Denis Batalov, Worldwide Technical Leader, ML and AI
AWS
AWS
As an 18-year Amazon veteran and a PhD in Machine Learning, Denis worked on such exciting projects as Search Inside the Book, Amazon Mobile apps and Kindle Direct Publishing. Since 2013 he has helped AWS customers adopt AI/ML technology as a Solutions Architect. Currently, Denis is a Worldwide Tech Leader for AI/ML responsible for the functioning of AWS ML Specialist Solutions Architects globally. He is also personally focusing on advancing the practice of Responsible AI by contributing to ISO and EU standardization efforts in that space. Denis is a frequent public speaker; you can follow him on X: @dbatalov.
AWS
AWS
As an 18-year Amazon veteran and a PhD in Machine Learning, Denis worked on such exciting projects as Search Inside the Book, Amazon Mobile apps and Kindle Direct Publishing. Since 2013 he has helped AWS customers adopt AI/ML technology as a Solutions Architect. Currently, Denis is a Worldwide Tech Leader for AI/ML responsible for the functioning of AWS ML Specialist Solutions Architects globally. He is also personally focusing on advancing the practice of Responsible AI by contributing to ISO and EU standardization efforts in that space. Denis is a frequent public speaker; you can follow him on X: @dbatalov.
Prof. Kanishka Bhattacharya, Data Science Expert Partner
Bain & Company
Data Science Expert Partner
Kanishka is an Expert Partner at Bain n Company specialising in building GenerativeAI powered applications and providing strategic advice on AI/GenAI topics to a range of organisations in financial services and private equity. In partnership with OpenAI, Kanishka and team have delivered 200+ GenAI applications globally each driving measurable business value in pilots and scaled deployment. He started his career as an academic at Oxford University where we worked on Bioinformatics and Statistical Genomics, specifically computationally efficient algorithms for large scale human genomic studies. He has since worked for a few Hedge Funds as a quant (high frequency trading) focused on US equities and FX spot rates, before joining consulting. He has continued to teach Statistics/ Machine Learning for the last 16 years, at Oxford University and London Business School. He holds a Masters and DPhil in Applied Statistics from Oxford University, UK.
Bain & Company
Data Science Expert Partner
Kanishka is an Expert Partner at Bain n Company specialising in building GenerativeAI powered applications and providing strategic advice on AI/GenAI topics to a range of organisations in financial services and private equity. In partnership with OpenAI, Kanishka and team have delivered 200+ GenAI applications globally each driving measurable business value in pilots and scaled deployment. He started his career as an academic at Oxford University where we worked on Bioinformatics and Statistical Genomics, specifically computationally efficient algorithms for large scale human genomic studies. He has since worked for a few Hedge Funds as a quant (high frequency trading) focused on US equities and FX spot rates, before joining consulting. He has continued to teach Statistics/ Machine Learning for the last 16 years, at Oxford University and London Business School. He holds a Masters and DPhil in Applied Statistics from Oxford University, UK.
Inbal Budowski-Tal, Senior Director of AI/ML
Pendo
Senior Director of AI/ML
Dr. Inbal Budowski-Tal joined Pendo 3 years ago to establish the Machine Learning department at Pendo. She spearheaded multiple AI projects during her tenure and contributed to Pendo’s AI strategy. Before Pendo, Inbal was the Director of AI at EverC, a FinTech startup. Before that, she was the first employee and Head of Data Science at a bioinformatics startup, acquired by BiomX, and also worked as a researcher at Microsoft.
Dr. Budowski-Tal strongly believes that understanding the business domain and the customers' needs is crucial to the success of AI, and her expertise is adding ML/AI capabilities at scale to SaaS products.
Dr. Budowski-Tal has a B.Sc. in Computer Science from the Technion, and an M.Sc. and a Ph.D. in Computer Science at the University of Haifa (summa cum laude).
Pendo
Senior Director of AI/ML
Dr. Inbal Budowski-Tal joined Pendo 3 years ago to establish the Machine Learning department at Pendo. She spearheaded multiple AI projects during her tenure and contributed to Pendo’s AI strategy. Before Pendo, Inbal was the Director of AI at EverC, a FinTech startup. Before that, she was the first employee and Head of Data Science at a bioinformatics startup, acquired by BiomX, and also worked as a researcher at Microsoft.
Dr. Budowski-Tal strongly believes that understanding the business domain and the customers' needs is crucial to the success of AI, and her expertise is adding ML/AI capabilities at scale to SaaS products.
Dr. Budowski-Tal has a B.Sc. in Computer Science from the Technion, and an M.Sc. and a Ph.D. in Computer Science at the University of Haifa (summa cum laude).
