Thoughtworks

Global Service Portfolio Lead for Data & AI Strategy services, including strategic enablement for Data & AI Governance, Data Modernization, AI readiness and other related client objectives.

Director, Data & AI Strategy

Leading our data strategy and data governance services, shaping the offering and approaches to create value-driven solutions for our clients in Europe

Principal Data & AI Strategist

DataQG

DataQG is the leading Data Enablement and Community Platform designed to help organizations upskill their workforce in data literacy.

Education Advisory Board Member

DAMA Germany

Lead marketing planning, execution and monitoring to grow and engage the community and to establish thought leadership and knowledge exchange in all things Data Management & Data Governance in Germany

Head of Marketing

Technics Publications

Author - "Humanizing AI Strategy - Leading AI with Sense and Soul"

Author - "Humanizing Data Strategy - Leading Data with the Head and the Heart"

Ambassador

adidas

Ensuring product data is consistent, accurate and available and making sure it’s used in a secure and meaningful way. We govern product data end to end, from data creation through data processing all the way to data usage and enrichment.

Senior Director, Product Data Governance

Lead in Social, PR and Voice of Consumer Analytics to integrate Consumer Insights from Social Media, PR, Search Behavior, Product Reviews and Experience NPS feedback into any decision-making in brand strategy, campaign planning and in-activation optimization.

Director, Digital Analytics - Social, PR & Voice of the Consumer

Lead in Voice of the Consumer Analytics with focus on integrated insights based on consumer feedback across digital channels (e.g. Digital Brand Perception on Social Media, Product Ratings / Reviews on Website, Search Behaviour on Google)

Director, Digital Analytics - Voice of the Consumer

Creation of Digital Marketing Performance KPI Framework to measure success within branding activities and consumer perception on strategic and operational level

Lead standardisation and alignment of eCom KPI definitions and reporting methodology across Digital Analytics, BI/Finance, Markets and Business Units

Governance of holistic eCom business performance KPI framework across digital and financial teams

Senior Manager, Digital Analytics

TD Reply

Project Manager of projects in Digital Strategy & Performance Optimization

adidas: On-site Project Manager and Product Owner of KPI Frameworks and Dashboard Visualizations at Digital Brand Commerce

Miele: Account Management of International Brand Marketing and coordination with over 10 markets

Support in Digital Performance Management projects of Coca Cola, Volkswagen and Döhler

Knowledge Management & Advisory between German and Chinese Office

Senior Consultant

Lead of projects in Digital Strategy & Market Research

Key account manager of VW brand marketing

Development of Social Media strategies

Setting up processes and guidelines for crisis management

Consultant

Junior Consultant / Master Thesis

Student Worker

Berlin Institute of Technology (Technische Universität Berlin)

Analysis of business models and market analysis of various industries

Research Assistant - Chair of Strategic Leadership & Global Management

I’m a Data & AI leader by day, a musician at night, and an optimist at heart. 

After 12+ years in data analytics, data governance, consumer insights, digital transformation and AI innovation, I grew fond of the human aspect - how to communicate, collaborate and get creative around data and AI.

My passion lies in making data and AI more approachable and fun, and I often use unconventional methods to do so - with music, humor or other creative outlets. 

Nice to meet you! 
Let’s have a (virtual) coffee?

Tiankai Feng

Data quality has always been a little bit of a catch-all for all kinds of data complaints. Whenever data looks a little different than expected, it immediately must be a data quality problem. 

The rapid increase of AI-driven use cases for data now puts even more attention to the concept of data quality, because AI use cases often require expanded historical data, higher granularity, higher speed and a different focus - like unstructured data for context. 

One thing has not changed: the only way to manage data quality in the right way is to move away from generic complaints about it to detailed conversations about what "high quality" data actually means, and what currently is missing to get there - to then improve data quality together towards a defined state. 

