Making Data Simple

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420

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Oct 2026

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About the show

Hosted by Al Martin, WW VP of Technical Sales at IBM, Making Data Simple cuts through the hype to reveal how data and AI reshape the modern enterprise. Thought leaders, researchers, and innovators share firsthand lessons on leading teams, scaling analytics, and driving real-world impact—delivered in Al’s signature straightforward, witty style. Tune in to Making Data Simple today. From data and AI breakthroughs to leadership hacks, top experts drop actionable gems that help businesses thrive in a data-driven world. #MakingDataSimple #AI #Leadership

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60 recent

October 14, 202646 min

Ever wondered why brilliant CEOs sometimes seem to stall? Meet Andrea Petrone.

Send us Fan Mail Ever wondered why brilliant CEOs sometimes seem to stall? Andrea Petrone’s groundbreaking work reveals that success can actually become a trap, freezing leaders into outdated identities. In this episode we unpack Andrea’s 20+ years coaching over 250 CEOs – including those at Shell and Unilever – to understand how leaders can break free from pressure, rediscover their ‘throughline,’ and truly embody leadership. 01:20 Meet Andrea Petrone 05:54 Andrea's CEO Experience 09:25 Definition of a Leader 13:40 CEO Differentiation 22:29 Where to Start Coaching a CEO 25:47 Changes the Last 10 Years 30:32 First Tell of a Leader 33:15 Subtle, Great Leadership 38:13 Where CEOs Lie to Themselves 43:15 Ron Johnson 46:10 Reaching Andrea Petrone LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreapetrone/ Website: https://andreapetrone.com/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

October 7, 202644 min

Stop Buying AI Tools and Start Changing the Work — with Ashley Gross, Founder & CEO, AI Workforce Alliance

Send us Fan Mail Most companies have bought the AI tools. Far fewer have changed how the work actually gets done. Ashley Gross, Founder & CEO of the AI Workforce Alliance and author of The AI Workweek, joins Al Martin to close that gap. Ashley used AI to cut her own workweek from 40 hours to 15. Her AI Impact Alignment™ framework shows teams how to get there too: decide what to automate first, build a "digital staff" of agents, and give those agents the information they need to do real work. She and Al dig into what token costs and orchestration mean for your budget, when agents are ready to run on their own, and why data capture is largely solved while adoption is not. If you've been told to "do AI" and aren't sure where to begin, jump to 38:58 for the workflows Ashley recommends starting with. * 00:52 Introducing Ashley Gross * 01:52 The Book: The AI Workweek * 06:34 What to Automate First * 09:06 The Digital Staff * 12:06 Sharing of Info to Agents * 17:58 Token Affordability & Orchestration * 20:42 Autonomous Agents * 23:12 Engagement with Ashley * 27:58 Data Capture Solved, Adoption Not * 30:30 Differentiation via Outcomes * 38:58 Workflows to Start * 40:38 Reaching Ashley LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/theashleygross/ Website: https://www.aiworkforcealliance.com/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

September 30, 202646 min

Learn how to leverage your data for authentic leadership and strategic decision-making with Kate Mayne, Executive Producer of this Podcast and Coach!

Send us Fan Mail Unlock your full potential with Kate Mayne, Executive Coach and data expert! In this episode, Kate dives into the surprising ways our behaviors impact our data, offering actionable strategies for clarity and growth – insights you can put into practice today. Learn how to leverage your data for authentic leadership and strategic decision-making – explore more at www.experttoexec.com. 00:57 Meet Kate Mayne 01:55 Why and Exec Coach? 05:17 Why Pay for a Coach? 09:10 Certifications 12:10 Natural & Adaptive Behaviors 14:47 Top Coaching Tricks 32:18 Compromising Who You Are 35:24 Coaching Tricks 41:57 Recommended Books https://experttoexec.com/reading-list 42:12 AI in Coaching LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katherinemayne/ Website: www.experttoexec.com Book report: Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

September 23, 202644 min

In case you missed it....How Do You Build AI That Actually Works 99.999999% of the Time? With Tina Tarquinio Chief Product Officer of IBM Z and LinuxONE

