Paul Zikopoulos is an award-winning professional writer and speaker who’s been consulted on the topic of AI and big data by the popular TV show 60 Minutes. At the time this book was written, Paul was IBM’s VP of Skills Vitality and Enablement for its Technology Sales group, which encompasses its entire portfolio of software and hardware.
Paul’s been named to dozens of global “Experts to Follow” and “Influencers” lists, including Analytics Insight’s “Top 100 Global AI & Big Data Influencers.” Paul’s written 21 books (including The AI Ladder and three “For Dummies” titles) and over 360 articles during his accidental 26-year career as a data nerd. Paul leads from the front, owning accountability and strategic direction in a “tech years are like dog years” world for the entire IBM Technology Unit’s (all IBM software and hardware) sales, tech sales, and partner ecosystem learning journeys and upskilling programs.
You’ll find Paul taking a very active role around women in technology (he’s a seated board member for Women 2.0, who he became involved with after his tweet was mentioned on the TV show, The View), general workplace inclusivity (completing an intensive D&I certificate at Cornell University), and a sponsor of Coding for Veterans Canada. In addition, Paul sits on the world recognized Masters of Management Analytics & AI program boards at Canada’s prestigious Queen’s University.
Paul’s always keeping with his grass roots—a newbie with no computer courses before coming to IBM. He knows on his dumbest days he’s never as dumb as he feels, and on his smartest days, he’s never as smart as he feels either. Ultimately, Paul is trying to figure out the world according to Chloë—who competitively rides a horse he insisted be show-named “Better than a Boyfriend.” Follow him on Twitter at @BigData_paulz.
Christopher Bienko is a data enthusiast, photographer, and outdoorsman. Raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia and now calling both San Francisco, CA and Jackson Hole, WY home, he’s the author of several publications on modern database and analytics technologies, including Big Data Beyond the Hype (McGraw-Hill) and multiple IBM RedBooks. His specializations in database-as-a-service and distributed cloud computing have made him a trusted advisor to hundreds of global marketplace customers, as they look to transform legacy business services into cloud native and AI-ready applications. As a principal within IBM’s Worldwide Technology Sales organization, he supports enterprises in their adoption of multicloud platforms and modernization strategies with Red Hat OpenShift, IBM Cloud Paks, and open source tools. When not in front of clients, you can always find him behind the lens of a camera.
Chris Backer is the Business Unit Executive (BUE) for IBM’s Systems Software and Hybrid Cloud Platform where he leads global client adoption. He and his team of Solution Engineers are helping clients from all industries around the globe design and implement digital transformation strategies that incorporate secure hybrid multicloud capabilities. A 21-year veteran in the IT industry, Chris has spent his career focused on helping clients increase their competitive advantage through innovative use of automation, analytics, and cloud technology.
Chris was previously the BUE for the IBM Watson Customer Engagement team where he led Solution Engineering for its Marketing and Behavioral Analytics portfolio. He led the transition from delivering traditional on-premises capabilities to entirely SaaS-based offerings for IBM clients.
Chris has also led several Tiger Teams within IBM whose sole purpose was to bring new and emerging technology capabilities to market. His experience building and leading innovative first-of-a-kind technology projects spans across datacenter automation, mobile application development, IoT, connected vehicle, behavioral analytics, fraud analytics, and now hybrid cloud.
An avid outdoorsman, Chris enjoys spending his free time exploring all that nature has to offer and when he isn’t immersed in technology you will find him in a Jeep traversing trail systems that offer breathtaking views and challenging obstacles along the route.
Chris Konarski is a thought leader with 20+ years in technology. He is known for his innovative approaches to technology sales and execution with an emphasis on helping customers unleash speed and innovation through digital transformation. He has worked throughout his career in the most challenging, high-profile sales and technical leadership roles in recognition of his innovation, culture building, and consistency of results. He has achieved outstanding success developing new business models leveraging technology, services, and solutions to help customers use technology as a competitive advantage.
Chris has repeatedly demonstrated the ability to develop and lead talented teams, accelerate go-to-market capabilities, and develop modern approaches—supporting rapid growth for world-class technology enterprise business units at IBM. His deep technical expertise and passionate leadership experience spans many areas: manufacturing, development, infrastructure, software, security, AI, and hybrid cloud.
Chris currently serves as Vice President of Technical Sales for IBM, where he has led the global technical sales for all business units. Chris has an MBA from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a BSc in Chemical Engineering from New Jersey Institute of Technology. To balance his love for tech, he is an avid outdoorsman with a passion for nature, so if you can’t reach him then he is likely off the grid chasing elk or 100 miles offshore catching tuna. Connect with Chris on LinkedIn to learn more.
Sai Vennam is a Solutions Architect at Amazon Web Services, but started his career at IBM as a developer, developer advocate, and product manager for nearly eight years. As an advocate of containers, Kubernetes, and everything under the sun cloud-native, he aims to grow adoption by creating digital content such as “lightboard” videos on YouTube. Chances are if you’ve looked into hybrid cloud or containers on YouTube, you’ve seen his face! In addition, he’s developed free innovative lab experiences to teach Kubernetes and OpenShift.
His love for tech continues into his personal life, where he builds custom smart home automation with IoT devices. His metric of success is achieved when his wife learns and actually uses the home automation! In addition, he loves to cook Indian food and attend music shows and festivals.