When in doubt, dad jokes can also help - to not only break the ice, but to also exercise authority by positioning yourself as someone's dad. 😁 

Let me know if you need any help.

#dataquality #datagovernance #tiankaistuff

Data & AI Strategy Director @ Thoughtworks | Author of “Humanizing AI Strategy” | TEDx Speaker | Data Musician

This is an appreciation post for everyone working in data governance.

While most data governance people I talk to are really driven and passionate about making data better for their organization, they are also the most modest and self critical - believing they always can do more things better. 

Facing resistance and misunderstandings around what data governance even is trying to do, being a great empath and communicator became a necessity - making them great collaborators and people to hang out with (if you give them a chance).

Since data governance conferences very quickly turn into group therapy, I know we are not getting the attention and acknowledgement we deserve - and although the hype around AI has finally put us in the spotlight, we are now spending even more time and efforts clarifying requirements and objectives, and setting the right expectations.

So, to everyone working in data governance: you are doing your best and it’s awesome - just a little longer and you can recharge during the break. There’s a lot of exciting work to do in 2026.

Data governance rules. 

#datagovernance #appreciation #tiankaistuff

Fun with data literacy in Kindergarten?! 

Yesterday I was invited to read “The Data Detective at the carnival” to the kids at my son’s Kindergarten group - a book that I translated for the German community and donated to the Kindergarten before. 

I was first a little worried that talking to kids between 4 and 6 years old about qualitative and quantitative data would be too difficult - oh how wrong I was! 

We had the most fun letting the kids count and describe things not only in the book but also in the room and in their lives - and everyone was excited to get a “data detective certificate” afterwards! 

But the most rewarding thing of all is how proud my son was that his dad came to Kindergarten to read a book to everyone - showing up as his cool dad is probably my favorite speaking engagement ever. 

Thanks to Chandra Donelson and Jordan Morrow for writing such a wonderful book! 

#dataliteracy #education #tiankaistuff

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In a desperate attempt to make data jobs cool for the next generation, Fortnite launches the new “data squad” skins! 

They even come with their own signature powers: 

👉 the data engineer can build pipelines to move faster but everytime a pipeline breaks the player is teleported next to the pipeline to fix it for an hour

👉 the data scientist can predict other players’ movements but needs to clean data in a spreadsheet for 30 minutes first 

👉 the data analyst puts random dashboards all across the map to confuse other players with KPIs and metrics 

👉 the data product owner can build powerful products but with every minute without a RoI the player loses power 

👉 the data governor can change the rules of the game entirely but other players only have to comply optionally 

Can’t wait for the AI roles skins to drop with equally as much realism! 

P.S. this is satire and not real. 

#data #humor #tiankaistuff

Receiving this kind of feedback after my talk and musical performance at the Forward Data Conference is truly so rewarding.

"People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel”, the great Maya Angelou once said - that’s why sharing positivity and joy with others is for me equally as important as exchanging knowledge. 

After all, there are two things I love to spread: Happiness and germs. 

Just kidding, it’s Nutella. And germs. 😁

How we make people feel is our real legacy, y’all. Have a great weekend everyone!

#conference #mindset #tiankaistuff

Here are five reasons why you should buy my book "Humanizing Data Strategy":

👉 My mom calls it "better than expected"

👉 Critics call it "marxism for data" and "DEI Cr*p"

👉 It looks great on a book shelf

👉 That's why your kids will love to draw stuff onto the cover

👉 It's currently on Black Friday sales (but apparently only in Germany)

It's also about the human side of data and introduces the framework of the 5Cs (competence, collaboration, communication, creativity & conscience) to make data strategy truly human-centric, but those are just minor details. 😁 

Maybe those that read this book already can leave more reasons to buy it in the comments. Thanks in advance!

#datastrategy #author #tiankaistuff

“You’re too sensitive.” 

One of the worst things to say to someone who’s upset - and it never has made anyone less sensitive, ever. 

