• I built and managed bespoke high-performing teams to solve complex data and machine learning problems.
  • Technical advisor for personalising conversational agents using NLP for improved customer satisfaction (+83%) and retention (+77%).

Throughout leading dozens of projects and interfacing with spectrums of departments, my overall style is to distil business problems into practical solutions, establish expectations regularly, and anticipate flexibility. I instil trust, transparency, and initiative in my teams to enable us to grasp opportunities, try new things, and learn from failures quickly. I effectively communicate with stakeholders due to my empathetic people-driven approach to leadership and my rapid information-to-impact time. My experience navigating uncertainty into insight in a team-orientated manner can enhance existing avenues and guide new adventures. My passion for empowering people makes me an effective leader and force multiplier in organisations, whether leading or supporting.

Notable projects

  • Mamba Insights - Led a team to develop a real-time CNN-based computer vision analysis dashboard for activity assessment across 6 factories and 100s of cameras simultaneously. Operationalised state-of-the-art machine learning models and built full-stack infrastructure.

  • DoYouRace - Designed, developed, and deployed the backend for a cycle race tracking app to provide real-time insight for racers, spectators, and organisers.

  • Offerzen | Make Team – part-time Developer Coach, or “Make Master”, to guide developers in exploring innovative technologies (Insurance AR, IoT & Robots, Insurance API & Chatbot) in a fun and rewarding experience. Coached 100s of developers from diverse technology backgrounds, regularly wrote for their blog, and have grown the “Make” community.

  • Mercedes-Benz South Africa – Successfully formed a team for the Mercedes-Benz LaunchLab contest, winning $15,000 seed money for a CNN-based computer vision solution to identify dents and scratches. Spun out with a dedicated team.

  • Number Boost – consulting data scientist on diverse projects including consumer behaviour analysis in big SA banks, cryptocurrency trading algorithms focused on regime switching, and implementing biplot analysis for peering into “black box” algorithms.

  • Q Division - Collaborated in a cross-functional team to deliver a bespoke high-end travel proof-of-concept that resulted in a multi-million dollar deal with Comair Ltd. to form a new company.

  • iXperience – teaching assistant for the artificial intelligence and data science course, taught by local leaders in the field (e.g. Head of AI for Vodafone Africa).

  • NovaCode - Four-man team of developers that aimed to make great software. We managed to learn a lot from our failures on our internal projects to produce great wins for clients; increasing their revenue by 22%. Accepted into the “Seed Academy” start-up bootcamp, sponsored by Microsoft BizSpark, and attended “Lab2Market” cross-university course for biotechnology.