The Most Influential Woman of Data

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Data of Representation

Editor’s Desk

Therearestorieshiddenindata.Itisamatterof

comingupwiththecorrectnarrativethatfitsthe dataandexplainstheresult.Eventhoughdata analyticsisfact-basedstorytelling,scientifichistoryhas witnessedthatscienceandfactsarenolesssusceptibleto biasesthanregularhistory.

Humansareabiasedspecies.Weoftenseeonlywhatwe wanttoseeandwillevenfinddatatobackupourviewof theworld.Wemightthinkthatdatadoesnotsufferfrom inherentbiaseslikepeople,butitisnotso.Inthewaysthat dataiscollected,thepatternswelookforinthatdata,and theexplanationsweoffer–thepresentedresultsareoften encodedwithprejudices.

Therefore,weneedmorediverseviewsonthetable representingdifferentlivedexperiences.Itistheincreasing numberofwomenandotherminoritiesinthefieldof STEMthathasstartedcorrectingmanyoftheprevalent biases;however,alotofworkremainstobedone.

"The key to Artificial Intelligence has always been the representation." -JeffHawkins.

Inanefforttobringdifferingpointsofviewtothetable,in theedition'TheMostInfluentialWomenofData,' Insights Success shinesthespotlightoninfluentialwomen ofthedataworld.Bydoingthis,wenotonlyamplifytheir voicesintheindustry,butwealsohopethattheyareableto inspiremorewomenandgirlstojointhefield.

Unfortunately,only20.4%ofdatascientistsarefemales, andtherestaremen.Withthisedition,wehopetomakean impact,howeversmallorlargeitmaybe.

HappyReading!

C O V E R S T O R Y

Rationale for Business Transformations

Thejourneyofaprosperousbusinesstraces anonlinearpathfromestablishingamarket presencetodrivinggrowthinthecompetitivemarket.Thepathiscertainlyarbitrary,butthe progressionissteady,oritissafetosaythatitis madesureofsobycompetentmindsbackingeach andeverydecision-makingprocess.

InnovativeleaderslikeToyosiOdukoyahavea strongtrackrecordofsuccessfullydeveloping, launching,andscalingbusinesstransformation functionsinvarioussectors.Toyosiisastrategy, innovation,anddigitaltransformationleaderwith 15+yearsofexperienceapplyinginsightsand analyticstoensureorganizationsharnesstheir competitiveadvantagetodrivegrowthandimpact. Currently,sheworksasaHeadofBusiness IntelligenceatMastercardFoundation

PrevailingAgainstOdds

ShebeganhercareerwithaTechstart-upwhere shelearnedmostofthehard-coretechnical BusinessIntelligence(BI)skills.Afteraboutayear ofworkingforthestartup,shetransitionedto Multilinks-Telkom,wheresheworkedasaBI specialistforafewyears.Afterthat,shebriefly workedforHeliosTowers.

I will keep reimagining how we work to deliver incremental value to the organization and enable the vision through data and analytics.

In2011,shebeganworkingforMTNNigeriaasaRevenue AssuranceAnalyst.ToyosimovedtoBusinessIntelligence asaBIanalystabout18monthsintothatrole,andthenshe becametheGeo-marketingManagerwithinthesameteam structure,whereshewasresponsiblefortheregional performance,regionalinsights,andenablingthesales, commercial,andmarketingteamstohaveadequatedata& insightsintermsoftheirperformancesandareasfor opportunities,etc.Toyosiwaslaterpromotedtotheroleof SeniorManager,BusinessIntelligenceandGeo-marketing.

AsSeniorManagerforBusinessIntelligenceandGeomarketing,Toyosioversawallregionalstrategicinsights anddatagovernance.ShealsoledtheteamthatimplementedMTN'sBigDataproject,whichincludedaboutten Advanced Analytics Use Cases todrivebusinessperformance,in-depthinsight,andimprovedcustomerexperience.

Soonafter,shewashiredastheDigitalTransformation DirectorforCoca-Cola(WestandCentralAfrica).Atthe time,ToyosiledtheteamthatimplementedtheBigData& AdvancedAnalyticsProject,Digital&Datastrategywhile collaboratingwithpartnerstodeliverincrementvolumeand valuethroughtargetedandpreciseofferings.

AsthecurrentHeadofBusinessIntelligenceatthe MastercardFoundation,shehasbeenresponsiblefor developingandimplementingtheBIandDatastrategy, ensuringthatithasthenecessarydatainsighttosupportthe commitmentandvisionoftheyoungpeopleitserves.