There’s always a reason why we are triggered by certain things based on our unique experiences, and this kind of statement shows ignorance to that. 

We can say many other things instead, like: 

“I’m sorry you’re upset - could you help me understand why this bothers you so much?”

“I think we can look at this from a different angle, what about…” 

“What can I do right now to make this situation better? I want to help make this right.”

It’s always easy to judge someone else, but trying to put yourself in someone else’s shoes is where real human connection starts. 

Be human, y’all! 

#empathy #collaboration #tiankaistuff

I’m really happy about anyone who voluntarily listens to my data music, but almost a thousand listeners from 51 countries is crazy! 

2025 was also very exciting because I’ve never performed music live so much as this year - I even got to play on a real concert piano thanks to the Inspari A/S data & AI day, and I got to write and perform a new original conference song for the Forward Data Conference! 

I know that making music about Data & AI is not everyone’s cup of tea - but as someone who’s passionate about the human side of data & AI, isn’t that subjectivity what truly shows our humanity? 

As long as my music brings a net positive to the data and AI community, I’ll keep on doing it - thank you all. 

P.S. I have some very cool new music coming before the year ends, stay tuned! 

#music #personalbranding #tiankaistuff

What do virtual meetings and Disney movies have in common? 

Not a lot, but I created this musical parody anyway. You’re welcome. 

And now everyone: 
🎶 can you see my screen right now? 🎶

YouTube link in comments. 

#meetings #humor #tiankaistuff

Forward Data Conference, here I come! 

This year’s final station of what for me felt like the “humanizing data & AI world tour” will be in Paris - and it will be a doozy! 

I’ll be giving a talk about the key success criteria of truly scaling AI, and I can’t wait to meet data friends like Joe Reis, Eevamaija Virtanen, Jessica Talisman, Andrea Gioia and Gaëlle SERET! 

The forward data conference was an excellent experience already last year, and from what I’ve seen so far Yoann Benoit, François Laurain and the team took it to really the next level this year.

Oh yeah, the scarf indoors is protecting my voice because there may or may not be some never before seen or heard music by yours truly tomorrow… 🎶

à demain!

#conference #data #tiankaistuff

Congratulations to Greg Freeman on publishing The Data & AI Literacy Bible - a book that’s timely, important and truly insightful! 

I had the honor to review and endorse this book, and what I really love about it is the focus on human confidence, growth and actions - aspects that are often forgotten in conceptual and abstract conversations around literacy. 

This having said, I’ve had the chance to meet various Data Literacy Academy folks and they’re all awesome - you can talk to them and find out yourself 🙂

The book is now out on amazon, link in the comments! 

#dataliteracy #book #tiankaistuff

There are many reasons why AI governance is important right now, but the biggest undeniable reason for me is that we need to admit that human-beings aren't perfect and make mistakes, and that we should do everything we can do prevent machines from making the same ones - faster and on bigger scale. 

I was asked to contribute to the "Document automation trends in 2026" report by Rossum and focused on the importance and challenges of AI governance, and there are many other interesting trends to read about that are not only specific to document automation but to AI use cases in general.

On a side note, I love how we are all trying our best to predict the next year, when AI specifically this year showed us that many things are truly unpredictable. I guess we all want some certainty for comfort, and I'm not blaming anyone.

Link to check out the full report in the comments!

Huge thanks to Julie BIASION ✨ for inviting me to contribute!  

#aigovernance #trends #tiankaistuff

🎶 EXCITING NEWS!🎶  

As a token of gratitude for all the opportunities and encouragement I got this year for my data & AI music, I want to give back with something very special: MY FIRST EVER (VIRTUAL) LIVE CONCERT!

Join me in an exclusive livestream where I'll perform my most iconic songs about, data & AI and so much more - and since it's live, of course I'll engage with all of your questions and comments. 

My only question for you is: Which of my songs do you want to see me perform live? The setlist is not completely done yet so I can still make changes 😎 

See you there!

