Rising Analytics Professionals Workshop

A workshop designed especially for those new to the analytics profession, including students and those transitioning careers. Sessions include a soft-skills workshop, followed by a panel of professionals at different stages of their careers who will lend their insights on how you can excel in your analytics journey. Registration not required but encouraged.

Soft Skills: Beyond the Elevator Speech

William Christian

Chief Technology Officer & Co-Founder at Paygevity

Bio

Dr. Bill Christian can often be found communicating about technical ideas. He is the CTO of Paygevity, a Supply Chain FinTech, and a research mathematician for the federal government. He also spends a lot of time volunteering in various pastoral and secular roles.

Having been an INFORMS member since the 1990s, he has served as an officer in the Minority Issues Forum, on the Pro Bono Analytics Committee, on the DEI Committee, and on other ad hoc committees. Bill is the Chair of the BIG Math Network Steering Committee, a consortium of math societies including INFORMS that helps educate students and faculty about jobs in Business, Industry, and Government.

Given his experience in academia and industry, Bill enjoys mentoring individuals in their early careers regardless of which path they take. He says, “I talk to students all the time who went through school with only one picture of success; I was that way. I enjoy helping people consider more of the awesome opportunities in our field.”

Bill earned his PhD from Rice University and his BS from University of Maryland Baltimore County. His current research focus is optimization and machine learning on data modeled as graphs, especially networks, for analysis and defense. He and his wife live in Maryland and have three adult daughters. He enjoys bicycling and snowboarding but rarely makes the time to do either.

Get ready to take your communication skills to the next level! Join us for an engaging and interactive 1-hour session where you’ll learn how to go beyond the basics and master meaningful communication as an analytics professional. In this dynamic workshop, you’ll discover:

Practical techniques for engaging and connecting with diverse stakeholders.
Effective ways to communicate complex mathematical concepts with clarity and confidence.
Tips for handling challenges, objections, and difficult questions with poise and professionalism.
Interactive exercises and role-plays to put your new skills into practice in a supportive environment.

Whether you’re presenting your research, collaborating with colleagues, seeking funding for your projects, or on the job market, this workshop will equip you with the tools and confidence you need for communication success. Register now and unlock your potential as an analytics professional!

Career Panel Discussion

MODERATOR: Carol DeZwarte

CAP, Data Science Leader

Bio

Carol is a data scientist who excels at developing a trust-based culture where scientists thrive, and improves effectiveness, efficiency, and sales through data. As a CAP and PMP, she has been delivering results for 20 years – from patenting an inventory method for the U.S. military that saved more than $400M to defining network strategy for a $10B online retailer.

PANELIST: Warren Hearnes

Former Chief Data Scientist at
Best Buy

Bio

Dr. Warren Hearnes has held many roles in the areas of optimization, machine learning (ML), and artificial intelligence (AI) over his 30+ year career. Most recently, Warren was Chief Data Scientist at Best Buy, where he led a team of 45+ data scientists that elevated the use of AI, ML, and optimization across the enterprise, including marketing, labor, supply chain, and customer service. His career includes significant roles such as Chief Analytics Officer at Cardlytics, where he played a pivotal role in the company’s growth to a multi-billion-dollar entity, and positions at The Home Depot, UPS, and Lucent Technologies. A proud veteran of the US Army, Warren holds a BS from West Point (1989) and an MS and PhD from Georgia Tech (1999), where he conducted funded research in reinforcement learning algorithms for robotic control for NSF, NASA, and EPRI. In addition to his work, Warren volunteers his time to several organizations, including INFORMS. Warren served six years as Chair, INFORMS Career Center Committee, co-chaired the Practice Curated Sessions for the INFORMS 2022 Annual Conference organizing committee, and currently serves as VP, Technology Strategy on the INFORMS Board of Directors. In Atlanta, he serves on advisory boards for Georgia Tech and Emory University.

