E531 Risto Miikkulainen, VP of AI Research at Cognizant Advanced AI Labs

Today's guest is Dallas Blattner, Senior Director, ServiceNow Practice at CRI Advantage. Founded in 1988, CRI Advantage is an industry-leading IT services provider with over three decades of experience serving federal, state and local government agencies and commercial clients. They help customers achieve business-driven digital transformation through their featured product suite., assisting you in eliminating tedious IT processes and maximizing the full potential of your technology. Dallas is a highly innovative Senior ServiceNow Delivery Director with over ten years of professional experience. He is a Subject Matter Expert regarding ServiceNow Product Suites, Applications and Modules, government, SLED and commercial subcontracts, especially within Information Technology and Service activities and the Federal Acquisition Regulations. Dallas is policy-driven and team-spirited with a talent for problem solving and strategic thinking. In the episode, Dallas discusses: His unconventional IT journey leading to a passion for ServiceNow, An overview of CRI as a specialized IT firm excelling in niche markets, Bridging sales and delivery to showcase ServiceNow's potential, His career growth through immersion, continuous learning and strong foundations, Excitement for AI advancements and growth in ServiceNow’s capabilities, Emphasis on cultural fit, people and customer service

Today's guest is Eddie Kirkland, Principal Data Scientist at ICF. Founded in 1969, ICF is a global advisory and technology services provider that combine unmatched expertise with cutting-edge technology to help clients solve their most complex challenges, navigate change and shape the future. Through deep domain expertise and cutting-edge digital services, the team at ICF are helping clients contribute to a healthier planet, create more resilient and equitable communities, and support and grow economic development. Eddie is currently a Principal Data Scientist with ICF, serving the Centers for Disease Control in the metro Atlanta area. A data science team leader with proven generative AI, machine learning and software development skills, he pairs data science and engineering ability with solution design and communication acumen gained in 20 years of organizational leadership. Eddie is recognized as a strategic leader and contributor on data science teams with a dynamic ability to translate complex concepts into relatable and actionable information. In this episode, Eddie talks about: His career journey from music to a passion for data science Combining subject matter and technological expertise for global betterment, Applying AI expertise ethically across diverse client projects, How Generative AI unlocks text data's potential, requiring ethical use, Piloting generative AI to transform data processing tasks, Creating safe spaces for AI experimentation and small models, How ICF provides a supportive culture and meaningful, impactful work

Today's guest is Bahar Niakan, Managing Director, HR Modernization at Intact Technology. As the 2024 ServiceNow Federal Partner of the Year, Intact technology has intentionally designed every aspect of their business to incentivize quick outcomes and clean, scalable technology that people are actually eager to use. This allows your ServiceNow platform to quickly and seamlessly evolve alongside shifts in your organization, enabling you to achieve more, better and faster. In this episode, Bahar talks about: Her career from Government leadership, HR transformation to ServiceNow, How Intact integrates ServiceNow for efficient federal/private sector operations, How ServiceNow & AI empowers efficiency and customer support innovations, Why Intact Technology is a great place to work

Today's guest is Risto Miikkulainen, VP of AI Research at Cognizant Advanced AI Labs. Since 2013, the team has focused on research, innovation and the development of advanced AI technologies that further the application of AI to surface opportunities and make better decisions, serving clients and the society at large. Coming together as the Cognizant Advanced AI Lab, the team remains committed to bridging science and the pragmatic application of AI, to foster a better, more productive and innovative future for businesses and society alike. Risto's current research focuses on methods and applications of AI in decision-making, particularly those based on neuroevolution, as well as neural network models of natural language processing and vision. At Cognizant, and previously as a CTO of Sentient Technologies, he is scaling up these approaches to real-world problems. As an AAAI, IEEE and AAIA Fellow, Risto is an author of over 500 articles in these research areas, with his work on neuroevolution recently being recognized with multiple awards.  In this episode, Risto talks about: His journey from academia to AI deployment at Cognizant AI Labs, Empowering human decision-making through AI, Use Case: Winning an award for collaboration on improving Botox evaluation, Why AI implementation needs practical adaptation and broad collaboration, An insight into the team’s work within research and development, The AI Labs focus on R&D, thought leadership and AI for good, His top advice to require strong fundamentals, critical thinking and adaptability

