Women in Analytics Conference

It’s a Wrap! It was an amazing experience to welcome ~600 attendees to the Women in Analytics Conference in Menlo Park last week, and to connect with everyone in person. Thanks to all attendees, and thanks to our amazing speakers: Thank you Ailbhe Menton, Nina Boyko, and Ella Hilal, PhD for your warm opening Thank you Taylor Buonocore-Guthrie for helping us connect and leverage the power of questions Thank you Ella Hilal, PhD, June Dershewitz, Mico Y. & Shailvi Wakhlu for your discussion of the past, present and future of Data and AI Thank you Elena Krasnoperova for your inspiring keynote  Thank you Katherine Yang for showing us how to build a data storytelling culture Thank you Jenn Capps Jennifer Capps for diving into the depth of data visualization with us Thank you Minal Khan for upleveling our communication to non-data audiences Thank you Yuanyuan Cui Yuanyuan Cui for showing us how to build our personal brand Thank you Mengying Li for your wisdom on switching between manager & IC Thank you Irina Bezgina for showings us how to manage a DE career in the GPT models era Thank you Anubhavi Gupta for your overview on how to win at personalisation with AI/ML Thank you Kasia Rachuta for your tips on overcoming the challenges and pitfalls of A/B tests Thank you Wendy Foster & Didi Huang for an inspiring conversation on career paths in data Thank you Elizabeth (Liz) Shepherd & Sharon Mammen for an inspiring fireside chat on data and life, your humor and wisdom Thank you Denise M. for closing out our conference Last but not least, we want to thank the amazing Women in Analytics Committee for all the countless hours that have gone into the organization and execution of the event. We hope to see you next year!

WiAC Spotlight: Anubhavi Gupta The 2023 Women in Analytics Conference is just 1 day away! Follow our LinkedIn page for inspiring stories from women in analytics and the latest conference news. Meet Anubhavi Gupta, Director Personalization Data Science at Nike! Tell us a little bit about yourself -   I grew up in India and moved to Atlanta, Georgia – my home for 12+ years. I am Director of Personalization Data Science at NIKE, supporting a team that helps personalize our direct consumer experiences (Commerce, Owned Marketing and Engagement). We work We work to create and deepen NIKE-Consumer relationships at Scale by merging science, technology, and algorithms. I have always been intrigued by numbers and did my Bachelors in Statistics & Masters in Operational Research . My career began with GE Consumer finance , where I worked on projects involving consumer segmentation, propensity models and fraud detection algorithms . With a “Consumer-first” mindset , I took a role with Dunnhumby to lead “Loyalty & Retention” for Kroger and learnt the art of pricing & promotion done right and as they say “perfect the science of shopping.  I continued my career journey with AT&T and was responsible for driving Marketing Touch Attribution(MTA) along with Market Mix Modeling ( MMM) – learnt the hard way that connecting the dots is the most important aspect of any DS initiative along with good storytelling. Prior to joining NIKE, I was with EPSILON ( Publicis Company) as Head of Automotive DS team – truly amazing to see how consumer perception of buying/selling/lease changed with autonomous vehicles coming into the market as well as pandemic changing their needs. What motivated your career in Analytics? Though I’ve been fortunate to work at great companies and have some awesome mentors to lead the way (thanks to them !!) , my motivation comes from the value analytics/data science drives at the end of the day. The way NIKE uses data to inform decisions to product creation , promoting sports for all and sustainability goals , makes me feel very proud and motivated in what I do.   What are you most looking forward to during this year’s conference? I’m looking forward to connecting with fellow female leads in the Analytics space and hearing from them – about their journey in space , challenges faced and learnings along the way. I am also excited to learn from an amazing lineup of speakers and technical talks.    What do you want participants to take away from this year’s conference? I would like participants to network and connect with each other , use this time to get out of day-to-day activities and think about their career journey , make some friends, and find some mentors along the way! #wiaconference #womeninanalyticsconference #womeninanalyticsconferencebymeta #WomenInData #WomeninTech #WomeninAI #WomeninSTEM

