business growth. 🚀 #datagovernance #dataenablement

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This is what a real-world AI workload looks like 🌐 #theCUBE is live at #SASInnovate In this keynote analysis, John Furrier, David Vellante & Rob Strechay discuss SAS’ role in the emerging AI stack model. “You’ve got SasS for AI, and AI for SaaS infrastructure,” says John Furrier, spotlighting some key moments from SAS CTO Bryan Harris’ keynote. “He had real meat on the bone, real use case production,” Furrier recalls. “He called up production workloads and all those were based upon Amazon infrastructure. So again, back to who wins here? Amazon’s got the models but they’re running infrastructure on top of that. SAS has their intelligent decision engine next layer up. “That’s their core layer, and next is modules for real-time data. Knowledge bank and process models. Then the gen AI layer on top. Then the interface. This is a real world production workload running in the AI stack,” Furrier concludes. 📺 Tune in live, now! theCUBE.net #LiveNews

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Former US President Donald Trump’s recent appearance on Joe Rogan's podcast pulled in an astounding 26 million views on YouTube in just 24 hours – and this debate might just top it! Tune in as Michael Amadi and Giles Middleton face off in the ultimate Databricks vs. Microsoft Fabric showdown. Who do you think came out on top? Link in the comments below ⬇️ #databricksvsfabric #podcast #youtube #spotify

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Russ Rawlings, RVP, Enterprise, UK&I at Databricks, emphasises that embracing generative AI starts with an optimistic mindset. According to Russ, the technology could boost banking productivity by up to 30%. With 68% of industry leaders recognising the importance of platforms that support emerging technologies, it’s clear that generative AI is reshaping the future of finance. Read on for more: https://lnkd.in/eQcyHZCd #FinanceInnovation #GenerativeAI #DataDriven #BankingTransformation

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