About the Webinar
A Women in Data Management & Governance Webinar
Danette McGilvray is one of the most influential figures in modern data management and the creator of the widely adopted Ten Steps™ approach to data quality and governance. As President and Principal of Granite Falls Consulting, she’s spent her career helping organizations get more value from their data. It’s the foundation of her book, Executing Data Quality Projects: Ten Steps to Quality Data and Trusted Information™, now in its second edition, translated into Chinese and Japanese with a Spanish edition underway, taught in graduate programs, and regarded as a classic of the field.
But Danette’s impact has never been about frameworks alone. She’s known for the part of data work that’s harder to systematize — the communication, the change management, the human engagement that carries an initiative through, whether it’s security, analytics, AI, or compliance.
In this installment of Leading with Purpose, Danette sits down with Kelle O’Neal, CEO of First San Francisco Partners, for a wide-ranging conversation about the career, the convictions, and the lessons behind her work. Come for the perspective of a leader who’s shaped how the field thinks about data quality. Stay for the honesty of two women talking candidly about what it takes to do this work well.
About the Speakers
An internationally respected expert, Danette McGilvray is known for her Ten Steps™ approach, used by multiple industries as a proven method for increasing the value of data through quality and governance. It applies to operational processes and focused initiatives such as security, analytics, digital transformation, AI, and compliance. Danette guides leaders and staff as they connect business strategy to practical steps for implementation.
As president and principal of Granite Falls Consulting, Inc., Danette is committed to the appropriate and effective use of technology and addressing the human aspect of data management through communication, change management, and engaging with people.
Danette is the author of Executing Data Quality Projects: Ten Steps to Quality Data and Trusted Information™, 2nd Ed. (Elsevier/Academic Press, 2021), often noted as a “classic”, one of the “top ten” data management books, and used as a textbook in university graduate programs. Chinese and Japanese translations are available, with the Spanish translation underway.
Kelle O’Neal is the founder and CEO of data consulting firm First San Francisco Partners (FSFP). She’s a veteran industry leader and accomplished advisor and a noted speaker, author and trainer.
Kelle is passionate about helping organizations realize the business value of data. Kelle’s strong background in customer relationship management, enterprise software and systems integration uniquely positions her to excel in helping organizations of all sizes and complexities successfully execute data governance, organizational change management, master data management and other information management initiatives.
Kelle developed her ability to work through organizational complexity, build consensus and drive results in senior roles at companies that include U.S.-based firms GoldenGate Software, Siebel Systems and Oracle. She also worked at the executive level in Europe and Asia.
Under Kelle’s leadership of First San Francisco Partners, the firm’s client base has grown significantly since 2007, as has its management, consulting and support teams.
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