Send us Fan Mail Dive into the powerful world of mainframes! Chief Product Officer of IBM Z and LinuxONE, Tina Tarquinio, reveals the truth behind those eight nines of uptime and explores how mainframes are evolving with AI, hybrid cloud, and future-proofing strategies for mission-critical business decisions. Discover the cutting-edge innovations transforming enterprise computing—from on-chip AIU and Spyre AI accelerators enabling real-time inferencing at transaction speed, to how LinuxONE is redefining hybrid cloud architecture. Tina discusses DevOps integration, AI-powered code assistants revolutionizing mainframe development, compelling AI use cases, and shares her bold predictions for the mainframe’s next 100 years. Plus, career advice from a tech leader and what she does for fun! 00:46 Tina Tarquinio 03:18 The Most Mainframe Surprise 09:12 What IS the Mainframe Really? 8 Nines! 14:40 On Chip AIU, Spyre Inferencing 18:11 Mainframes with Hybrid Cloud 19:11 The Linux One Pitch 19:59 Exciting Mainframe Innovations 22:09 DevOps 23:36 Code Assistants 26:03 AI Use Case 27:49 Future Proofing Decisions 37:17 Regulations 38:45 Bold Prediction 38:58 Mainframe 100 40:48 Career Advice 42:24 For Fun LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tina-tarquinio Website: https://www.ibm.com/products/z Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

September 16, 202646 min

Real Consumer Insights: Beyond the Data Hype with Lev Mazin of AYTM

Send us Fan Mail Want to cut through the noise and understand *real* consumer behavior? Lev Mazin, CEO of aytm—Ask Your Target Market—is here to challenge the hype around AI and big data. Lev’s spent over a decade connecting with 100 million consumers, revealing why human insight is more valuable than ever in a world racing towards synthetic data. 01:10 Lev Mazin 04:55 AYTM 06:52 AYTM's Differentiator 09:06 Consumer Insights Automation 12:28 Why Do Surveys Still Exist 17:50 Panels of 100M Clients 19:17 Data Quality, an Existential Crisis 24:41 Synthetic Data 27:11 Extracting Noise from Data 29:45 Big Data to Human Insights 30:58 Do ISO Certification Matter? 37:03 Irrational Behavior 41:20 Rapid Fire LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/levmazin Website: https://aytm.com/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

September 9, 202632 min

🧠 Is AI a Tool or a Teammate? — with Phanish Puranam, Professor of Strategy & Organisation Design, INSEAD {Replay}

Send us Fan Mail ICYMI — revisiting one of our most useful conversations on what AI actually does to the shape of an organization. How do we make organizations not just run — but run intelligently ? Phanish Puranam, the Roland Berger Chaired Professor of Strategy and Organisation Design at INSEAD, joins Al Martin to explore where organizational science meets artificial intelligence. Phanish studies how intelligent algorithms show up inside organizations in three distinct roles — as tools , as teammates , and as templates for organizing itself — and what actually changes when they do. We get into the research, real use cases, the pitfalls most companies walk straight into, and a contrarian argument that generating bad ideas fast may be one of the most underrated engines of innovation. Since this conversation aired, Phanish published re-Humanize: How to Build Human-Centric Organizations in the Age of Algorithms — the natural next step if this episode lands for you. Chapters 01:50 – Meet Phanish Puranam 03:36 – Organizational Design 08:39 – Where is Org Design Today 12:41 – A Research Example 15:59 – Technologies as Tools & Teammates 17:54 – A Real Use Case Example 20:30 – The Metaverse, Eliminate Bad Ideas Fast 21:28 – Pitfalls 23:30 – Use Case Deep Dive 30:06 – The Power Structure Connect with Phanish Puranam LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/phanishpuranam INSEAD Profile: insead.edu/faculty/phanish-puranam Book: re-Humanize: How to Build Human-Centric Organizations in the Age of Algorithms Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

September 2, 202646 min

Why Physical Stores Aren't Dying — with Ron Johnson, Creator of the Apple Store and Author of Shop Different

