Top Nashville Execs Navigate AI and Data Fusion at CDO Magazine Dinner

  • July 31, 2024
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Leading minds in data, analytics, and AI got together to explore the convergence of AI, data, and analytics and its impact on business at CDO Magazine’s inaugural Nashville Executive Boardroom Dinner on July 30.

The event’s highlight was a panel discussion on “Future-Proofing Business: The Convergence of AI, Data, and Analytics.” The conversations delved into critical questions facing data-driven organizations today, from the evolving roles of AI and analytics to the challenges of organizational structure and the future of AI integration.

The panel of experts were:

  • Jason Beyer, Bridgestone Americas Vice President, Data & Analytics

  • Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer

  • Olivia Kew-Fickus, Vanderbilt University Chief Data Officer

  • Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motors Chief Data & Analytics Officer

The discussion was moderated by Kevin Scannell, Lydonia Technologies Founder and CEO.

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Moderator Kevin Scannell, Lydonia Technologies Founder & CEO, with panel of experts — Jason Beyer, Bridgestone Americas VP, Data & Analytics; Olivia Kew-Fickus, Vanderbilt University Chief Data Officer; Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motors Chief Data & Analytics Officer, Americas; and Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer.
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CDO Magazine Founder & Publisher, Steve Wanamaker, welcomes guests and shares his vision for the community at the Nashville Executive Boardroom Dinner.
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Moderator Kevin Scannell, Lydonia Technologies Founder & CEO, leads panel experts Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motors Chief Data & Analytics Officer; Olivia Kew-Fickus, Vanderbilt University Chief Data Officer; Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer; and Jason Beyer, Bridgestone Americas Vice President, Data & Analytics, in a discussion on “Future-Proofing Business: The Convergence of AI, Data, and Analytics.”
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Expert Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motors Chief Data & Analytics Officer, connects with industry peers providing valuable insights at the CDO Magazine Nashville Executive Boardroom Dinner.
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Panelist Olivia Kew-Fickus, Vanderbilt University Chief Data Officer, engages peers with her insights and humor at the CDO Magazine Nashville Executive Boardroom Dinner.
Panelist Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer, shares his experience on "Future-Proofing Business: The Convergence of AI, Data, and Analytics."
Panelist Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer, shares his experience on “Future-Proofing Business: The Convergence of AI, Data, and Analytics.”
Panelist Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer, shares his experience on "Future-Proofing Business: The Convergence of AI, Data, and Analytics."
Speaker Jason Beyer, Bridgestone Americas Vice President, Data & Analytics, shares his views with his peers in the Nashville CDO Magazine community.
Founder & CEO, Kevin Scannell, describes how Lydonia Technologies helps channel the power of AI, automation and data to analyze, simplify and innovate.
Founder & CEO, Kevin Scannell, describes how Lydonia Technologies helps channel the power of AI, automation and data to analyze, simplify and innovate.

Sharing his experience, speaker Beyer, Chair of CDO Magazine’s Tennessee CDO Peer Group, says, “It was an honor to be with the CDO Peer Group in Nashville to celebrate one year together. It is a group of inspiring leaders that care about growing our community and learning from each other. The discussion reinforced the opportunity and importance of seizing this moment in the societal impact we can make with data, analytics, and AI.”

For speaker Biger, the event was an opportunity to convene as professionals, exchanging ideas and solutions to tackle challenges and seize opportunities. “Steve and CDO Magazine foster a culture of community enrichment, while Jason excels in leading the Nashville local community, facilitating valuable connections.”

Speaker Kew-Fickus points out that the dinner highlighted the “camaraderie among Nashville CDOs across many diverse industries. There is a shared enthusiasm about possibilities of the era we are in, and a shared pragmatism about the challenges we face. I was struck by how quickly use cases for AI are maturing, and I’m especially interested in how AI can help us tackle common data management challenges.”

It was “exciting” for speaker Thakur to meet so many data leaders in the room from a variety of industries. “The thoughts shared in the room were educational but also validated some of the approaches and struggles of a CDO. Great network and look forward to more such events!”