WiAC Spotlight: Kasia Rachuta   The 2023 Women in Analytics Conference is just 1 day away. Follow our LinkedIn page for inspiring stories from women in analytics and the latest conference news. Meet Kasia Rachuta, Data Science Tech Lead at Square! Tell us a little bit about yourself -  Hello! I'm Kasia, currently leading data science initiatives at Square in the realm of identity verification. My journey in data science sparked during several social impact internships, where I first discovered my passion for the field. With a Master’s in Theoretical Physics from UCL, I blend academic rigor with a deep commitment to practical, impactful solutions. I'm an advocate for increasing diversity in tech, especially for women and minorities. Off-duty, I indulge in baking, reading, and the thrill of scuba diving. What motivated your career in Analytics? I both analyzed large amounts of data for my masters project and I did some internships in social impact measurement. I didn’t know at the time that it was possible to do analytics as a full-time job! After graduating, I applied for an internship in San Francisco and moved here from London for 6 months. I discovered that I loved combining my STEM and research background with business problems and using data to help companies improve their product and grow. This resulted in me pursuing full-time data opportunities and working at Fivestars, Medium and for the past 5 years, Square. What are you most looking forward to during this year’s conference? I am really excited to meet fellow women in analytics. I’m working remotely and I miss having close contact with folks in the field or industry! I’m looking forward to being inspired and learning from other data leaders. #wiaconference #WomenInData #WomeninTech #WomeninAI #WomeninSTEM

We are thrilled to welcome you to the Women in Analytics Conference this Friday, 1st of December, at Meta's Menlo Park campus! We hope you are as excited as we are to watch the keynote by Elena Krasnoperova (Vice President of Monetisation Analytics at Meta), listen to a fireside chat with Elizabeth (Liz) Shepherd, (General Manager Data Science and Analytics at Microsoft), and hear from many more inspiring women! Please see the attached for a detailed overview of the day. We are looking forward to see you! #wiaconference #womeninanalyticsconference #womeninanalyticsconferencebymeta #WomenInData #WomeninTech #WomeninAI #WomeninSTEM

WiAC Spotlight: Nina Boyko The 2023 Women in Analytics Conference is just 2 days away! Follow our LinkedIn page for inspiring stories from women in analytics and the latest conference news. Meet Nina Boyko, Data Scientist at Meta, and Co-Chair of Meta’s 2023 Women in Analytics Conference! Tell us a little bit about yourself -   I have been working at Meta for 5 years within the Small Business Group. My team focuses on researching and delivering personalized recommendations for small business advertisers via sales efforts. Prior to Meta, I worked in economic consulting at Analysis Group and public policy research at the Rose Institute of State and Local Government. A common thread throughout my career is leveraging an analytical skillset and applying it to multiple domains and industries from technology to consulting to government. On the personal side, I live in Sunnyvale with my husband and enjoy making cheese and charcuterie board art. What motivated your career in Analytics?  While I majored in liberal arts and focused a lot of my education on honing soft skills, I’ve always enjoyed thinking analytically and digging deeper into data. I’ve found that data can be a great arbitrar of the “truth” and provide guidance on where the business should focus next. My experience working in analytics through several industries has also been compelling to see how the same analytical mindset can be applied across many disciplines. What are you most looking forward to during this year’s conference?  I am so excited that this year’s conference will be back in person in Menlo Park! When I attended the 2019 conference, I was very inspired by the speakers and got to meet and learn so much from other conference attendees. I am looking forward to soaking in the energy in the room and meeting so many of you! What do you want participants to take away from this year’s conference? I hope that participants will be able to gain confidence that they too can excel as women in the analytics industry while meeting new peers, mentors, and leaders to help shape their career trajectory. I also hope everyone embraces stepping away from their day-to-day responsibilities and invests time in learning and growing. #wiaconference #womeninanalyticsconference #womeninanalyticsconferencebymeta #WomenInData #WomeninTech #WomeninAI #WomeninSTEM