Greg Coates, VP of AI
Litera
Greg is VP of AI at Litera. He comes to Litera from Hg where he focused on software in the Legal & Compliance verticals. Prior to Hg, Greg worked on private equity transactions and strategy projects at OC&C Strategy Consultants, and was an early team member at Sportpursuit, an e-commerce startup backed by DFJ Esprit. He holds a MMath in Mathematics from Brasenose College, Oxford University. Greg is based in London.
Litera
Greg is VP of AI at Litera. He comes to Litera from Hg where he focused on software in the Legal & Compliance verticals. Prior to Hg, Greg worked on private equity transactions and strategy projects at OC&C Strategy Consultants, and was an early team member at Sportpursuit, an e-commerce startup backed by DFJ Esprit. He holds a MMath in Mathematics from Brasenose College, Oxford University. Greg is based in London.
Tim Harrison
Hg Capital
Associate Director
Tim is a specialist in Data Science & Analytics and a member of the Value Creation Data Team. He joined Hg from Oliver Wyman Labs where he worked on a range of analytics, coding and Data Science projects primarily in Finance and Credit Risk. He also previously worked at Applied Predicted Technologies (APT), a SaaS company providing software for large consumer facing businesses for systematic initiative testing and analytics, which was acquired by Mastercard.
Hg Capital
Associate Director
Tim is a specialist in Data Science & Analytics and a member of the Value Creation Data Team. He joined Hg from Oliver Wyman Labs where he worked on a range of analytics, coding and Data Science projects primarily in Finance and Credit Risk. He also previously worked at Applied Predicted Technologies (APT), a SaaS company providing software for large consumer facing businesses for systematic initiative testing and analytics, which was acquired by Mastercard.
Tim Laverty, CTO Technical Advisor
Microsoft
I'm a Dad to an 18yo son and 14yo daughter and am based in Amsterdam.
I work at Microsoft and have been a Technical Advisor to Microsoft CTO, Kevin Scott for the last 5 years.
For Microsoft I focus on developer experiences, systems infrastructure, and AI. I lead teams focused on AI infrastructure and love working on OSS projects; e.g., I led the Semantic Kernel team and the Entity Framework team at Microsoft.
I have worked in every group at MSFT except Office, including Games, Windows, Azure, SQL Server, Bing, and the Developer Division.
Microsoft
I'm a Dad to an 18yo son and 14yo daughter and am based in Amsterdam.
I work at Microsoft and have been a Technical Advisor to Microsoft CTO, Kevin Scott for the last 5 years.
For Microsoft I focus on developer experiences, systems infrastructure, and AI. I lead teams focused on AI infrastructure and love working on OSS projects; e.g., I led the Semantic Kernel team and the Entity Framework team at Microsoft.
I have worked in every group at MSFT except Office, including Games, Windows, Azure, SQL Server, Bing, and the Developer Division.
Helen Lloyd, Founder of Dext Precision
Dext
Founder of Dext Precision
Helen began with Dext as a co-founder of the accountancy software Xavier Analytics, which was acquired by Dext in 2020. Beginning as a self-taught front-end developer at Xavier, she managed multiple roles from product design to customer service in a fast-growing startup, before taking on her current role managing Product Operations across Dext's full product portfolio.
Helen uses her academic background, with a BSc in Psychology and an MSc in Neuroscience, to provide deep customer insights; using customer sentiment, product usage data and feature feedback to shape company strategy from product roadmap to GTM.
Dext
Founder of Dext Precision
Helen began with Dext as a co-founder of the accountancy software Xavier Analytics, which was acquired by Dext in 2020. Beginning as a self-taught front-end developer at Xavier, she managed multiple roles from product design to customer service in a fast-growing startup, before taking on her current role managing Product Operations across Dext's full product portfolio.
Helen uses her academic background, with a BSc in Psychology and an MSc in Neuroscience, to provide deep customer insights; using customer sentiment, product usage data and feature feedback to shape company strategy from product roadmap to GTM.
Dave Mangot, Founder & Author: DevOps Patterns for Private Equity
Founder & Author: DevOps Patterns for Private Equity
Dave Mangot, author of DevOps Patterns for Private Equity, helps portfolio companies get good at delivering software. He is a leading consultant, author, and speaker as the principal at Mangoteque. A DevOps veteran, Dave has successfully led digital, SRE, and DevOps transformations at companies such as Salesforce, SolarWinds, and Cable & Wireless. He has a proven track record of working with companies to quickly mature their existing culture to improve the speed, frequency, and resilience of their software service delivery.