Karima Zahrir, Louisiana-Pacific Corporation; Laine Hiera, Bridgestone; Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings; Vinny Larocca, Lydonia Technologies; Andrei Dumitrescu, Tenncare; Chris Hutchins, Lifepoint Health; Shruthi Sharma, Philips; Elise Cambournac, Greater Nashville Technology Council.
Karima Zahrir, Louisiana-Pacific Corporation; Laine Hiera, Bridgestone; Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings; Vinny Larocca, Lydonia Technologies; Andrei Dumitrescu, Tenncare; Chris Hutchins, Lifepoint Health; Shruthi Sharma, Philips; Elise Cambournac, Greater Nashville Technology Council.
John Irvin, Deloitte; Steve Wanamaker, CDO Magazine; Michael Johns, Lydonia Technologies; J.R Allen, HCA Healthcare; Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motor Corporation.
John Irvin, Deloitte; Steve Wanamaker, CDO Magazine; Michael Johns, Lydonia Technologies; J.R Allen, HCA Healthcare; Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motor Corporation.
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Olivia Kew-Fickus, Vanderbilt University; Ashutosh Singhal, Meharry Medical College; Kevin Scannell, Lydonia Technologies; Jonathan Tate, Cat Financial; Stephen Espy, Tennessee Department of Health.
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Camille Prado, CDO Magazine; Jason Duke, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Jason Beyer, Bridgestone Americas; Warren Greenburg, Lydonia Technologies; Joseph Melvin, Nissan Motor Corporation.
Founder & Publisher, Steve Wanamaker, thanks guests for joining the inaugural CDO Magazine Nashville Executive Boardroom Dinner.
Founder & Publisher, Steve Wanamaker, thanks guests for joining the inaugural CDO Magazine Nashville Executive Boardroom Dinner.

Johnathan Tate, Cat Financial Data & Analytics, BIDS Leader, agrees. He says, “It’s exciting to see that the top leaders of data and AI in the Nashville market are thinking about the bleeding edges of AI capability and how it brings value to our enterprises.”

Jason Duke, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Chief Data Officer, finds the CDO Magazine Executive Boardroom Dinners a “treasure trove of information with hidden nuggets of knowledge and first-class networking opportunities.”

Sharing a takeaway from the panel discussion, Duke says, “Generative AI coupled with the power of data that we all celebrate can truly revolutionize how we value quality data and base our decisions on quality data from the lowest to the highest points in our enterprises. The family of data professionals that CDO Magazine has created gives all of us a voice and empowers us to improve the world of data as a unit of cohesive professionals tackling complex issues together as a team.”

A vital takeaway for Chris Hutchins, Lifepoint Health SVP, Chief Data & Analytics Officer, is the reminder that, “as CDOs, explainability of new solutions is a common challenge for AI and analytics adoption, and we need to be actively engaged and/or driving the development and delivery of that messaging.” Hutchins thanks CDO Magazine for hosting “a fantastic event” and looks forward to the next one.

Founding leaders of the CDO Magazine CDO Peer Group in Nashville: Jason Duke, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Chief Data Officer; Chair Jason Beyer, Bridgestone Americas Vice President, Data & Analytics; Laine Hiera, Bridgestone Executive Director, Data Engineering & Insights; Joseph Melvin, Nissan Motors Data Officer; and Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer.
Founding leaders of the CDO Magazine CDO Peer Group in Nashville: Jason Duke, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Chief Data Officer; Chair Jason Beyer, Bridgestone Americas Vice President, Data & Analytics; Laine Hiera, Bridgestone Executive Director, Data Engineering & Insights; Joseph Melvin, Nissan Motors Data Officer; and Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer.
Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer; Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motor Corporation Chief Data & Analytics Officer, Americas.
Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer; Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motor Corporation Chief Data & Analytics Officer, Americas.
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Host Steve Wanamaker, CDO Magazine Founder & Publisher; and Tennessee CDO Forum Chair Jason Beyer, Bridgestone Americas Vice President, Data & Analytics.
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J.R. Allen, HCA Healthcare Vice President, Accelerated Technologies; Chris Hutchins, Lifepoint Health SVP, Chief Data & Analytics Officer.
Founder & Publisher, Steve Wanamaker, thanks guests for joining the inaugural CDO Magazine Nashville Executive Boardroom Dinner.
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Shruthi Sharma, Philips Data Delivery Team Leader – Analytics, Insights & Automation; Olivia Kew-Fickus, Vanderbilt University Chief Data Officer.
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Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motor Corporation Chief Data & Analytics Officer, Americas; Karima Zahrir, Louisiana-Pacific Corporation Director of Data and Analytics.
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Stephen Espy, Tennessee Department of Health Chief Data Officer – Director, Office of Informatics and Analytics; Ashutosh Singhal, Meharry Medical College Chief Data Officer and Associate Vice President.
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Jonathan Tate, Cat Financial Data & Analytics; John Irvin, Deloitte Chief Data Officer – Information Technology Services; and Andrei Dumitrescu, Tenncare Chief Data Officer and Deputy General Counsel.
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Andrei Dumitrescu, Tenncare Chief Data Officer and Deputy General Counsel; Stephen Espy, Tennessee Department of Health Chief Data Officer – Director, Office of Informatics and Analytics.
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Joseph Melvin, Nissan Motor Corporation Data Officer; Jason Duke, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Chief Data Officer.
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Camille Prado, CDO Magazine Global Editor; Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer.