WiAC Spotlight: Nina Boyko The 2023 Women in Analytics Conference is just 2 days away! Follow our LinkedIn page for inspiring stories from women in analytics and the latest conference news. Meet Nina Boyko, Data Scientist at Meta, and Co-Chair of Meta’s 2023 Women in Analytics Conference! Tell us a little bit about yourself -   I have been working at Meta for 5 years within the Small Business Group. My team focuses on researching and delivering personalized recommendations for small business advertisers via sales efforts. Prior to Meta, I worked in economic consulting at Analysis Group and public policy research at the Rose Institute of State and Local Government. A common thread throughout my career is leveraging an analytical skillset and applying it to multiple domains and industries from technology to consulting to government. On the personal side, I live in Sunnyvale with my husband and enjoy making cheese and charcuterie board art. What motivated your career in Analytics?  While I majored in liberal arts and focused a lot of my education on honing soft skills, I’ve always enjoyed thinking analytically and digging deeper into data. I’ve found that data can be a great arbitrar of the “truth” and provide guidance on where the business should focus next. My experience working in analytics through several industries has also been compelling to see how the same analytical mindset can be applied across many disciplines. What are you most looking forward to during this year’s conference?  I am so excited that this year’s conference will be back in person in Menlo Park! When I attended the 2019 conference, I was very inspired by the speakers and got to meet and learn so much from other conference attendees. I am looking forward to soaking in the energy in the room and meeting so many of you! What do you want participants to take away from this year’s conference? I hope that participants will be able to gain confidence that they too can excel as women in the analytics industry while meeting new peers, mentors, and leaders to help shape their career trajectory. I also hope everyone embraces stepping away from their day-to-day responsibilities and invests time in learning and growing. #wiaconference #womeninanalyticsconference #womeninanalyticsconferencebymeta #WomenInData #WomeninTech #WomeninAI #WomeninSTEM

WiAC Spotlight: Ella Hilal The 2023 Women in Analytics Conference (WiAC) is just 2 days away! Meet Ella Hilal, VP of Data Science at Meta, and the executive chair of the 2023 WiAC! Tell us a little bit about yourself -  I am Ella Hilal, a VP of Data Science at Meta and the executive chair of the 2023 WiAC. I've been leading the data science organization for Monetization PG. Before that, I was VP of Data Science and Engineering at Shopify. I am an Egyptian Canadian living in the beautiful city of Waterloo, Canada with my amazing teenage girl and a life-partner who’s a hardware engineer. I grew up running chemistry experiments in our home with my dad; professor of Quantum Chemistry and my librarian mom. I am a middle child with an older brother and a younger sister. I have a PhD in machine learning from University of Waterloo during the time when AI was not the hot topic [the winter of AI 🙂]  that it is today. I have always been a data nerd, a huge formula 1 fan, love to paint [acrylics on canvas] and have displayed my art in exhibits. What motivated your career in Analytics? All my life, I had a good math brain and I was always intrigued by data problems. Quality time with my dad usually involved solving math problems together or doing experiments on our dining table. When I graduated with a PhD in Machine Learning, I quickly realized that the fast pace and practical constraints of the industry were quite appealing to me, so in parallel to being an adjunct assistant professor at University of Waterloo, I leaned into my industry career as a software engineer at Intelligent Mechatronics Systems, eventually led the R&D Innovation department, and built the data intelligence group which helped close multi-million dollar contracts. Over 15 years later, I'm still fascinated by the impact analytics can have on organizations. What are the key learnings that you were unaware of at that time but have profoundly influenced your success in data and technology?  Early in my career, I didn't understand the difference between a mentor and a sponsor. Many women in tech forums discuss the need for mentorship, but it wasn't until later that I realized the importance of sponsorship. Sponsorship is earned, not asked for, because your sponsor will advocate for you through their own “trust battery” with their peers/audience. To earn sponsorship, focus on solving challenging problems and building a track record. This builds trust and enables sponsorships to happen more organically. What do you want participants to take away from this year’s conference? As the executive chair for this year’s WiAC, I'm excited to host our first in-person conference since 2019. We have a great lineup of speakers and special programming to facilitate bonding, connection, and peer learning. I hope attendees build meaningful connections and look forward to building long-lasting relationships with many talented women in analytics. See you this Friday! #womeninanalyticsconference

WiAC Spotlight: Lyle Smith The 2023 Women in Analytics Conference is just 3 days away! Follow our LinkedIn page for inspiring stories from women in analytics and the latest conference news. Meet Lyle Smith, Director of Data Science at Instagram! Tell us a little bit about yourself -  I grew up in Cleveland and moved to New York right after graduating from Colgate University in Upstate New York. I started my career in publishing, and quickly transitioned to consulting for a company called Activate. After four years there, I decided I wanted to become a more technical analyst and enrolled in an immersive data science program in New York. Coming out of that program I started at BuzzFeed where I grew from a Data Analyst to Senior Data Science Manager. In 2019, I joined Instagram to lead one of the Data Science teams supporting consumer products and have been here ever since! I married my college sweetheart and we live in Rye, New York with our two adorable children - Teddy (5) and Cecilia (3). What motivated your career in Analytics?  When I was working in consulting, I was often asked to lead client relations and user research, but I found that what brought me the most joy was the deeper analytical work. I like understanding all the upsides and downsides before making any business decisions and love that in my role, I help decision makers get to more informed perspectives. What are you most looking forward to during this year’s conference?  I have been involved in WiAC since late 2019 and have been looking forward to coming back to Menlo Park in person. When I attended the conference in 2018, I made invaluable connections with people I never would have otherwise met, who have become mentors and friends. I’m so glad we’ll all get to be together in person once again. What do you want participants to take away from this year’s conference? I hope everyone has a moment to step back from the day-to-day urgencies, learn something new, and ideally meet someone they wouldn’t have otherwise had the chance to meet. #wiaconference #womeninanalyticsconference #womeninanalyticsconferencebymeta #WomenInData #WomeninTech #WomeninAI #WomeninSTEM