Butitwasn’talwayseasyforToyosi.Shehadtodefyall sortsofchallengestostandwheresheistoday.Sharingher experiences,Toyosisays, “When I first started my career, I faced a lot of gender discrimination because some recruiters thought a man would do a better job, and in other cases, some recruiters thought I wasn't the right fit because I was young and married.”

Shecontinues, “One instance was when I did not get the job I was interviewing for right after school - I was in the process of interviewing for the position of Telecoms Engineer After passing the tests and interviews, I reached the final stage when the hiring manager mentioned that if he had known I was a woman, he would not have allowed me to come this far because he assumed I wouldn't always be available to fulfill the job requirements to the best of my

ability. I had also been told in another interview that I was not a good fit because I was married.”

Toyosiwasdisappointedatthetime,buttodaysheisglad thatshedidnotallowhergendertobealimitingfactorin hercareerbecauseshebestbelievesitisn’t!

Asidefromgenderdiscrimination,anotherchallengeshe hadtotacklewasbalancingworkcommitmentswithgiving back-beingathoughtleader,supportingotherpeople,and beingouttheretomakeanimpact.However,withgoodand deliberateplanning,shemakessignificantimpactsby makingthemostofeachphaseofherlife.

MakingHeadwaywithCoherence

Basedonherlevelandrole,Toyosihasbeenableto significantlycontributetoorganizationsintermsofher impactonthedataanalyticsindustry.Inthelastthreeyears, shehasbeenabletobuilddataanalyticsteamsand strategiesfromthegroundupfororganizations,improving andenhancinginsightgenerationandpositioningdataasa strategicassetforbetterpositioningandimpact.

Inadditiontotheorganizationsforwhichshehasworked, Toyosihashadanimpactonseveralothersthatarenot directlyrelatedtoher Asaspeakerandthoughtleader,she speaksatbothinternationalandlocalconferences,particularlytechnologyconferences,demonstratingherknowledge andexperienceofhowdataandanalyticsshouldandcanbe usedtodriveavarietyofoutcomes.

Toyosishares, “I have also received a lot of feedback and reviews from people, individuals, and organizations who have attested to some of the insights they have heard; I have been able to share knowledge and best practices while also learning from some of these platforms.”

Toyosiisalsoarolemodelandmentortomanypeople.And shewillcontinuetoencouragepeopleindataanalyticsto concentrateonthecoreoftheirjobandpurpose,whichisto positiondataasastrategicasset.

GenderequalityissomethingToyosiisverypassionate about.Asaresult,shealsomentorsalotofwomen, particularlywomenofcolor,indataandanalytics,encouragingmanyofthemtoenterthefieldastheydesireandto learnhowtoexcelandnavigatethespace.

My objectives for the coming year are straightforward; the first is to keep up with data & analytics trends as I continue to participate in many communities: industry communities, data leadership communities, business leaders’ communities, etc.

Inaddition,ToyosiservesontheboardoftheWAAW Foundationandacoupleofothers,wheretheyworkto improveSTEMeducationforAfricanwomen.Theseare someofthewaysinwhichshehashelpedtoclosethe gendergapindataanalytics.Astrongmessagethatshetries toconveyateveryopportunityisthatdatashouldbeviewed asastrategicassettobeusedforgood.

“We will not allow data to be used for exploitation. We must respect data and people's personal information,” says Toyosi

ScalingTransformations

Workinginthebusinessintelligenceordataanalyticsspace allowedToyositogainearlyaccesstoawealthofinformationabouthowthedriversoforganizationalperformance interactandarelinked.Beingabletoseethebigpictureis whatToyosifindsthemostinspiringaboutherjob. Sheadds, “You can also help people make better decisions by providing insights. What inspires me the most is the ability and opportunity to enable key decisions that have an impact and value for any organization.”

Toyosiisavisionaryleader,andsheisveryparticularabout beingclearabouttheteam'sgoalandpurpose.Everyoneon herteammustunderstandtheteam'spurposeandstrategic priorities.Whyarewedoingwhatwedoing?andhowdoes itfitintothebiggerpicture?Thatisextremelyimportantto her.

Toyosiemphasizesthatoncethatisclear,onecanfocuson deliveringimpactandvalue.Thisalsoprovidesmore opportunitiesforadvancement,whichisanotherfundamentalofherleadershipphilosophy.Shebelievesthefoundationofallofthisisinclusivityandthateveryoneshould haveaseatatthetableandthatnooneshouldbeleftout.

