February 1, 2021

Buffalo State Data Talk

Episode 7: Marketing analytics, making magic happen with mathematics, an interview with John O’Hara from the Walt Disney Company

 

Episode 7 features John O’Hara, a marketing Analytics & Insights Manager at The Walt Disney Company. John talks about how his background in applied mathematics (including a Master’s degree from the Professional Applied and Computational Mathematics program at Buffalo State College) launched his career as an analyst and lead to his current job at Disney. Tune in to hear about his advice for building your network, what it is like working for the Walt Disney Company and how he handles projects involving large data sets. 

0:00 Introduction

1:01 John’s position at Disney

3:56 Working in a data science team

5:15 Personal development 

6:33 Networking and LinkedIn

8:59 John’s favorite part of his job

10:04 Challenges of working in data science

11:28 John’s career journey

13:57 Potential careers for students with a math degree, like John

15:58 Skills needed to be a data scientist

18:43 Advice for new data scientists

21:33 Outro 

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January 1, 2021

Buffalo State Data Talk

Episode 6: Health insurance data, from analyst to data scientist, an interview with Christopher Bole from BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York

 

Episode 6 featured Christopher Bole, a data scientist for BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York. Chris talks about his career path starting as an analyst and moving to a data scientist. Listen to this episode to hear his advice for starting your career, the skills he thinks you need to be successful, and how his work has made improvements for his company and their clients.  

0:00 Introduction 

1:09 Chris’s job at BlueCross BlueShield  

1:47 Main job responsibilities 

4:11 Networking in data science 

6:02 Chris’s favorite part of his job 

7:41 Challenges of working in data science 

8:46 Chris’s career journey 

11:28 Skills needed to be a data scientist 

13:05 Software that Chris utilizes as a data scientist working in healthcare insurance 

15:37 Impact that Chris makes at BlueCross BlueShield 

16:42 Why Chris chooses to live and work in Buffalo NY 

17:28 Advice for new data scientists  

19:14 Outro 

 

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December 1, 2020

Buffalo State Data Talk

Episode 5: Sports technology, providing usable data, an interview with Katherine Aiken from the University at Buffalo division of Athletics technology

 

Episode 5 features Katherine Aiken, the Director of Technology Services and Performance Technology for University at Buffalo Athletics. Kathy talks about how she became involved in sports technology, the importance of providing data and technology that is the right fit, and finding a your niche.

0:00 Introduction 

1:08 Technology services in athletics 

2:12 What Kathy does 

5:44 Athletics technology team, their roles and background 

7:32 Kathy’s background 

10:20 Best part of working in sports technology 

11:19 Types of technology used in different sports 

15:22 Monitoring health 

16:21 Different areas in sports technology 

17:41 Analyzing the data 

21:34 How to get started in sports technology 

23:44 New technologies 

25:00 Why Kathy chooses to live and work in Buffalo NY 

25:38 Outro 

 

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November 1, 2020

Buffalo State Data Talk

Episode 4: Biomedical research, applying data science skills to the medical field, an interview with Bill Bauer from Hauptman Woodward Medical Research Institute

 

Episode 4 features Bill Bauer, the Education and Diversity Director at Hauptman Woodward Medical Research Institute located in Buffalo, NY. Bill talks about advice for networking and starting a data analysis career in the biomedical field.  

0:00 Introduction 

0:37 Hauptman Woodward Institute and BioXFEL Center 

3:24 What Bill does

4:16 Networking tips

5:49 How to find a mentor

7:02 Research done at the BioXFEL center

9:19 Team members who do the research

13:10 Skills needed to work in biomedical data science

15:56 Technology used in biomedical data science

17:19 Results of research from the BioXFEL

19:04 Why should you live and work in Buffalo

19:36 Biomedical industry in Buffalo

20:35 Advice to new data scientists

22:21 Why Bill recommends completing an internship

23:08 Outro 

 

Links shared during interview:

Alaina Levine Networking Seminar - Networking for Nerds: Create Your Dream Career-Alaina G. Levine-Keynote Speaker 

National Research mentoring network -https://nrmnet.net/#undergradPopup 

The Coder School - https://www.thecoderschool.com/locations/buffalo/ 

Hauptman Woodward Internships - https://hwi.buffalo.edu/education/ 

 

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October 1, 2020

Buffalo State Data Talk

Episode 3: Cybersecurity, threat hunting and other industry skills, an interview with Jeff Rathmann from Silo City IT

 

Episode 3 features Jeff Rathmann, the CEO of Silo City IT a cybersecurity and pen testing firm located in Buffalo, NY. Jeff talks about his job as a cyber security expert, skills needed to excel in the industry, and shares is favorite resources for becoming a better cyber security specialist. 

 

For more information about the conference Jeff talked about visit https://www.defcon.org/ and watch some of the panel discussions. To get started in cybersecurity Jeff suggests checking out https://www.wireshark.org/ which provides many tutorials and free training or https://github.com/ which has lots of free training.  

0:00 Introduction 

0:40 What is cybersecurity? 

1:31 What does a cybersecurity firm do? 

4:01 Working as the CEO of a cybersecurity firm 

7:33 Jeff’s favorite part of working in cybersecurity

10:00 Challenges of working internationally for the US military

12:24 Skills needed to work in cybersecurity

19:17 Technology used in cybersecurity

25:05 What to do if you are interested in starting a career in cybersecurity

27:22 Outro 

 

Learn more about Jeff’s Company here https://www.silocityit.com/. 

  

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September 1, 2020

Buffalo State Data Talk

Episode 2: Non-profit evaluation, a data career without a STEM background, an interview with Jessica Weitzel from VIA Evaluation, a woman owned business

 

Summary: Episode 2 features Jessica Weitzel, the president and Co-owner of VIA Evaluation an evaluation firm located in Buffalo, NY. Jessica talks about how her background in English helps her to better understand the implications of her data. She also gives advice for students starting in data science including tips for networking and starting a new job.

0:00 Introduction 

0:43 What is an evaluation firm and what do they do? 

3:39 Women owned business 

5:10 Role of a president/CEO 

10:12 Networking advice 

12:50 Best part of working at an evaluation firm 

13:40 How Jessica got where she is today 

20:02 The diversity of careers in data science 

21:46 Outro 

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Learn more about data science and stay up to date with the podcast

Visit the Data Science and Analytics Website

Visit our website to learn how you can start or grow your career in data science

August 1, 2020

Buffalo State Data Talk

Episode 1: Automation in manufacturing, how human interactions fit with data, an interview with Achintya Pillai from Panasonic/Tesla in Buffalo

 

Summary: Episode 1 features Achintya Pillai, a data scientist who worked for Panasonic at the Tesla Giga factor in Buffalo. Achintya talks about his experience working as a data scientist in manufacturing including how automation can reduce human error. We also learn about his journey to becoming a data scientist and his advice for those who want to follow the same path.

0:00 Introduction 

0:50 Day-to-day schedule of a manufacturing data scientist 

3:53 Achintya’s journey to become a data scientist 

5:01 Important skills data scientists should develop 

6:53 Example of a data scientist team, their roles, and the work that they do 

11:52 The most challenging part of being a data scientist 

14:45 Interesting data science challenges in manufacturing – manufacturing 4.0 

19:58 The future of data science 

21:22 The interdisciplinary nature of data science 

22:55 Advice for future data scientists 

24:39 Outro 

 

Connect with us on LinkedIn 

Learn more about data science and stay up to date with the podcast

Visit the Data Science and Analytics Website

Visit our website to learn how you can start or grow your career in data science

Check out what will be coming on August 1st when we launch the first episode of Buffalo State Data Talk.