Faculty

Gary Urton is the Dumbarton Oaks Professor of Pre-Columbian Studies in the Department of Anthropology at Harvard University. His research focuses on a variety of topics in pre-Columbian and early colonial Andean cultural and intellectual history, drawing on materials and methods in archaeology, ethnohistory, and ethnology. He is the author of many articles and of numerous books and edited volumes on Andean/Quechua cultures and Inka civilization, including many single author books.

Kirk Borne is a Data Science Fellow at Booz Allen Hamilton. Prior to that, Dr. Borne was a professor of astrophysics and computational science at George Mason University for 12 years, where he did research and taught students in the undergraduate and graduate data science programs. Prior to that, Dr. Borne spent nearly 20 years supporting data systems activities for NASA space science missions, including a role as NASA's Archive Project Scientist for the Hubble Space Telescope.

Alberto Cairo is a journalist and designer, and the Knight Chair in Visual Journalism at the School of Communication of the University of Miami (UM). He is also the director of the visualization program at UM’s Center for Computational Science. He has been head of information graphics at media publications in Spain and Brazil. The author of several books such as 'How Charts Lie' (2019) and 'The Truthful Art; (2016), Cairo currently consults with companies and institutions like Google, and has provided visualization training to the European Union, and more.

From Monk and International Retreat Master in a secluded mountain monastery to corporate boardrooms as President, COO and Sr. Sales VP in media, marketing and advertising enterprises. For over 30 years Jay has helped high achievers and brand leading companies win more of what they want. He has worked with some of the most powerful brands and category leaders on the planet. His company WinThinking, leverages behavioral, emotional & organizational intelligence to exceed desired results. WinThinking is a Channel Partner for The Ken Blanchard companies and is certified to deliver internationally, programs for leaders, managers, teams and change. Jay is member of the Forbes Coaches Council and is a regular contributor, publishing practical insights, and solutions facing today’s business leaders. He is certified in Behavioral, Motivational, EQ and Acumen based assessments as well as Mediation. He is also a former Vistage Chair.

Gebhard Rainer, CEO at Sandals Resorts International, has more than 35 years’ international experience in the hotel industry, having lived and worked in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, the United States and the Caribbean. A hospitality veteran with global operations and international finance experience, he served more than 20 years at Hyatt Hotels Corporation, including 2 years as executive vice president and CFO. From 2014 to 2016, he served as president and Chief Operating Officer for the luxury brand Coach.

Emilio Isom is a highly experienced analytics and business intelligence leader who has worked in industries spanning automotive, supply chain & logistics as well as consumer goods manufacturing. In his current role he serves as the Senior Director of Analytics where he is responsible for creating enterprise analytic capabilities for the Cox Automotive Sales function. Always continuing to learn and “sharpen the saw”, he is currently pursuing his Masters in Analytics at Georgia Tech.

Howard Dresner is founder and Chief Research Officer at Dresner Advisory Services, and Chair of the Real Business Intelligence Conference. He is one of the foremost thought leaders in BI and performance management, having coined the term “Business Intelligence” in 1989. He has published two books on the subject, The Performance Management Revolution – Business Results through Insight and Action and Profiles in Performance – Business Intelligence Journeys and the Roadmap for Change.

Jim Ericson is Vice President and Research Director with Dresner Advisory Services. Jim has served as a consultant and journalist who studies end-user management practices and industry trending in the data and information management fields. From 2004 to 2013 he was the editorial director at Information Management magazine (formerly DM Review), where he created architectures for user and industry coverage for hundreds of contributors across the breadth of the data and information management industry.

Chris von Simson is a Research Director at Dresner Advisory Services. Previously, he was vice president of customer engagement at MicroStrategy, Inc., where he managed the strategy, research, development, and implementation of programs to create a bond between the software organization and its end user constituents. Prior to his career in high tech, Mr. von Simson was a Course Leader at Amersham and Wycombe College in England.

Bill Hostmann is a Research Fellow with Dresner Advisory Services. His area of focus includes trends in Analytic Data Infrastructures (ADI) - integrating and managing the information and information models used by BI, Advanced Analytics and CPM/PM applications. Bill has more than 20 years of product management experience at the intersection of business intelligence/analytics and data analytics infrastructure, including positions in product and general management at Gemstone Systems, Informix, and Informatica. He spent 14 years as a research analyst at Gartner, including several years as a VP and Distinguished Analyst for BI/Analytics. Bill served as conference chair of the Gartner BI/Analytics Conference for many years, growing the number of conference attendees from hundreds to several thousand attendees

Brian Wood is a Research Director with Dresner Advisory Services. Brian has over 30 years in the consulting, systems integration, and software business, working with multinational clients that ranged from Financial Services, Consumer Packaged Goods, Life Sciences, and Manufacturing. Brian was a Research Director and Analyst at Gartner covering CRM, Architecture and Integration, “Governance, Risk, and Compliance” (GRC), and Corporate Performance Management (CPM). Brian holds a BS in Finance and an MBA in International Business from the University of Rhode Island (URI).

Elizabeth is a Research Associate at Dresner Advisory Services and has 9 years of experience in business intelligence, data visualization, KPI development, report preparation, account reconciliations, process improvement, and documentation. Prior to her time with Dresner Advisory, Elizabeth was an Investment Banking Operations Finance & Control Associate at Goldman Sachs where she designed key performance indicator packages for the global investment banking operations team.

Fred Isbell is a Research Director for Dresner Advisory Services. He was formerly with SAP Global Marketing as Senior Marketing Director & BMO Lead for SAP Leonardo, SAP Digital Business Services and HANA Enterprise Cloud. He also led SAP Services North America Field Marketing, SAP Services Thought Leadership, services Field Engagement programs and Channels Marketing for SAP Small and Midsize Enterprises (SME). Fred held a variety of senior solutions and services marketing roles with Compaq and Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), including partner, Internet solutions and services and Business Intelligence (BI) and Data Warehouse solutions marketing. Prior to that he was a Senior Marketing Analytics Consultant for Burke Marketing Services and Information Resources Inc. (IRI). He is a graduate of Yale University with a BA in Economics and Political Science with honors and has an MBA from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business where he was named a Fuqua Scholar and received the Fuqua Alumni Exemplary Leadership Award.

Brian Lett is a Research Director with Dresner Advisory Services. He has 30 years experience in the IT industry, including 11 years at Gartner, where he supported the organizations research around business intelligence, the electronic workplace, content management, and operations management technologies. During this time he created and implemented Gartners real-time analysis program and led and created content strategies for Gartner Research.