#data #music #tiankaistuff Thoughtworks

TIANKAI LIVE IN CONCERT - a musical end of year celebration

How do I make my AI strategy human-centric, and why does it matter?! 

I’m so excited to return to DataQG to give a community webinar exactly on that topic tomorrow. 

Everyone can join, and there will be a live Q&A - so if you want to visit one of the best data governance communities and watch me improvise answers to your trick questions, join us! 

Thanks to my friend Philip Black for the invitation!

Link to sign up in the comments. 

#aistrategy #webinar #tiankaistuff

I often think about Formula 1 races as best practice environment where actual data-driven decisions are being made - a lot of them at an incredible speed! 

Being able to do that requires not only a well connected ecosystem of machines, tools, and systems - but also an incredibly well-oiled (get it?) team that understands how to work together in a high stakes environment. 

This is why I’m very excited about this upcoming Alteryx webinar with the Lisa Jarman, PhD from the McLaren Group Formula Team to exactly discuss how data-driven decisions are being made there, and I can’t wait to learn and get inspired!

See you at the webinar?

Link to register here: https://lnkd.in/dJi4dKKi

#webinar #dataanalytics #tiankaistuff

George Firican

The University of British Columbia

Director, Data Governance & Business Intelligence

Led a team of wonderful and highly skilled people in the areas of:
- Finance
- Human Resources
- Information Systems
- Gift Processing 
- Operations
- Strategic Projects
- Prospect Research & Analytics 
- Data Governance & Business Intelligence 

To support the goals of the fundraising and alumni engagement portfolio across the university.

Chief Advancement Operations Officer (Interim)

Director of Information Technology (Interim)

• Lead the Data Governance/ Quality program and the strategy development of Development and Alumni Engagement’s (DAE) data acquisition, maintenance and dissemination while fostering innovation and long term strategic vision
• Lead the efforts to develop a business glossary as well as a business intelligence (BI) framework and program that provides user-friendly access to the right information for the right people at the right time
• Directed the development and enhancement of standards, procedures, processes, policies related to the improvement and/or maintenance of quality of data within the Blackbaud Enterprise CRM database
• Created and fostered strategic partnerships and influential relationships with DAE senior management, the broader UBC community, campus stakeholders, vendors, and external universities to secure the success of DAE’s data governance, business intelligence and information quality efforts
• Collaborated with Information Technology to manage the development of automated data validations, data cleanses, data quality issue reports, and deployment of new tools and enhancements to aid in the preservation of data quality
• Advanced the data governance and business intelligence profession by participating in professional organizations, acquiring or maintaining required accreditations, publishing articles, and giving presentations at professional events

Associate Director, Data Governance & Business Intelligence

I proudly took part of UBC's "Start an Evolution" campaign (https://startanevolution.ubc.ca/), campaign which raised $1.5 billion dollars for students, research and community engagement and to double the number of alumni involved annually in the life of the university by 2015.

• Established and led an award winning Data Governance/Quality Program to support the university’s $1.5 billion fundraising campaign and sustainable alumni engagement strategy
• Provided oversight of the Data Governance/Quality Program and kept it on track by managing the development of standards, procedures, processes, policies related to the acquisition, management, and dissemination of enterprise data impacting the Blackbaud Enterprise CRM database while leading the Advisory Council
• Developed an award winning Tracing Program through which the returned mail percentage of Development and Alumni Engagement’s Portfolio has been reduced to less than 1%
• Managed the development of business performance metrics and scorecards to monitor and communicate the status and improvement of service of the Records department
• Achieved a 92% address and phone number accuracy for Canadian records, an improvement from ~64%
• Communicated to and educated internal and external stakeholders on the results and initiatives of data governance, quality, master data management, information delivery and advised stakeholders about best practices; was the first and only department to achieve 100% on the annual client satisfaction survey on communication delivery and content

Data Quality Manager

LightsOnData

- Educational Content Creation: Develop and deliver comprehensive courses, workshops, and webinars on data governance, data management, data quality, AI, and more.
- Brand Amplification: Collaborate with data companies to enhance their brand visibility and thought leadership in the data community.
- Engagement and Outreach: Host the Lights On Data Show podcast, featuring industry leaders and experts to share their insights and experiences.