Whenitcomestodiversityindataanalytics,Toyosi believesdemographicdiversityiscrucial.Forher,itis criticaltohavefairgenderrepresentation,awideagegroup, andagoodrace&ethnicitymixwheretheopportunity exists;andwhenitcomestodataanalytics,abalancedteam requirespeoplefromvariousgenerations.Thisisbecause theapproachesfordifferentagegroupsdifferintermsof problem-solving,analyticsskills,toolsadoption,andsoon. Toyosithinksthekeymessagehereisthateveryoneonthe

teamdoesn’thavetolookalikeorbealiketobeateam,but themostimportantthingistohaveanalignedteamvision andpurpose.

“When evaluating your team, consider what skills are required. Consider the various skills required and ensure that you have the appropriate mix of skills and expertise. A mix of Data Scientists, Data Engineers, Reports Developers/Visualizers, Data Governance Specialists, Database Administrators (DBAs), Data Communications Experts, Project Managers, Business Analysts, Data & Analytics Strategy Consultants, etc.,” explains Toyosi.

Toyosialsothinkstechnologyiscriticalbecauseitisakey enablerforeverything,whethertheyareprocesses,system services,productdelivery,operations,andsoon.Technologyhasthepotentialtoimproveeveryaspectofrunninga businessoranorganization,whilealsoincreasingefficiency.However,sheexclaimsthattechnologyshouldnot beattheforefrontoftheorganizationorbusiness.

Shesays, “Sometimes we put technology first, believing that technology by itself is the solution. The best approach to deploying technology is to first be clear about our organization’s purpose and vision, the processes, services, and products to achieve this purpose, as well as what we want to achieve in terms of efficiency. Once that is completed, technology can be used to enable and make it happen. So, while technology is a key enabler in driving efficiency, it cannot give birth to processes or cultures. However, it is a critical enabler in delivering on the processes, operations, and culture that we have defined for increased profitability and impact.”

PurveyingPerspectivefortheFuture

Toyosibelievestherewillbealotofbigshiftsandtrendsin thedataandanalyticsindustry.Startingwiththerising adoptionofMachineLearning(ML)andArtificial Intelligence(A/I).Accordingtoher,enterpriseswillwant betterdataforsmarteranddata-centricAI.Shesayswhenit comestodata-centricAI,itimpliesthattheywouldneed thecorrectdataandstrongerdatamanagementtechnology

Thismeansthatthetechnologyusedtohandledatawill evolveaswell.Datafabrics,whichlistento,learnfrom,and actonmetadata,areexpectedtogaintraction.Alltheabove

willalsoacceleratetheadoptionofDecisionIntelligence whichwillbeahugedevelopmentinthecomingyears,as sheseesit.

BelievingthatDataDemocratizationwillcontinuetogain momentum;Toyosisayswecanexpectittocontinueand acceleratesincethenecessityfordevelopingstaticdashboardswilldecrease.Followingthat,shesaysbusiness userswillwantmoreempowermentwhenitcomestodata, analytics&insights;therewillbemoredemandfordata andinsightdemocratization,datasharing,andsoon.Inall ofthese,DataGovernanceandDataPrivacywillbecome moreimportant.

Shealsoanticipatesthepossibilityofskillsandtalent shortagesasremoteandglobalopportunitiescompetefor data&analyticsTalents.

ButToyosiisalreadypreparedforthesaidchanges,by beingawareofsomeofthesetrends,andconstantly reflectingandreassessingthepossibleimplicationsand opportunitiesforherasapersonandfortheorganization forwhichsheworks.Sheconstantlychallengesherselfto seehowshecanleveragethestrengthsandvalueofsomeof theseemergingtechnologies.

So,intermsofpreparation,Toyosisaysthatonemust continuetoengagethoughtleaders,industryexperts, internalstakeholders,andeventheteam,andbegintolook atsomeoftheseopportunitiesandworkverycloselywith thetechnologyteamtoseewhatitmeansandhowonecan leveragethemtotheiradvantage.

Also,herobjectivesforthecomingyeararestraightforward.Shewishestofirstkeepupwithdata&analytics trendsasshecontinuestoparticipateinmanycommunities: industrycommunities,dataleadershipcommunities,

businessleaders’communities,etc.Itwillbeimportantfor hertocontinuouslyanalyzeandreevaluatewhatthetrends meanforherasanindividual,theorganizationsheworks for,herteam,andtheindustry

Shesays, “I will keep reimagining how we work to deliver incremental value to the organization and enable the vision through data and analytics. I will also maintain my commitment to mentoring the next generation of data and analytics leaders and offering accessibility wherever and whenever needed.”