Today's guest is Drew Hartley, Vice President of Solutions Engineering at pWin.ai. Founded in 2023, pWin.ai is the first ‘thoughtful’ AI copilot for proposal writing, built with Shipley’s best practices inside to revolutionize your business development process and help you win more business. Shipley’s industry-leading expertise and pWin.ai’s cutting-edge AI technology come together to offer a comprehensive solution that empowers your team to focus on what matters most. Drew is an experienced organizational leader and operator with a diverse background across consulting, software, tech and product engineering domains. He leads the solutions/sales engineering team at that is the face of the pWin.ai product to prospective customers. Drew and his team showcase and demo the powerful pWin.ai product, lead customer trials, teach and support classes, guide the direction of the product to prospective customers, and serve as the face of the product to customers.  In this episode, Drew talks about: His AI journey to date from building teams to impactful tech solutions, How pWin.ai crafts top-quality and efficient proposal drafts, Creating high-quality proposals using Generative AI, How partnerships with Shipley and Microsoft boosted proposal speed, The journey from learning, testing, iterating and scaling, His excitement about rapid progress and evolving AI potential

Today's guest is Paul Lyons, Vice President, Global Alliances & Channels at Sakon. Founded in 2003, Sakon is on a mission to help enterprises simplify the way people connect to each other and the world. As devices and networks propel the future of work, Sakon is driving the associated process automation next wave. Sakon’s Cloud Applications combined with the most seasoned team of telecom service practitioners has enabled 100’s of the largest enterprises all over the world to Understand, Manage and Transform their device and communication service estates. Paul is a passionate, Channels & Alliances leader that always makes an impact, including selling SaaS, PaaS and AI to enterprise multinational Fortune 500 clients. He has over 15 years of experience building go to market channels, alliances teams and programs, and over 10 years of direct sales and business development experience in the SaaS space. Paul has also worked for over eight years in SaaS channels, and alliance creation and development with enterprise software, ServiceNow, Workday and Salesforce. In this episode, Paul talks about: His journey from telecom sales to extensive experience with ServiceNow, How Sakon manages mobility and telecom assets via ServiceNow integration, Creating a Unified platform for managing mobile and fixed networks, Why partnership success hinges on mutual value and client benefits, Continuous innovation and efficient management of global teams, Focus on brand visibility and growth through strategic partnerships, Their entrepreneurial culture, collaborative leadership and innovative opportunities

Today's guest is Indrasis Mondal, Vice President of Data and AI at Niche. Founded in 2002 and headquartered in Pittsburgh, Niche is the market leader in connecting colleges and schools with students and families. With in-depth profiles on every school and college in America, over 140 million reviews and ratings, and powerful search and data tools, Niche helps millions of students and families find and enroll in the right school for them. With over 17 years of data science, analytics, ML and AI leadership experience, Indrasis has a strong track record of developing successful data products, capabilities, technologies and organizations in multiple sectors. Currently, Indrasis leads the data & AI organization at Niche where he is responsible for establishing the vision, strategy and capabilities for data democratization. This is to ensure key KPIs and insights are internally accessible for proactive and timely decision-making across the business. In this episode, Indrasis discusses: His career journey from Academia to AI roles in aerospace and startups, How Niche simplifies researching and enrolling in schools, Utilizing data to connect students and colleges, Applying AI to match students with suitable colleges, How the new data team is transforming Niche with AI and ML, Offering impactful data roles focused on education equity