Founder

Pearson

Course Instructor

O'Reilly

iData Quality Academy

Developed course content for iData Quality Academy
- Data Profiling
- Data Quality Costs

Instructor

Self employed

• Provided project management and business analysis expertise to various projects across the different industries (BaniPePost.com, JT Business Group, SMAWS, 8p8, Ashenzi, NetPress Consulting, LTS, AHACommunity, etc).
• Designed and developed unique, highly professional web and print designs, branding and e-learning solutions as well as developing and configuring custom websites (e-stores, online communities, content management systems, blogs, brochure websites, etc.).
• Accumulated experience as a web master by installing, upgrading, performing backups, managing migrations and maintaining a series of complex websites.

Freelance Consultant

Sauder School of Business, UBC

• Served as internal Project Manager for the evaluation, build and deployment phases of a custom-built, scalable web payment gateway (WPG) that complied with the PCI standard requirements and reduced Sauder Finance’s operational time for the allocation and reporting of revenue received via card payments by 75%
• Managed the deployment of a FIPPA compliant e-newsletter tool (Industry Mailout) selected to achieve a standard for design and operational support while reducing expenses by $15k/year
• Planned and managed the development and release of a new service for personal/academic blogging through the use of the WordPress MU environment for faculty members and current Sauder students
• Managed the development of an improved content publishing process to account for 15 digital signs, each with audience specific content & emergency broadcasting capabilities
• Served as the internal project manager for the development and deployment of the Canaccord Learning Commons web presence comprised of a WordPress based website and a BuddyPress student interaction environment
• Developed solutions for integrating the business environment with web 2.0 technologies such as WordPress 3 based sites, online communities (Ning, Moodle), and collaboration tools (MediaWiki, Project Spaces, CoMapping) while providing expertise and system support for these platforms
• Identified customer requirements, analyzed and reviewed product features, integration, security, scalability and performance requirements for projects such as PPM Tool, a collaboration tool to be used between the Center of Health Care Management and BC health care authorities, Desktop Blogging Client Solution, ECM Society Online Presence, Faculty Master Calendar, Form Building Tool, Event Registration, PCI Payment Forms Conversions, and several online presences for different business areas and conferences

Project Manager / BA

Everest iTech

• Promoted to Project Manager for the Showtime Models website and web application and the All Ears accounting software development project due to excellent interpersonal, communication and leadership skills in the relationships with the client and internal development team
• Led the development of several e-commerce sites (ex: SkyHook Solar, Expressive Designs Florist, JT-Autotech) and dynamic websites (ex: Mailinglist System, Informant Zone) and also helped architect their databases
• Increased the employees' knowledgebase by developing e-learning modules and user manuals for the use of the company’s payroll and accounting software
• Enhanced the online awareness of the company’s brand by 40% by creating a new content strategy and redeveloping its website in a WordPress, SEO friendly environment
• Minimized the cost of online advertising by developing free distributed widgets that increased incoming traffic by 5k visitors/ month

Project Manager / Lead Web Developer

Event Technologies

• Developed customer support standards and procedures for the company’s e-store business and helped transition a staff of 12 to this new environment through training sessions and a knowledgebase wiki.
• Minimized the installation time of new systems by 80% by creating and managing standard desktop images based on the employees’ job roles.
• Reduced search time of hardware and software information by 50% by developing a standard for filing all the technical documentation on hardware equipment and software.

