Dean Abbott
Chief Data Scientist
Abbott Analytics
Dean Abbott is President of Abbott Analytics and currently is the Bodily Bicentennial Professor in Analytics at UVA Darden School of Business. He is an internationally recognized thought leader and innovator in data science and predictive analytics with more than three decades of experience solving a wide range of private and public sector problems. Mr. Abbott is the author of Applied Predictive Analytics (Wiley, 2014) and coauthor of The IBM SPSS Modeler Cookbook (Packt Publishing, 2013).
Case Study: My 5 Pet Peeves in Predictive Analytics
Workshop: Advanced Methods Hands-on: Predictive Modeling Techniques
Barb Addie
President
Baron Insurance Services
Barb holds a Bachelor of Mathematics (Honours, Co-op) degree from the University of Waterloo and is a Fellow of both the Canadian Institute of Actuaries and the Casualty Actuarial Society.
Expert Panel: The Future of Predictive Analytics in Insurance
Richard Boire
President
Boire Analytics
Richard Boire's experience in predictive analytics and data science dates back to 1983, when he received an MBA from Concordia University in Finance and Statistics.
His initial experience at organizations such as Reader’s Digest and American Express allowed him to become a pioneer in the application of predictive modelling technology for all database and CRM type marketing programs. This extended to the introduction of models which targeted the acquisition of new customers based on return on investment.
With this experience, Richard formed his own consulting company back in 1994 which is now called the Boire Filler Group, a Canadian leader in offering analytical and database services to companies seeking solutions to their existing predictive analytics or database marketing challenges.
Richard is a recognized authority on predictive analytics and is among a very few, select top five experts in this field in Canada, with expertise and knowledge that is difficult, if not impossible to replicate in Canada. This expertise has evolved into international speaking assignments and workshop seminars in the U.S., England, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia.
Within Canada, he gives seminars on segmentation and predictive analytics for such organizations as Canadian Marketing Association (CMA), Direct Marketing News, Direct Marketing Association Toronto, Association for Advanced Relationship Marketing (AARM) and Predictive Analytics World (PAW). His written articles have appeared in numerous Canadian publications such as Direct Marketing News, Strategy Magazine, and Marketing Magazine. He has taught applied statistics, data mining and database marketing at a variety of institutions across Canada which include University of Toronto, George Brown College, Seneca College, and currently Centennial College. Richard was Chair at the CMA's Customer Insight and Analytics Committee and sat on the CMA's Board of Directors from 2009-2012. He has chaired numerous full day conferences on behalf of the CMA (the 2000 Database and Technology Seminar as well as the 2002 Database and Technology Seminar and the first-ever Customer Profitability Conference in 2005. He has most recently chaired the Predictive Analytics World conferences in both 2013 and 2014 which were held in Toronto.
He has co-authored white papers on the following topics: "Best Practices in Data Mining" as well as "Customer Profitability: The State of Evolution among Canadian Companies." In Oct. of 2014, his new book on "Data Mining for Managers-How to use Data (Big and Small) to Solve Business Problems" was published by Palgrave Macmillian. In March of 2016, Boire Filler Group was acquired by Environics Analytics where his current role is senior vice-president of innovation.
Keynote: The Data Scientist and Value Architect: The People Factor to Success in Predictive Analytics
J. Michael Boyle
Co-Founder
The Sports Analytics Institute
Case Study: Designing Effective Hockey Teams through Physical Diversity
Dragos Capan
Statistician
Workplace Safety and Insurance Board
Case Study: Discrete Time Logistic Hazards Models for Workplace Safety Insurance On-Benefit Duration Models
Carlos Coutinho
Vice President
Orion Travel Insurance
Carlos' insurance career began at Lombard Insurance in 1999 as director of Zenith Insurance Company's operations. Building a national home and auto operation with call centres in BC, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick, Carlos was promoted to Vice President and General Manager of Zenith in 2001. Previously with CIBC, Carlos was General Manger of collections.
Carlos joined CAA in 2005 as director of broker operations. In 2010, Carlos was tasked with setting up a new travel insurance Company, Orion Travel Insurance. The company was launched in May of 2012 and now writes business in Ontario, Alberta, and the Atlantic provinces.