Today's guest is Swantje Westpfahl, Director and CEO of the Institute for Security and Safety at Mannheim University of Applied Sciences. Founded in 2012, the institute's goal is to build bridges between experts and non-experts to make cybersecurity an inherent part of work and private life. They promote cybersecurity resilience and an international exchange of knowledge by providing security assessments and advice, international education and training concepts, and contributing to research projects worldwide. In her role, Swantje's main objectives are the strategic development of the institute and the expansion of cooperation projects. She coordinates R&D as well as building activities of the Institute, especially with a focus on new developments in cyber security with respect to critical infrastructures, i.e. the energy and automotive industry. Swantje's main areas of expertise are security culture, capacity building and didactics, cyber security in international relations and AI. She is dedicated to empower her team in order to strengthen Cybersecurity around the world. In today's episode, Swantje talks about: Her unconventional journey from teaching to cybersecurity consulting, How Cybersecurity involves combating organized, well-structured cybercrime groups, As Cybercriminals specialize and collaborate; defenders must do likewise, Building a cybersecurity culture requires tailored training and leadership commitment, Cybersecurity culture takes time but boosts collaboration and resilience, Her advice to study standards for security and seek tailored help

Today's guest is Rahul Pandey, Senior Director of Analytics and Data Science at Prosper Marketplace. Founded in 2005, Prosper Marketplace introduced U.S. consumers to an innovative new approach to personal finance called peer-to-peer lending. Almost 20 years later, Prosper has helped over two million customers achieve financial well-being through a comprehensive suite of products. Regardless of the product, Prosper is dedicated to meeting people where they are in their financial journey, in order to advance their financial well-being. Rahul is an Analytics leader with 12+ years of experience in analytics/growth functions across digital, marketing, operations and risk. He has a proven track record of leading key initiatives, influencing business decisions and managing senior stakeholders. In his role, Rahul is the Head of Product & Conversion Analytics, and Growth Data Science across all Prosper products. He provides thought leadership, drives growth across Product and Marketing channels, and leads a diverse team of analytics and data science professionals at Prosper. In this episode, Rahul discusses: His experience to date specializing in AI and data strategy, Prosper’s impact in financial well-being and his day-to-day role, Trends from rapid adoption, computing power, off-the-shelf solutions & executive support, Data-driven Decision making is essential for FinTech evolution, Addressing challenges in privacy, accuracy, human relevance & workforce concerns, Their mission and why to consider a career with Prosper

Today's guest is Martin Ivanov, Solutions Architect at Do IT Wise | An Inetum Group Company. Founded in 2010, Do IT Wise - part of the Inetum Group - is an international professional services and consulting company, focused on helping their customers thrive on their Digital Transformation journeys. They combine deep implementation knowledge and partnerships with leading software platforms such as ServiceNow and OpenText, professional expertise and excellent understanding of their client’s problems to create the most suitable and valuable solutions for them. Martin is an experienced ServiceNow Solution Consultant with a demonstrated history of working in the consulting industry.  He is skilled in ServiceNow Platform Administration and Development, ITSM, Custom application development, Integrations and Platform-wide scripting. Martin is a Certified Technical Architect (CTA) and holder of multiple ServiceNow mainline certifications. A ServiceNow Rising Star in 2022, 2023 ServiceNow Community MVP and 2023 ServiceNow Developer MVP, Martin is passionate about knowledge sharing and mentoring. In this episode, Martin talks about: Important career milestones including gaining CTA certification, Starting a ServiceNow architecture podcast and local meetup, Gaining inspiration and confidence from the ServiceNow community, How ServiceNow's rapid updates require focusing deeply in one area, How CSM addresses increased demand for digital services, Exploring predictive automation, like weather-based bakery production, Why GenAI shows potential, but adoption is currently limited, His day-to-role focusing on customer solutions with Do IT Wise, The growth of the HRSD Employee Service Center, His upcoming meetup in Bulgaria & hopes for Knowledge 2025