Butbeingathoughtleaderwillalsoremainherfocusasshe continuestoshareherexperiencesandexpertiseonasmany platformsasshecanwithinfairlimits.Shefurtherstates thatherparticipationasaspeakerwillcontinue,aswillher learningfrompeersandindustryprofessionals. Butasofnow,Toyosi’sadvicetoallprospectiveleaders, particularlybusinessleadersanddataandanalyticsleaders, istobecaptivatedbythevisionofyourfirmwhilefocusing onunderstandingthekeyperformancedrivers.Shebelieves fewimpactfulinitiativesarebetterthanmanyinitiatives withlittleimpact.

Also,sheasksthemtomakesuretoshowinterestincritical businessdiscussions;listenandtrulyunderstandpeople's painpoints,whatthey'restrugglingwith;wheretheyneed supportandassistance;andidentifyhowyoucanproffer solutionstotheirpainpoints. Lastly,sheemphasizedthefactthatifoneneedshelp,one shouldaskforit.

Toyosiendswith, “Always learn to ask for assistance. Always ensure you have a sponsor and mentors both within and externally; be open to feedback. Stay connected with people and keep networking right.”

The Trucking Industry in the Century 21st

What is your initial reaction when you are driving along a four-lane highway, and there’s a tractor-trailer next to you? Do you see smokestacks, diesel engines, and a massive machine spewing fumes into the air? Are you afraid of sharing the road with these massive vehicles?

If so, you need to move your perception into the 21st century. No longer are the tractor-trailers of the past even similar to what’s coming off the assembly line today. The trucking industry has embraced technology faster than many industries, but it’s not just about efficiency; it’s also about safety.

Step into the cab of a semi-tractor, and you’ll be amazed at the number of gauges, switches, and knobs. What you don’t see is an oversized steering wheel and two shifting gears connected to the floor.

In fact, the interior cab of today’s truck resembles your car more than you realize. First, the truck has been designed to be more ergonomically correct for all body sizes, which means women are now more comfortable in the driving seat than in the past. Look at the way the dash slopes to accommodate the view out the passenger’s side. Check out the pedals that are adjustable to better accommodate husband and wife teams when one is much taller than the other

The creature comforts inside the cab include refrigerators, microwaves, more closet space, and often a porta-potty. Lighted cup holders and even 220 outlets in the sleeper berth make it more like home.

What you might not have realized is how clean today’s trucks operate. Due to EPA standards, many trucks actually leave the air cleaner than when it went into the engine. The addition of DEF, or diesel emission fluid, has created much cleaner exhaust.

The EPA Smart Way program also provides guidelines for fuel economy. From low rolling resistance tires to aerodynamic hood shields, trailer skirts, wheel covers, and “tails” on the back of the trailer, diesel fuel savings in the range of ten percent or more can be realized.

Today’s trucks are also safer than your grandfather’s rig. The opportunities are endless to provide technology to reduce driver error by relying on these devices. From personal safety to safety on the road, there are more opportunities to make our roads safer for all of us.

Lane departure warning equipment, anti-rollover devices, side guards, and speed monitors are all

becoming common additions to today’s trucks. Some carriers are now replacing mirrors with cameras, so the driver has a better view of the space around the 53foot trailer.

Personal safety is also a concern. Instead of experiencing worker’s comp claims from cranking dollies or pulling the hood open to inspect the engine, we now have devices that raise and lower the landing gear with the push of a button. There is hydraulics that opens the massive hood and even cameras the show whether your kingpin has been secured or not.

Add to all these technological advances the promise of autonomous trucks, and your tractor-trailer no longer looks like a mass of smoke and diesel fumes.

The technology removes much of the physical strength needed to operate a tractor-trailer in the past. This allows us to attract and keep more women as well as men who prefer a less physically demanding job. Even the burden of loading and unloading the cargo has been automated, and the responsibility has typically been transferred to the shipper and receiver instead of the driver.

The changes the industry is making will also help address the need for more drivers. The jobs are plentiful and offer a decent wage, but a shortage of qualified professional drivers continues. The advancements made in the area of technology not only make the trucks and the roads safer; it makes the job safer. Removing as much of the physical component also helps attract a wider range applicants.

The trucking industry has adopted advanced technology; not only to comply with government regulations but to reduce its footprint on our ecological resources as well as make the job much safer

The next time you see a tractor-trailer alongside of you on the highway, consider how technology has created a new era of load delivery. These are not your grandfather’s trucks today.