The company is growing quickly and attributes its success largely to the use of predictive analytics and risk modeling.
Carlos is a graduate of York University in Toronto where he received a bachelor's degree majoring in Economics in 1984.
Expert Panel: The Future of Predictive Analytics in Insurance
Joel Cumming
Director, Advanced Analytics and Big Data Systems
BlackBerry
Case Study: Adopting Predictive Analytics to the Big Data World
Dr. John Elder, Ph.D.
Founder & Chair
Elder Research
John Elder chairs America’s most experienced Data Science consultancy. Founded in 1995, Elder Research has offices in Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, Washington DC, and London. Dr. Elder co-authored 3 award-winning books on analytics, was a discoverer of ensemble methods, chairs international conferences, and is a popular keynote speaker. John is occasionally an Adjunct Professor of Systems Engineering at the University of Virginia.
Keynote: The Peril of Vast Search (and How Target Shuffling Can Save
Science)
Workshop: The Best and the Worst of Predictive Analytics: Predictive Modeling Methods and Common Data Mining Mistakes
Larry Filler
Partner
Boire Filler Group
Larry has over 20 years experience in relationship and database marketing. He began his career at American Express where he developed and implemented marketing strategies for the company's insurance, credit card and merchant businesses. He also worked at the Loyalty Management Group where he advised retail clients on how to use the AIR MILES Reward Program to increase profits. Prior to starting BFG, Larry spent three years agency side at MacLaren McCann Relationship Marketing working with General Motors and its GM Card.
Over the years, Larry has worked across multiple industry sectors including Financial Services, Not-for-Profit, Telco, Packaged Goods, Automotive Gaming and Retail. Larry's focus is on transforming data from complex mining techniques into insights that can be leveraged to drive more effective CRM results. Larry is a hands-on partner who works closely with clients to develop their strategic data plans.
Larry is a frequent speaker, giving seminars and lectures at events organized by the Canadian Marketing Association (CMA), DM News, Association for the Advancement of Relationship Marketing (AARM), George Brown College, the University of Ontario Institute of Technology and Loyalty 360. Larry is a past member of the CMA's CRM Executive Council and he is currently a member of The Customer Strategy Network, a professional organization linking independent relationship and loyalty marketing practitioners from around the world.
Larry has a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of Wisconsin and an MBA in Marketing from York University.
Case Study: Integrating Analytics and Research for Improved Consumers Insights
Yuan Ming Guo
Director of Consumer Risk
Fifth Third Bank
Case Study: Loss Estimation Models in CCAR: Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review by FED
Tracey Jarosz
Senior Director Business Intelligence and Analytics
CIBC
Expert Panel: The Future of Predictive Analytics in Insurance
Tom Kern
Risk Modeling Manager
Paychex, Inc.
Tom Kern is a Risk Modeling Manager at Paychex, Inc. Under the Risk Management umbrella, Tom helps to coordinate and execute a wide range of projects centered on predictive modeling, optimizing processes in all departments from sales strategy to internal operations and mitigating risk throughout the company.
Tom joined Paychex in 2012. Prior to Paychex, Tom was a Predictive Modeling Analyst with a large digital marketing agency, servicing major clients in the financial services, insurance, and automotive industries. He holds a MA from Boston University in Applied Statistics, and a BA from Boston University in Applied Mathematics. Tom is a four-time PAW speaker.
Case Study: Shaping Sales Strategy with Predictive Analytics
Daymond Ling
Senior Director, Advanced Analytics
CIBC
* Marketing Propensity Models to drive sales revenue;
* In-depth Customer Insight of customer acquisition, lifecycle, lifestyle, and triggers to uncover new sales opportunities;
* Customer Segmentation to drive customer management strategy; Optimization to maximize Revenue and ROI across business processes.
Daymond has 30 years of experience in Data Mining and Analytics. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Honours Physics, and a Master of Science degree in Operations Research, both from University of British Columbia in Canada.
