Meet the Experts

Thomas H. Davenport
Author and President's Distinguished Professor
Babson College

Thomas H. Davenport is the President's Distinguished Professor of Information Technology and Management at Babson College and co-directs research for the Business Analytics research program at nGenera (formerly BSG Concours). He is the former director of research centers at Accenture, Ernst & Young, and McKinsey, and has taught at Harvard Business School, Dartmouth's Tuck School of Business, and the University of Texas at Austin.

Davenport is a frequent contributor to Harvard Business Review and other leading journals; his “Competing on Analytics” article was Harvard Business Review’s most-requested article reprint of 2006. Davenport is the author or co-author of 12 books, including the best-sellers Working Knowledge: How Organizations Manage What They Know, and Process Innovation: Reengineering Work Through Information Technology. His latest book, Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning, has become a best-seller and is being translated into 10 languages.

David Hogan
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer
National Retail Federation

David Hogan was named SVP and CIO for NRF, the world's largest retail trade association, in 2002. He directs numerous internal and retail industry IT initiatives and manages NRF's CIO Council, a committee of retailing's most-prominent chief information officers. Hogan also provides oversight for the Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS), dedicated to creating an international, barrier-free technology environment for retailers.

Prior to joining NRF, he served as Vice President and CIO of international retailer Duty Free Americas and held senior-level positions with The Limited Inc. and footwear retailer The Kobacker Company.

Darryl McDonald
Chief Marketing Officer
Teradata Corporation

As Chief Marketing Officer for Teradata, Darryl McDonald is responsible for providing strategic direction for Teradata products, solutions and services, and presenting the Teradata brand worldwide to ensure its continued leadership in enterprise data warehousing. McDonald has more than 26 years of experience in sales, consulting, marketing and senior management in the high-tech sector. Known as a dynamic leader who is committed to delivering innovation, McDonald has deep industry and business expertise as well as a broad knowledge of the global marketplace.

Lori Schafer
Executive Adviser, Global Retail Practice
SAS

As Executive Advisor to the Global Retail Practice at SAS, Lori Schafer focuses on product strategy and strategic retail industry and customer partnerships. Prior to assuming this role, she served as Vice President of the Global Retail Practice from 2003 – 2007. Schafer was instrumental in creating, growing and leading SAS’ retail business on a global basis, and bringing SAS to the leadership position in the retail intelligence market.

Schafer has 23 years of experience in retail/consumer packaged goods and 18 years of experience managing software development companies focusing on retail application and infrastructure software. Schafer was Chairman and CEO of Marketmax Inc. from 1996 until 2003, when it was acquired by SAS.