WiAC Spotlight: Katherine Yang The 2023 Women in Analytics Conference is just 4 days away! Follow our LinkedIn page for inspiring stories from women in analytics and the latest conference news. Meet Katherine Yang, Head of Data Insights and Analytics at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco! Tell us a little bit about yourself - I’m currently the Head of Data Insights and Analytics at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. My team is responsible for analyzing financial and supervisory data for monetary policy and supervision purposes through our Statistics function, and we also help operationalize monetary policy through our Reserves area. Additionally, we provide data analytics support to our team as well as to others within the SF Fed. I’m really looking forward to sharing how our team has been working to build a data storytelling culture at this year’s conference! On a personal note, I love to swim with my masters swim team, stay active by running and taking my dog for walks, and spend time with my family. What motivated your career in Analytics? Data has been the common thread throughout my entire career. I began my career as a mutual fund analyst, analyzing investment data and statistics. I continued working in the data space throughout subsequent roles in the investment management industry, whether it was through helping clients with their licensed data needs or ensuring that the investment database was kept current and accurate. Data remained central throughout my career at the Fed, ranging from analyzing operations data to my current role leading a data-focused team. In both life and work, I have always been a firm believer in the importance of making decisions using data analysis. I know that there is so much valuable data available that can be used to make better decisions, which inspired the creation of our data analytics support team. I really enjoy my current role because my team uses analytics to both support the Fed’s mission and also help their teammates and colleagues make data-based decisions throughout the organization.    What are you most looking forward to during this year’s conference?  I am really looking forward to connecting with women who are also passionate about data analytics and sharing our experiences with each other. I’m also excited about meeting attendees in person, having the opportunity to learn from practitioners, and hearing about industry trends. I hope to come away with some new ideas on how to approach analytics in my organization as well as an expanded network. #wiaconference #womeninanalyticsconference #womeninanalyticsconferencebymeta #WomenInData #WomeninTech #WomeninAI #WomeninSTEM

WiAC Spotlight: Irina Bezgina The 2023 Women in Analytics Conference is just 9 days away. Follow our LinkedIn page for inspiring stories from women in analytics and the latest conference news. Meet Irina Bezgina, Senior Data Engineer at Meta! Tell us a little bit about yourself! Hi. My name is Irina and I am a data engineer on the ads team at Meta. Currently my goal is to build robust data foundations for our new products and enable teams to make informed decisions quickly based on high-quality data. Throughout my career, I have had the opportunity to work in various industries such as retail, banking, automotive, and even fashion. This experience has broadened my perspective on analytics and the ways in which people can use data to address societal and corporate challenges, and improve overall life experiences. Nowadays in addition to staying up-to-date with new technologies in data engineering, I am also interested in exploring frameworks that help companies comply with data privacy requirements. During my free time, I enjoy hiking and discovering new trails. What motivated your career in Analytics? Analytics is a unique field that allows you to apply your technical skills, product knowledge, and data insights to influence a company's strategy. During my uni days, I had the opportunity to get an internship position at one of the largest retail companies in my home country. I joined the perishable logistics team and quickly saw the impact that properly prepared data can have on a company's success, particularly when it comes to resolving issues with suppliers. This experience motivated me to pursue a career in analytics after graduation. What are you most looking forward to during this year’s conference? Definitely the opportunity to connect with people from other companies and teams is exciting. It's always interesting to learn about what's top of mind for analytics professionals. What do you want participants to take away from this year’s conference? I believe that everyone plans to attend the conference with their own goals in mind. However, for those who are interested in gaining insights about the future of the Data Engineer role and discussing major trends, I invite them to join my presentation during the technical talks. #wiaconference #womeninanalyticsconference #womeninanalyticsconferencebymeta #WomenInData #WomeninTech #WomeninAI #WomeninSTEM