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For about a decade, data science and analytics have been actively deployed in all fields, including governance. Governments across countries are hiring AI/ML experts to bring out the best in decision makers of the countries.
AIM has compiled a list of the heads of data science and analytics of governments in various leading countries.
Denice Ross – Chief Data Scientist, White House, USA
Previously, a senior fellow at the National Conference of Citizenship, Denice Ross now serves as the Chief Data Scientist at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. She is a public-interest technology expert and has worked in various roles related to policy, environment, and technology.
Ross’ responsibilities include developing strategies for monitoring and maximising the social return on government data, recruiting data scientists for public service, and collaborating with agencies to engage in best practices for data management.
Jonathan Roberts – Deputy Director & Chief Data Scientist, Ministry of Justice, UK
After working for the Department of Energy and Climate Change as a government analyst, Jonathan Roberts joined the Ministry of Justice of UK to become the Chief Data Scientist, and has worked with the government of UK for over a decade now.
Since joining MoJ in 2015, Roberts has been focusing on operational data, open-source tools, and providing high-quality data for the government.
Stephen Burt – Chief Data Officer, Canada
The Canadian government appointed Stephen Burt as the Chief Data Officer in March to oversee the national-level data of the federal government of Canada. Burt has worked at the Department of National Defence and as an intelligence analyst at the Privy Council Office.
Burt drives the analytics adoption in the government and expanding data governance. With his help, the government of Canada is building skills and implementing new strategies through data science to improve operations and decision-making.
Henri Verdier – Ambassador for Digital Affairs, France
An entrepreneur and digital specialist, Verdier has worked as State Chief of Technology of France and French State Chief Data Officer. Currently, he leads the Digital Affairs of the French government as a new ambassador.
Verdier was the head of Etalab, the French agency for Public Open Data, where he launched the first open portal for the French government. He is also responsible for creating 50 French State-supported startups by implementing beta.gouv.fr and joining the Open Government Partnership.
Agate Ponder-Sutton – Chief Data Scientist, Ministry of Education, New Zealand
Exploring great things that can be done using data science in education, Agate became the Chief Data Scientist at the Ministry of Education of New Zealand. She has been contributing for years in the Women in Data Science and had previously run a machine learning operations team at Chorus.
Agate has been exploring the use of data science in various fields like customer marketing, finance, health, biology, and the energy sector while working for various organisations that were also awarded by AWS for their work.
Akhilesh Jha – Head of Data and Strategy Unit, DST, India
Specialising in e-governance, disaster management, and diplomacy, Akhilesh Jha is leading innovations at the Department of Science & Technology (DST) of Government of India for a year now. He has been working with DST for almost a decade now and with different government departments for a long time.
In 1997, Jha founded Nav Utthan, a computer literacy programme for rural and slum areas of India. He has also been a professor at National Institute of Finance Management and has done M.A. in Mass Communication from Delhi University and another Masters in Hindi from JNU, New Delhi.
Ian Oppermann – Chief Data Scientist, NSW Govt (New South Wales)
With 27 years of experience, Ian leads the Department of Customer Service with his background in machine learning and artificial intelligence. He is also a regular speaker on ‘Big Data’ at the Digital Economy.
He holds a PhD in Philosophy from Sydney University, and an MBA from the University of London. He is also the president of Australian Committee at IEC and is a member of various communities like Royal Society of NSW, IEEE, and Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering.
Abraham (Avi) J. Domb – Chief Scientist, Ministry of Science and Technology, Israel
Domb joined the Biological Institute in Nes-Ziona in 1987 and was also the head of Drug Delivery Laboratories at Nova Pharmaceutical Corporation in Baltimore. He is the Chief Scientist in the Ministry of Science and Technology since 2021 and also a co-founder of Nexocarp.
He is also a professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem where he teaches medicinal chemistry. Domb was also the Head of Division of Identification and Forensic Sciences with Israel Police.
Sachin Tonk – Deputy Chief Data Officer, GovTech, Singapore
A passionate technologist, who has been storytelling with data for over 19 years, Sachin has been making innovations using his knowledge of automation, AI, and data analytics. He has previously worked as the Director of Data Privacy & Operations at Standard Chartered Bank.
After studying Master of Computer Applications from the Institute of Management Technology in Ghaziabad, he pursued Global EMBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management. He also holds a tech podcast on his website talking about data science and AI/ML.