IT Consultant

WGOA

• Demonstrated strong leadership skills by acting as the team leader of a software developer group in order to successfully implement and deliver an interactive Go learning application two weeks ahead of deadline and within budget.
• Coded the backend interaction of a merchandise inventory application with a barcode scanner and also contributed to developing the MySQL database and reporting. 
• Facilitated the team members to work remotely by implementing a VPN solution and integrated the use of Subversion to enable software versioning and revision control.

Software developer

💬 Founder of LightsOnData.com and LightsOnData YouTube Channel
Focused on providing informative content such as ONLINE COURSES, templates, guides, best practices, articles, white papers, and other useful resources to help you with your data governance and data management questions and challenges

💬 Creator of online courses that are engaging, new, and thorough. 
Courses: Building an Award-Winning Business Glossary, Data Governance Maturity Models, Data Governance Fundamentals, etc. - check them out here: https://www.lightsondata.com/courses/

💬 Providing LinkedIn content strategy for data-focused companies and products, as well as those with a focus on artificial intelligence (AI), business intelligence (BI, data science, data management, and data governance areas.
Connect with me today and ask how I can help you reach the data audience.

💬 Host of Lights on Data Show - a podcast and LinkedIn Live weekly show that provides insights into the data world and showcases people that help to shape it.

💬 Get some fun data merchandise here: https://shop.spreadshirt.com/lightsondata/all

💬 International key note speaker, conference speaker, and panelist (spoken at over 60 different conferences).

💬 I love being on camera, hiking, surfing, filming, and video editing
YouTube: @LightsOnData


🏛 My experience and specialties: 
• Expertise in data governance, information quality, business intelligence & data management
• Extensive background in web and application development with experience of the full life-cycle of a project
• Strong leadership capabilities, organizational and communication skills

Specialties: 
• Enterprise information management: Information quality, data governance and stewardship, master data management, business intelligence, business process improvement
• Development: Web and application development, relational database design and development
• Planning: Budget and resource planning, agile and waterfall project management, team development and leadership
• Tools and Applications: Collibra, Tableau, MS Visio, MS Project, Premiere, Photoshop

George Firican 💡

I’m at Collibra’s Data Citizens event and really enjoying the conversations and energy. The message is clear: 

Organizations need to move from BI-ready to AI-ready data, and governance has to evolve with it.

Here’s why:
✅ AI is increasing ecosystem complexity
✅ Structured and unstructured data both need visibility and trust
✅ Governance must scale everywhere across platforms, engines and workloads

So here are some available features to help with above that got me excited:

1️⃣ Data contracts for improving consistency and transparency across data products
2️⃣ Custom rules with Text2SQL to turn natural language into precise SQL data quality checks
3️⃣ Derived relations to visualize multi-hop connections and lineage
4️⃣ Semantic Model Generation Agent to automatically generate semantic layers from physical data
5️⃣ Model Context Protocol server to give copilots and AI agents real-time governed context
6️⃣ Data recommender to guide teams toward trusted, approved data
7️⃣ AI model registry for governed model lifecycle tracking
8️⃣ Automated AI traceability across Azure AI Foundry
9️⃣ Microsoft Teams & Slack integrations for better data collaboration 

A lot of impressive innovation on display today. Interviews with Collibra leaders and partners coming soon.

Until next time, let’s keep putting the Lights On Data!
-George Firican  

#data #AI #datagovernance

💡 Award Winning Data Governance Leader | Content Creator & Influencer | Founder of LightsOnData | Podcast Host: Lights On Data Show | LinkedIn Top Voice

Great energy, amazing sessions, wonderful networking here at the Big Data & Analytics West Summit.

It was a pleasure catching up with the local data community, seeing old friends, and meeting new ones.

Let’s keep putting the Lights On Data!
-George Firican  

#data #ai

There was a clear theme emerging at the Big Data and Analytics West Summit, and it showed up in the breakfast discussions, the keynote, presentations and every conversation. 👇

Reliable AI still comes down to one thing: the strength of your enterprise data foundation.