Expert Panel: The Future of Predictive Analytics in Insurance
Jamie McDougall
Vice President, Personal Insurance Solutions
Gore Mutual
Jamie began his work with Gore Mutual in 2000 as an operational process improvement consultant and completed numerous projects detailing and analyzing operational processes in claims, finance and underwriting. Following on the success of these projects, he was promoted to the role of Director, Claims Analysis and Planning in 2001 and then Vice President of Claims in 2004. Facilitating the development of claims strategies, he established innovative reporting and analysis databases, and tools for evaluating claims handling effectiveness and efficiencies. Jamie transitioned to Personal Insurance in 2007, as Vice President. During an executive transition period, Jamie also took on the responsibility of Gore Mutual's national commercial underwriting operation in 2011. He now dedicates his efforts to Personal Insurance and the numerous industry developments that are occurring , including exploration of predictive analytics and telematics. Jamie serves on various industry organizations including the iClarify Steering Committee for OPTA Information Intelligence.
Jamie holds his MBA degree from the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary. His prior work experience includes coaching executives across multiple industries, as a Management Consultant in process improvement, performance management and strategy. Outside of the office, one will usually find Jamie, a certified SCUBA instructor, underwater enjoying a dive or helping others discover this fascinating hobby.
Expert Panel: The Future of Predictive Analytics in Insurance
Shirin Mojarad
Data Scientist
McGraw Hill Education
Shirin was formerly a data mining consultant with a leading software company in predictive analytics. She received her Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and her M.Sc. in Communications and Signal Processing from Newcastle University U.K., where she specialized in predictive modeling and artificial neural networks.
Case Study: Survey Response Prediction and its Implications
Kevin Mongeon
Co-Founder
The Sports Analytics Institute
Case Study: Designing Effective Hockey Teams through Physical Diversity
Neal Oman
Director of Data Science
Medio
As Medio's Director of Data Science, Neal and his team work on constructing predictive models using machine-learning techniques and systematizing their use for personalizing mobile app content selection and recommendation.
Prior to joining Medio Neal was Vice President of Client Services and Engineering at Finsphere Corporation and he held various technical executive roles at Intelligent Results and Onyx Software Corporation.
Tom Peters
Partner, Deloitte
National Consumer Business Analytics Leader
The science behind analytics can be complicated. For Dr. Peters, "analytics" is about uncovering relationships within disparate sources of enterprise and market data. This data is used to classify, predict, forecast and simulate new business outcomes. Simply put, "We use technology, processing power and creative problem solving to examine issues from every possible angle - everything from driving increased revenue through pricing or customer acquisition and retention, reducing supply chain costs, improving workforce processes, or reducing the risk of fraudulent behaviour."
Before coming to Deloitte, Tom spent 20 years working in the customer and financial analytics domain specializing in marketing and research analytics to support marketing strategy development. Tom's experience advising clients on product development programs, new product pricing strategy, menu price optimization, and CRM campaign design and optimization have shaped his perspective on how valuable data analytics can be to organizations that have made it part of their business process and culture.
Tom is an experienced professional across a range of sectors such as financial services, telecommunications, travel, food services (QSR), retail, agriculture and agribusiness, automotive, power utilities and technology sectors. He received an MA and Ph.D. in Economics and Econometrics from University of Western Ontario in 1986.
Case Study: Cross-selling Retail Liquor Products: A Segmented Market Basket Approach
Roger Plourde
President
Intema Solutions
After having set up several companies in the communications and marketing fields, he transformed Intema, a family startup into a Canadian leader in digital marketing solutions.
Twenty years after pioneering in digital marketing, he is pioneering again by introducing predictive analytics to Email marketing with the Predictive Marketing Engine.
Case Study: Predictive Analytics to the Rescue of E-mail Marketing
Daniel Porter
Co-Founder
BlueLabs
Daniel Porter is the cofounder of BlueLabs, a Washington DC based analytics, data and technology company whose clients include political campaigns, nonprofits and corporations.
Prior to founding BlueLabs, Daniel was Director of Statistical Modeling for the 2012 Obama reelection campaign. His team developed individual level statistical models that were used throughout the campaign for fundraising, media buying and state strategy. These models served two primary purposes: to pinpoint which voters were most likely to take an action or hold a belief (i.e. support the President or turn out to vote) as well as to measure the influence a campaign contact had on an individual's likelihood to take such actions or change their beliefs. Combined, these measures helped the campaign optimize their targeting to maximize their return on investment.