Founder & Author: DevOps Patterns for Private Equity
Dave Mangot, author of DevOps Patterns for Private Equity, helps portfolio companies get good at delivering software. He is a leading consultant, author, and speaker as the principal at Mangoteque. A DevOps veteran, Dave has successfully led digital, SRE, and DevOps transformations at companies such as Salesforce, SolarWinds, and Cable & Wireless. He has a proven track record of working with companies to quickly mature their existing culture to improve the speed, frequency, and resilience of their software service delivery.
Filip Matz, Knowledge Manager
Visma
Filip Matz is a Knowledge Manager at Visma and is spearheading the work on Visma's innovation principles. With expertise in driving knowledge-sharing initiatives, Filip collaborates closely with Visma's Small Business segment, a portfolio spanning 18 markets with an ARR of 800 million euros in 2023. Visma’s unwavering commitment to fostering collaboration and innovation across companies and markets has been instrumental in its unparalleled growth story. Filip holds a Master's Degree in Industrial Engineering and Management from the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, where he co-founded and chaired the KTH AI Society.
Visma
Filip Matz is a Knowledge Manager at Visma and is spearheading the work on Visma's innovation principles. With expertise in driving knowledge-sharing initiatives, Filip collaborates closely with Visma's Small Business segment, a portfolio spanning 18 markets with an ARR of 800 million euros in 2023. Visma’s unwavering commitment to fostering collaboration and innovation across companies and markets has been instrumental in its unparalleled growth story. Filip holds a Master's Degree in Industrial Engineering and Management from the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, where he co-founded and chaired the KTH AI Society.
Marko Perisic, Chief Products & Engineering Officer
The Access Group
Chief Products & Engineering Officer
Marko has overall responsibility for Product and Engineering at The Access Group. Before joining, he was Chief Products and Technology Officer for Zellis, transforming the company from transactional payroll processing into a modern HCM SaaS solution. Marko also had a 12-year career at Microsoft, where he was General Manager for Dynamics 365 for SMB globally, transforming the legacy suite of on-premise products into a hyper-scaling global SaaS solution.
After graduating from Carleton University in Canada, Marko led several organisations giving him a unique breadth of experience working in start-ups, corporate and now private equity environments, across various segments and industries, in different countries, but always in B2B applications.
Marko has valuable expertise in successfully “lifting and shifting” solutions based on old technology, into modern SaaS solutions ready for the digital age. His track record in the technology space puts him in an excellent position to support Access's next growth phase and continue to deliver the Group’s Access Workspace strategy.
The Access Group
Chief Products & Engineering Officer
Marko has overall responsibility for Product and Engineering at The Access Group. Before joining, he was Chief Products and Technology Officer for Zellis, transforming the company from transactional payroll processing into a modern HCM SaaS solution. Marko also had a 12-year career at Microsoft, where he was General Manager for Dynamics 365 for SMB globally, transforming the legacy suite of on-premise products into a hyper-scaling global SaaS solution.
After graduating from Carleton University in Canada, Marko led several organisations giving him a unique breadth of experience working in start-ups, corporate and now private equity environments, across various segments and industries, in different countries, but always in B2B applications.
Marko has valuable expertise in successfully “lifting and shifting” solutions based on old technology, into modern SaaS solutions ready for the digital age. His track record in the technology space puts him in an excellent position to support Access's next growth phase and continue to deliver the Group’s Access Workspace strategy.
Massimo Pezzini, Head of Research
Workato
Head of Research
Massimo Pezzini, Head of Research, Future of Enterprise, Massimo is Head of Research, Future of Enterprise for Workato, the leader in enterprise automation. In this role, Massimo is a strategic advisor to the Workato team, with a focus on how automation technologies will evolve to support a rapidly transforming business environment. Massimo has 45 years of experience in the IT market and spent the last 25 years at leading research analyst firm Gartner as Vice President Analyst. At Gartner, Massimo played a leading role in some of the most ground-breaking research in automation and integration technology and has a profound understanding of the dynamics at play in these markets.
Workato
Head of Research
Massimo Pezzini, Head of Research, Future of Enterprise, Massimo is Head of Research, Future of Enterprise for Workato, the leader in enterprise automation. In this role, Massimo is a strategic advisor to the Workato team, with a focus on how automation technologies will evolve to support a rapidly transforming business environment. Massimo has 45 years of experience in the IT market and spent the last 25 years at leading research analyst firm Gartner as Vice President Analyst. At Gartner, Massimo played a leading role in some of the most ground-breaking research in automation and integration technology and has a profound understanding of the dynamics at play in these markets.