At the IBM breakfast, several roundtable discussions pointed to the same realization. As teams accelerate toward AI, the real bottleneck isn’t tooling. It is the clarity, quality, and accessibility of the data behind it.

Paul Zikopoulos, VP Technology Sales at IBM, reinforced this in his keynote. He talked about the curiosity tax that comes from gated or fragmented data, and how governance, lineage, sovereignty, and explainability aren’t administrative tasks. They are accelerators for AI.
When organizations know where data came from, how it can be used, and who owns it, the entire AI lifecycle becomes more reliable.

One point he shared stood out to me: GenAI is fundamentally an unstructured data problem. Most organizations haven’t even started unlocking the value in documents, PDFs, forms, logs, images, and everything that never makes it into a warehouse.

During my conversation with Paul, he also highlighted how leaders can start simply. Focus on automation and internal optimization use cases. Decide whether each AI initiative is meant to save money or generate money. Build from there.

Across the day, the message was consistent throughout peer discussions, panels, and other presentations. Data foundations are the reason AI works and we need to invest in getting those right. Governance, security, quality, stewardship and so much more... they all need to be in place.

How's your data foundation?

#ibmpartner #IBMCanada #data #AI

Key takeaways from Big Data Analytics West Summit

Did you know that AWS announced 60 AI Competency Partners across 3 NEW categories that will define the next era of intelligent systems:

✅ Agentic AI Applications
✅ Agentic AI Tools
✅ Agentic AI Consulting Services

These organizations represent innovation, scale and real world impact.
They are building autonomous systems, enabling smarter workflows, and helping enterprises activate their AI strategy with confidence and speed.

Do you have a favourite category or partner you are most excited about?

I will add the full list of partners in the comments so you can explore their work, follow their updates and connect with leaders who are shaping the future. 

You can also read more about all this here: https://lnkd.in/g-g7T22Z

Until next time, let’s keep putting the Lights On Data and Agentic AI.
-George Firican

#AI #agenticAI #partnerpost

Here is my recommendation for this week.
If Agentic AI is on your roadmap, checkout this ebook  👇

It breaks down what many overlook: AI success depends on the maturity of your data architecture.
Here's what else you can find in it:
• Clear explanation of what a modern, AI-ready architecture looks like
• Practical guidance on data quality, cataloging, lineage and governance
• A real example of how a bank scaled agentic AI by modernizing its foundation

So if you are leading data initiatives or planning for AI adoption, this is a good resource to read.

Until next time, let's keep putting the Lights on Data!
-George 
#data #AI #partnerpost

Modernize Data Architectures for  Agentic AI Success

Data quality starts at the source… kind of  like good coffee.

I visited a shop that roasted its own beans, and the difference was undeniable. Fresh, intentional, crafted with care.

When we source data with the same level of attention, everything that comes after becomes smoother. Analytics flow better, insights become richer, decisions become clearer.

What do you think?
Happy weekend everyone! Let’s keep putting the Lights On Data!
-George Firican 

#data #dataquality

What do you think? Is AI making Master Data Management and Data Governance obsolete... or more essential than ever?

I’m looking forward to sitting down with Bruno Billy, President of APGAR North America, and Ken Brown, Head of Customer Success, to explore how AI is reshaping MDM and Data Governance, plus...

...how these disciplines influence the success of AI itself.

From practical examples of AI-augmented governance to rethinking stewardship roles and making MDM truly AI-ready, we will unpack how leading organizations are using AI to strengthen their data foundations, not replace them.

WHEN: Dec 11 at 8 AM PT | 11 AM ET | 4 PM GMT
WHERE: Here on LinkedIn and LightsOnData YouTube channel

More details in the comments.

#datagovernance #AI #MDM

how is AI reinventing MDM and data governance

Tomorrow I’ll be at the Big Data & Analytics West Summit, and there’s something I’m genuinely looking forward to:

I love conversations that bring clarity to where data and AI are headed next, and IBM is putting a spotlight on a topic I care deeply about:
 👉 How organizations can build reliable AI by strengthening their enterprise data foundation.

