2025 Analytics Symposium - Pittsburgh

To open the day, IIA CEO Jack Phillips sits down with Mike Bennett, Highmark Health’s chief strategy and transformation officer, to discuss how data, analytics, and AI power the enterprise agenda. Bennett will cover high-value application areas and their measurable outcomes, how the D&A business case has evolved, where value is shifting, and the role analytics plays in strategy and execution. 

Enterprises are quick to badge every initiative as “GenAI,” but real impact still depends on the foundations: proven modeling, statistical analysis, and machine learning. This session reframes the hype, showing how to balance traditional analytics with emerging AI capabilities to maximize value. Attendees will gain practical guidance through a new use case prioritization and decision tree framework—helping leaders sort when to apply rules-based automation, advanced analytics, ML, LLMs, or agentic AI. With this perspective, leaders can better prioritize initiatives, align solutions to real business needs, and position analytics more effectively in an AI-saturated landscape. 

Master data management and data catalogs are only valuable when they solve real problems. In this roundtable session, IIA Expert Brigitte Tebow will facilitate a discussion on tying MDM and catalogs to priority use cases, avoiding “boil-the-ocean” ROI studies, and validating benefits with industry benchmarks. Attendees will explore practical measures of progress and how to layer AI governance so trusted master data becomes the engine for safe, scalable AI. 

In IIA’s view, a federated analytics operating model is the most appropriate end-state for mature (or maturing) analytics organizations operating at enterprise scale. In this roundtable session, IIA Expert Keith Moody will facilitate a small group discussion on selling federated analytics to senior leadership, structuring and evolving federated operating agreements, managing product ownership and resource allocation, and measuring success—even if you’re just getting started.

Traditional finance models fall short when capturing and communicating the value of enterprise analytics. Worse, trying to draw a hard line between ROI and AI-centric initiatives means they’re joining the infamous “95% failure rate” club before they’ve had a chance to reveal their gifts. In this roundtable session, IIA Expert Tuell Green will facilitate a discussion on balancing long-term investments with short-term wins, evolving ROI conversations with business leaders, ROI ownership, and approaches to how strategic bets are made and evaluated.

As CEO of Uptake, an AI-driven maintenance platform for industry fleets, Adam McElhinney applies his years of experience leading data science and AI teams. McElhinney will share his end-to-end AI framework for successful intake, deployment, and integration of AI projects, while illuminating failure points and how he overcame them. This session will help you develop your AI roadmap and avoid common mistakes this AI leader has made when honing their craft, from technical challenges to change management.     

Siva Nallusamy, executive director and head of data and AI platforms at Boeing, will share Boeing’s GenAI journey—from an early global scale-up to the enterprise-wide platform, governance, and organizational changes that make it valuable. The session demonstrates Boeing’s focus on measurable business outcomes and practical lessons learned, providing attendees actionable guidance for deploying GenAI solutions responsibly in large, regulated organizations. 

Responsible AI at scale starts with designing governance within the context of your company’s history, culture, operations, and the “why” behind AI implementation. This panel of responsible AI practitioners and experts grounds that principle in practice for large enterprises: clear ownership and definitions, user-centered controls that fit daily workflows, and integration with security, privacy, and operations so every action is compliant by default. This discussion will translate emerging regulation into working controls, from documentation and lineage to model monitoring and incident response, and show how to measure reliability and business value. Panelists will also address the fast-moving shift from GenAI assistants to agentic AI workflows, the implications to AI governance, and key considerations for D&A leaders. 

End the day with a relaxing cocktail hour! The event will take place off-site, at Gaucho Parrilla Argentina, 146 6th St, Pittsburgh, PA 15222.