Top 5 reasons to attend U of T’s Data Dragons Competition

Word Data Dragons on top of abstract dragon.

Kevin O’Leary might not be there to offer words of wisdom, but U of T’s own dragons will choose the winner of the Data Dragons Competition – an event where brave competitors will pitch their data science and business intelligence ideas to a panel of judges.

Join Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration (ITS) and Planning & Budget on July 5 as six staff and faculty take centre stage and try to convince the dragons that their ideas should become reality. The winning pitch will become a sponsored project.

“This competition is an opportunity for the outstanding analysts in our community to turn data assets into information that will make the U of T experience even better for our students, faculty, and staff,” says Trevor Rodgers, assistant vice president of Planning & Budget and one of the dragons.

U of T is quickly becoming a leader in business intelligence, which is the process of analyzing and visualizing data to make fact-based decisions. In addition to the competition, staff can tap into the power of business intelligence through the Institutional Data Hub – a rich repository of data relating to teaching, research and service activities.

Here are the top five reasons why you should attend:

  1. Learn something new beyond your specific field of interest, including data visualization, predictive analytics, machine learning and data management.
  2. Gain motivation from the presentations to implement a business intelligence solution in your area, and brainstorm ideas for the next competition.
  3. Meet new people with similar interests, or potential collaborators for your next project.
  4. Stay relevant with the latest technology and data trends and stay up to date with your peers and industry trends.
  5. Learn from presentations, including how to withstand the pressure of the powerful Dragons!

Register Now! Space is limited.

Who
The Data Dragons Panel:
Judith Chadwick – Assistant Vice-President, Research Services
Cathy Eberts – ‎Executive Director, Enterprise Applications and Solutions Integration
Heather Kelly – Senior Director, Student Success
Richard Levin – Executive Director, Enrolment Services and University Registrar
Susan McCahan – Vice-Provost, Innovations in Undergraduate Education and Vice-President, Academic Programs
Trevor Rodgers – Assistant Vice-President, Planning & Budget

Pitchers:
Andrea Armstrong – Senior Policy Advisor, Enrolment Services
Anita Chooraman & Paul Nakonechny – HR Assistant & HR Advisor, HR Strategic Initiatives
Dr. Mahan Kulasegaram – Assistant Professor, Department of Family and Community Medicine
Joseph Peter McNamara – UTSC: Office of Business, Operations & Strategic Affairs
Mari Motrich – UTSC: Office of the Registrar

When
July 5, 2018
9 – 11:30 a.m.

Where
Governing Council Chamber (Room 214)
27 King’s College Circle
University of Toronto
M5S 1A1