Keynote: Pinpointing the Persuadables: Convincing the Right Customers and the Right Voters
Steven Ramirez
CEO
Beyond the Arc
Steven J. Ramirez is the chief executive officer of Berkeley, Calif.-based Beyond the Arc, Inc., a firm recognized as a leader in helping companies transform their customer experiences by leveraging advanced analytics.
In addition to developing and executing the vision for Beyond the Arc, Ramirez leads teams of data and strategy consultants committed to client success. They analyze customer and social media data, combined with text analysis, to drive customer growth, improve customer retention, understand service breaks and build stronger customer loyalty.
Prior to leading Beyond the Arc, Ramirez served as an executive with Time Warner, where he was responsible for creating and successfully implementing marketing and corporate development strategies.
Ramirez earned a bachelor's degree and master's in Business Administration from the University of California at Berkeley. He as also created and taught courses in business management for UC Berkeley and been a guest speaker at the university's Haas School of Business.
Pasha Roberts
Co-Founder and Chief Scientist
Talent Analytics, Corp.
Case Study: Data Science Approach to Reduce Call Center Attrition
Greta Roberts
Co-Founder & CEO
Talent Analytics, Corp.
In addition to being a contributing author to numerous predictive analytics books, she is regularly invited to comment in the media and speak at high end predictive analytics and business events around the world. Through recognition of her commitment and leadership, Greta was elected and continues to be Chair of Predictive Analytics World for Workforce. Additionally, she is a Faculty Member with the International Institute for Analytics (IIA) and an Analytics Certification Board Member of INFORMS.
Keynote: Using Predictive Analytics to Predict Employee Performance and Attrition in the Knowledge Economy
Gary Saarenvirta
Chief Executive Officer
makeplain
Gary is the former head of IBM Canada's analytics and data warehousing practices, and was also at the helm Loyalty Consulting Group, providing analytical services for one of the world's most successful coalition loyalty programs, the AIR MILES Reward Program. Prior to his leadership role at Loyalty Consulting Group, Gary built the company's first generation data warehouse and BI platform.
Gary holds both a BASc and MASc in aerospace engineering from the University of Toronto.
Expert Panel: Predictive Analytics in the Big Data World: Myths and Realities
James Smith
Lead Data Governance, Director, Data Assets
Canada Post
Jim Sulston
Manager, Analytics
North Waterloo Farmers Mutual Insurance Company
He has utilized a number of different Analytics techniques specific to the P&C industry.
Jim holds a Bachelor of Mathematics (Statistics) degree from the University of Waterloo, MBA from Wilfred Laurier University and has a CIP designation.
Expert Panel: The Future of Predictive Analytics in Insurance
Colin Tener
Managing Partner
CVM Marketing
Colin's clients have been drawn from a diverse range of traditional and non- traditional database marketing industries across North America, including: banking, wealth management, insurance, telecommunications, retail, pharmaceutical, catalogue, grocery, fund raising, shipping, transportation, office supplies, software, computer hardware and packaged goods. He is a regular speaker at North American conferences where he seeks to de-mystify statistical techniques and demonstrate the power of data-based marketing.
Case Study: Addressing the "Analyst/Marketer" Disconnect: 9 1/2 Steps to a More Successful Collaboration
Emma Warrillow
SVP, Research & Data Insights
Shift Paradigm
SVP, Research & Data Insights at Shift Paradigm and active member of the CMA Insights Council, Emma has over 25 years experience helping organizations with the strategic use of customer data to drive business results. Her work has spanned a variety of industries in B2C and B2B, including those who market to intermediaries (like brokers).She is a recognized expert in her field and is a highly sought-after speaker, judge, panelist, and frequent contributor to industry publications.
Expert Panel: Predictive Analytics in the Big Data World: What's New vs. What's Old
Christina Wolf
Chief Economist
The British Columbia Securities Commission
Case Study: Regulatory Oversight Using Predictive Risk Models