Send us Fan Mail We dive into the surprising wisdom of retail with Ron Johnson — creator of the original Apple Store, founder of Enjoy Technology, and author of Shop Different . Johnson challenges conventional thinking about the future of physical spaces, arguing that the human element — and the power of design — will always be crucial. AND, "The most important person is in front of you," a life lesson. 02:31 Ron Johnson! 05:42 The Apple Store 08:39 MSFT vs Apple 10:39 The Design 14:37 The Restart 20:15 Kindness 24:18 The Genius Bar 27:37 What If? 31:36 Why a Physical Store? 35:17 Client Service 38:50 JCPenney Coupons 41:32 Retail in the Future 43:40 Shop Different LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shopdifferent Website: https://ronjohnsonshopsdifferent.com/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

August 26, 202645 min

AGI in Six Months? Here's How That Prediction Aged — with Phillip Swan, Chief Product & GTM Officer, The AI Solution Group {replay}

Send us Fan Mail Phillip Swan is a dynamic, forward-thinking leader renowned for turning complex challenges into strategic opportunities. As Chief Product and Go-to-Market (GTM) Officer at The AI Solution Group, Phillip blends customer-centric go-to-market strategies with cutting-edge product development, leadership, and partnerships. 01:19 Meet Phillip Swan 03:33 Wind River Systems 07:30 Responsible AI Solutions 08:25 3 Key Areas: Manufacturing, Financial, Pharma 10:22 AI on Quicksand 11:30 AGI in 6 Months. Seriously? 13:08 The Definition of AGI 14:32 A Responsible AI Culture 19:51 Is Regulation the Catalyst? 21:57 AI Change Management 24:24 Phillip and the AI Group 25:33 AI Solution Group 29:16 Achieving Responsible AI 30:36 Clean Data 36:16 What Scares the Responsible AI Guy 39:36 Shadow AI 40:54 A Summary LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phillip-swan/ Website: https://www.theaisolutiongroup.ai/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

August 19, 202651 min

Big Episode: IBM's AI Operating Model, Death by Powerpoint, and Behavioral Economics

Send us Fan Mail This episode unpacks IBM's ambitious AI Operating Model. We dig into everything from sales training strategies to architecture advantage, drawing on insights gathered through instrumented training programs. 01:44 Meeting The Team 04:17 Architecture Advantage 13:06 Death by PowerPoint 17:08 Behavioral Economics 24:28 Your Biggest Competitor 26:04 Statistics You Should Know 28:28 The AI Operating Model 29:50 Breaking Down the Op Model 35:01 IBM Differentiation 38:20 Sales Training Advice 42:30 Rapid Fire LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-hintermeister/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/dirkderoos/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/cwkirby/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.

August 12, 202639 min

In case you missed it.... Live Data, Smarter AI with Snow Leopard founder Deepti Srivastava {Replay}

Send us Fan Mail What if AI could tap into live operational data — without ETL or RAG? In this episode, Deepti Srivastava, founder of Snow Leopard, reveals how her company is transforming enterprise data access with intelligent data retrieval, semantic intelligence, and a governance-first approach. Tune in for a fresh perspective on the future of AI and the startup journey behind it. We explore how companies are revolutionizing their data access and AI strategies. Deepti Srivastava, founder of Snow Leopard , shares her insights on bridging the gap between live operational data and generative AI — and how it’s changing the game for enterprises worldwide. We dive into Snow Leopard’s innovative approach to data retrieval, semantic intelligence, and governance-first architecture . 04:54 Meeting Deepti Srivastava 14:06 AI with No ETL, no RAG 17:11 Snow Leopard's Intelligent Data Fetching 19:00 Live Query Challenges 21:01 Snow Leopard's Secret Sauce 22:14 Latency 23:48 Schema Changes 25:02 Use Cases 26:06 Snow Leopard's Roadmap 29:16 Getting Started 33:30 The Startup Journey 34:12 A Woman in Technology 36:03 The Contrarian View 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thedeepti/ 🔗 Website: https://www.snowleopard.ai/ Want to be featured as a guest on Making Data Simple? Reach out to us at almartintalksdata@gmail.com and tell us why you should be next. The Making Data Simple Podcast is hosted by Al Martin, WW VP Technical Sales, IBM, where we explore trending technologies, business innovation, and leadership ... while keeping it simple & fun.