Matt leads the software research and advisory for the Analytics and Data expertise at ISG Software Research, covering software that improves the utilization of information across business and IT. His focus areas of coverage include analytics, data intelligence, data operations, data platforms, and streaming and events.

Matt’s specialization is in the operational and analytical use of data and the use of AI where enterprises can modernize their approaches to accelerate the value realization of technology investments in support of hybrid and multi-cloud architecture. Matt has been an industry analyst for more than a decade and has pioneered the coverage of emerging data platforms including NoSQL and NewSQL databases, data lakes, and cloud-based data processing. He is a graduate of Bournemouth University.

Paul is a Senior Data Architect, BI and Analytics Solutions Specialist with a focus on cloud architecture and the data management ecosystem. He has over fifteen years of experience designing and delivering data integration and BI solutions for a large number of national and international organizations. Paul currently lives and works in Switzerland, where he recently wrapped up his role as Head of Data Management Platforms with Roche Diagnostics and now consults with other enterprise data teams.

Start 2025 off with Guy's predictions for the year in data. An experienced CTO and VP, Guy is passionate about DataOps. He's spent 20+ years running software development organizations and now his focus is on bringing the principles and business value from DevOps and CI/CD to data. Co-founder of the truedataops.org movement. He's also a dad, technologist, (over) engineer, amateur inventor, skier, and mildly eccentric.

Kent interviews Chris Hastie, Data Practice Lead at InterWorks. Chris’s passion is not only to personally provide elegant and simple solutions to complex problems but also to provide others with the knowledge and tools to do this themselves.

He has been engineering data since 2014 and using Snowflake since 2018 to solve customer challenges and drive value, becoming a Data Superhero in 2019 following a series of blog posts and other community engagement.

He is also a SnowPro Subject Matter Expert and has been involved in most current SnowPro exams.

At InterWorks, he leads a practice of experienced data engineers and architects who share a love for helping customers unlock the value of their data.

In this episode, Kent interviews Inna Tokarev Sela, founder and CEO of illumex.ai, a company revolutionizing data potential with its Generative Semantic Fabric. Recognizing the complexities of unifying business data semantics—essential for GenAI readiness—illumex created a platform that simplifies semantic mapping and alignment. illumex is widely used by data-intensive enterprises for GenAI, Data Governance, and multi-cloud initiatives, ensuring swift and error-free data-driven decisions.

Inna's career reveals a consistent theme: bridging the gap between data investments and decision-making. She previously held roles as VP of AI at Sisense and Senior Director of Machine Learning at SAP. An inventor with multiple patents, she speaks frequently at top data and AI conferences. Inna holds an MSc in Information Systems focused on neural networks and completed the Stanford MBA executive program. She also leads the Women in Data Israel chapter.

In the season 3 opener, Kent welcomes Mike Ferguson, CEO Intelligent Business Strategies.

Kevin Bair, VP of Data Cloud Architecture at Snowflake, discusses his 35-year career journey from federal systems to IBM and then Snowflake, where he's spent the last decade. He and Kent explore how data architecture and operations have evolved with cloud computing and AI, emphasizing the continued relevance of the Seven Pillars of True DataOps (www.truedataops.org/7-pillars).

Kevin highlights the growing importance of metadata, data quality, and governed democratization in the age of AI, while stressing that proper data management fundamentals are more crucial than ever.

Data Warrior and host of the #TrueDataOps podcast talks to David Garrison, Snowflake Data Superhero and Principal Data Architect at National Grid.

Frank Bell, a Snowflake Data Superhero and Evangelist, talks about his journey from the Air Force to becoming a top Snowflake partner, sharing lessons from his extensive experience in data operations and his take on Snowflake’s transformative impact on the industry.

Frank and host Kent Graziano discuss:

And more!