A major highlight for me will be hearing Paul Zikopoulos share practical lessons and thoughtful perspectives on:
✅ Preparing enterprise data for agentic AI applications
✅ Combining retrieval approaches to improve AI reliability
✅ Real-world strategies for scaling trusted AI across teams 

Paul consistently brings insights that elevate how we think about data and AI, and I’m excited to learn from his session.

These are the kinds of insights I’m excited to learn from, explore, and share.
And of course the discussions, networking, and the exhibitor lounge where there’s always something new to discover.

You can explore the agenda here: https://lnkd.in/gkDXmrnq

If you’re attending #BDW2025, please let me know as I’d be happy to connect.
You’ll find me capturing moments throughout the day, and yes, I’ll also be hanging out at IBM’s booth as their #ibmpartner for the event.

#data #IBMCanada

IBM Big Data Analytics West George Firican

Oh wow, what a day!
Excited to have been part of the Big Data Analytics West Summit in Vancouver as an #ibmpartner for the event.

Grateful for the energizing discussions and sessions, especially the great session on preparing enterprise data for AI from Paul Zikopoulos (VP, IBM Technology Sales).

It was great catching up with fellow data professionals and having a day of learning.
Thank you again IBM! 

#AI #IBMCanada #data

What are the biggest misconceptions business leaders still have about AI?

I sat down with Stijn (Stan) Christiaens, Co-founder of Collibra, at Data Citizens to unpack what AI readiness really means for organizations. 

Here are 5 takeaways from our chat:

1. Many leaders still see AI as “a chat in the cloud.”
2. Organizations need the right foundations around AI
3. AI ready data requires more than quality
4. Unstructured data is no longer optional
5. Unified governance is becoming essential

If you want a clear picture of what it truly takes to prepare your organization for AI, this interview delivers.
Full conversation in the video below.

Until next time, let’s keep putting the Lights On Data.
-George Firican

#data #datagovernance #AI

Why are we still managing data on week-long cycles while our AI expects answers every second? 
As a data management professional, that mismatch is the bottleneck I see most often. That is why I’m paying attention to Acceldata’s Agentic Data Management.

Here’s what stood out to me after watching some of their demos:
✅ Natural language use to diagnose data quality issue AND trigger the proper fixes
✅ Autonomous agents that observe, reason, and act across your data pipelines, lineage & policies
✅ Dynamic and context aware governance that interprets regulations and applies controls to the right data
✅ A reasoning layer (xLake Architecture) that turns metadata into business meaning
✅ Learns from incidents so issues don’t repeat

If you are exploring how to make data AI ready, this is worth a look. Start here and tell me what you think of the agent driven workflow:
https://lnkd.in/gVwUQQwy

Question for you: where do you lose more time today:
1. Detection or 
2. Resolution?

Let’s keep putting the Lights On Data!

#datamanagement #AI #partner

Every December I look ahead… and this year, one prediction feels very safe:

I'll be attending Subsurface Live on December 10, coffee in hand, curious about how Agentic AI and open lakehouse patterns will shape 2026.

The agenda lines up well with questions many of us are exploring right now:
➡️ How will agent-based execution reshape data workflows?
➡️ What signals are emerging around performance, formats and multi-cloud patterns?
➡️ Where is the Apache Iceberg ecosystem pushing innovation next?

For anyone designing data systems or planning next-year priorities, this feels like a valuable moment to absorb ideas and future direction.

Registration is free: https://lnkd.in/gmDPiaES
Where: Virtual
Date: Dec 10, 2025 
Time: 8AM - 2PM PT / 4PM - 10PM GMT / 5PM - 11PM CET

See you there!

#data #AI

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George Firican 💡

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taplio

The Battle

Tiankai Feng

George Firican 💡

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Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Tiankai Feng's LinkedIn Performance

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