“At CDO Magazine, we are committed to fostering meaningful conversations that drive innovation and growth in the data, analytics, and AI space. The insights shared at our first Nashville Executive Boardroom Dinner underscore the pivotal role that these technologies play in future-proofing businesses. We are proud to bring together such a distinguished group of leaders who are not just navigating this convergence but are at the forefront of shaping the future of our industry,” says Steve Wanamaker, CDO Magazine Founder and Publisher.

Kevin Scannell, Lydonia Technologies Founder & CEO, sums it up saying, “It was a great night having meaningful discussions around data, AI, automation, zero trust – the four pillars of any good transformation program. Thanks to Steve for hosting a wonderful evening.”

Special thanks to Lydonia Technologies for making the CDO Magazine Executive Boardroom Dinner such a resounding success.

Ido Biger, Olivia Kew-Fickus, Lalit Thakur, and Jason Duke are members of the CDO Magazine Global Editorial Board.

Executives attending the Nashville Executive Boardroom Dinner Event included:

J.R Allen, HCA Healthcare Vice President, Accelerated Technologies; Jason Beyer, Bridgestone Americas Vice President, Data & Analytics; Ido Biger, Delek US Holdings EVP, Chief Information and Data Officer; Elise Cambournac, Greater Nashville Technology Council President & CEO; Jason Duke, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Chief Data Officer; Andrei Dumitrescu, Tenncare Chief Data Officer & Deputy General Counsel; Stephen Espy, Tennessee Department of Health Chief Data Officer – Director, Office of Informatics & Analytics; Laine Hiera, Bridgestone Executive Director, Data Engineering & Insights; Chris Hutchins, Lifepoint Health SVP, Chief Data & Analytics Officer; John Irvin, Deloitte Chief Data Officer – Information Technology Services; Olivia Kew-Fickus, Vanderbilt University Chief Data Officer; Joseph Melvin, Nissan Motor Corporation Data Officer; Shruthi Sharma, Philips Data Delivery Team Leader – Analytics, Insights & Automation; Ashutosh Singhal, Meharry Medical College Chief Data Officer & Associate Vice President; Jonathan Tate, Cat Financial Data & Analytics, BIDS Leader; Lalit Thakur, Nissan Motor Corporation Chief Data & Analytics Officer, Americas; Karima Zahrir, Louisiana-Pacific Corporation Director, Data and Analytics; Warren Greenburg, Lydonia Technologies Regional Vice President, Sales; Michael Johns, Lydonia Technologies Sales Consultant; Vinny Larocca, Lydonia Technologies Sr. Director, Engineering; Kevin Scannell, Lydonia Technologies Founder & CEO; Steve Wanamaker, CDO Magazine Founder & Publisher; Camille Prado, CDO Magazine Global Editor.

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We hope to see you at Trillium Brewing on December 8 for craft beer, great food, and a lively RPA discussion! Trillium Brewing, 100 Royall Street, Canton, MA