PANELIST: Josh Hoskinson

Data Scientist at Chevron

Bio

Josh Hoskinson is a Data Scientist at Chevron, working to deliver business value at scale in Chevron’s commodity supply chain management organization. Josh has experience working across Chevron’s value chain, implementing data science in areas such as upstream, health & safety, subsurface, and supply and trading since 2019. Currently Josh leads data science projects delivering optimization and predictive modeling solutions to Chevron’s midstream business. He holds Masters and Bachelors degrees in Applied Statistics from the Colorado School of Mines.

PANELIST: Louis Luangkesorn

Lead Data Scientist at Highmark Health

Bio

Dr. Luangkesorn is a Lead Data Scientist on the Highmark Health People Analytics Team where he works on projects applying statistical, predictive, and operations research models to questions involving human resources. He came to Highmark Health from the University of Pittsburgh where he was an Assistant Professor of Industrial Engineering. His background is in simulation, data science, and manufacturing and service operations, focusing on healthcare. He is the author of the chapter “Data Science and Analytics in Healthcare” in Health Informatics: An Interprofessional Approach, 3^rd ed.” by Lynda Hardy (Elsevier).

He has worked on projects with the Veterans Administration Pittsburgh Healthcare System (VAPHS) and Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh (CHP). He ran the University of Pittsburgh Industrial Engineering and Health Systems Engineering Capstone Project which involved student projects with many small manufacturers and health care providers in southwest Pennsylvania. His projects have been documented in research journals, conference presentations, and newspaper and magazine articles.

Dr. Luangkesorn’s PhD is from Northwestern University. He is an active disaster volunteer with the Greater PA Red Cross serving as a government liaison, a national operations planner, and in various roles in local disaster response operations. He lives with his family in Franklin Park, PA.

PANELIST: Heather Moe

Principal Product Engineer at ESRI

Bio

After graduating from Rochester Institute of Technology with a BS in Biology, Heather Joined the NOAA Corps. In her seven years serving she held a wide variety of positions from Safety Officer on the NOAA Ship Miller Freeman sailing the Pacific to conducting climate research in remote polar stations. During this time Heather learned of the field of Operations Research and could see its applications everywhere. Heather earned a MS in Operations Research from Kansas State University while still in the NOAA Corps but then transitioned to civilian life working as a Principal Product Engineer at Esri supporting the development of their Vehicle Routing Problem algorithms. Heather has worked at Esri eight years now and is managing projects on top of her algorithm work.

PANELIST: Shannon Shang

Manager, Data Analytics at Enovation Controls

Bio

Shannon Shang is the Manager of Data Analytics at Enovation Controls. She began working at Enovation Controls as a market analyst in 2019 after receiving her Master of Science in Quantitative Finance and MBA from the University of Tulsa. At Enovation Controls, she identifies the needs of the business and developed a team based on the need of Data Analytics. She has led many major cross-functional projects using data modeling and data analysis techniques to discover insights informing business decisions. She has worked relentlessly promoting data-driven culture within the organization. While involved in the INFORMS speakers program, she has supported many students and early career professionals in their career development. She also has many years of teaching experience in Statistics and Finance classes at the University of Tulsa. Fun fact, Shannon had interviewed many NBA players pre/post game as a part time NBA contributing reporter for Tencent covering Oklahoma City Thunder.

PANELIST: Emily Velez

Associate Data Scientist at The Home Depot

Bio

Emily Velez has a Bachelor of Science in Public Relations from the University of Florida and served for five years in the United States Coast Guard as a Public Affairs Specialist. While serving in that role, she increased awareness of the military branch’s missions by providing a live interview on national television, taking photos of special operations exercises out the back of an airborne C-130, and receiving global recognition for her work documenting the Coast Guard’s participation in the 59th presidential inauguration. Upon leaving the service, she realized the world of data science was calling her name and decided to transition careers. She returned to school and earned a Master of Science in Analytics from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2023 where she focused on business and computational analytics. She currently works at The Home Depot corporate headquarters in Atlanta as an Associate Data Scientist where she uses her background in communication with her skills in data science to creatively support the company’s goals.