Aneesa Rossi, Head of Origination
The Access Group
Head of Origination
Aneesa is responsible for leading M&A Deal Origination at the Access Group, with a specific focus on the UK, Ireland, and the USA. Before taking on this role, she gained experience as a Technology Investment Banker at Oppenheimer & Arma Partners.
The Access Group
Head of Origination
Aneesa is responsible for leading M&A Deal Origination at the Access Group, with a specific focus on the UK, Ireland, and the USA. Before taking on this role, she gained experience as a Technology Investment Banker at Oppenheimer & Arma Partners.
Sarah Schlobohm, Head of AI
Citation
Head of AI
Sarah Schlobohm, Title: Head of AI at Citation. Bio: Sarah Schlobohm did a PhD in particle physics at the University of Washington on the Dzero experiment. She didn't find the Higgs boson. She moved to the UK for a PwC graduate scheme to help her transition from the world of academia to business - specialising in compliance audits. Since then she has worked in consulting and financial services, including using data science to ensure financial crime compliance at one of the world's largest banks. She is currently Head of AI at The Citation Group, a global compliance specialist with a mission to build safe, sustainable businesses through Health & Safety and HR compliance, certification and business-boosting tech.
Citation
Head of AI
Sarah Schlobohm, Title: Head of AI at Citation. Bio: Sarah Schlobohm did a PhD in particle physics at the University of Washington on the Dzero experiment. She didn't find the Higgs boson. She moved to the UK for a PwC graduate scheme to help her transition from the world of academia to business - specialising in compliance audits. Since then she has worked in consulting and financial services, including using data science to ensure financial crime compliance at one of the world's largest banks. She is currently Head of AI at The Citation Group, a global compliance specialist with a mission to build safe, sustainable businesses through Health & Safety and HR compliance, certification and business-boosting tech.
Ynze Sipkema, CTO
Blinqx
CTO
Ynze Sipkema holds the position of CTO and is co-founder at Blinqx, demonstrating a track record in the development and growth of B2B software companies. Before co-founding Blinqx, he founded Fiscaal Gemak, a prominent software solution in the accountancy field, which is now integrated into Exact.
Ynze holds an MSc in Fiscal Economics from the Erasmus University Rotterdam. Since 2007, Ynze has been actively engaged in entrepreneurship, co-founding and navigating various businesses. His entrepreneurial journey began in 2007, during which he co-founded and directed multiple business ventures, leveraging his expertise in software development strategy and finance and economics.
Ynze likes to establish external connections and generating new ideas within Blinqx. He values active involvement with his team, fostering a collaborative and innovative work environment.
Blinqx
CTO
Ynze Sipkema holds the position of CTO and is co-founder at Blinqx, demonstrating a track record in the development and growth of B2B software companies. Before co-founding Blinqx, he founded Fiscaal Gemak, a prominent software solution in the accountancy field, which is now integrated into Exact.
Ynze holds an MSc in Fiscal Economics from the Erasmus University Rotterdam. Since 2007, Ynze has been actively engaged in entrepreneurship, co-founding and navigating various businesses. His entrepreneurial journey began in 2007, during which he co-founded and directed multiple business ventures, leveraging his expertise in software development strategy and finance and economics.
Ynze likes to establish external connections and generating new ideas within Blinqx. He values active involvement with his team, fostering a collaborative and innovative work environment.
Matt Vilanova
Swoogo
PS
Sergiu Sechel has a double role at BCG, advising private capital investors on topics related to cybersecurity and data protection and as a Lead AI Engineer focusing on applying AI solutions to cybersecurity use cases. He has over 19 years of experience in cybersecurity as a researcher, consultant, auditor, and forensics investigator. Between 2020 - 2022 Sergiu lead the technical investigations of +30 high profile ransomware incidents and designed the malware reverse engineering playbook for the EMEA region of a Big4 audit firm. He has a PhD in economic informatics and cybernetics researching threat intelligence driven modular cybersecurity assessment methodologies and he published research articles on threat intelligence and malware reverse engineering. On the offensive side, Sergiu discovered five critical vulnerabilities (CVEs) impacting components that are widely used in critical infrastructure.
In his spare time he is actively contributing to several cybersecurity communities like SANS Advisory Board and ISACA Information Security Advisory Group.
Swoogo
PS
Sergiu Sechel has a double role at BCG, advising private capital investors on topics related to cybersecurity and data protection and as a Lead AI Engineer focusing on applying AI solutions to cybersecurity use cases. He has over 19 years of experience in cybersecurity as a researcher, consultant, auditor, and forensics investigator. Between 2020 - 2022 Sergiu lead the technical investigations of +30 high profile ransomware incidents and designed the malware reverse engineering playbook for the EMEA region of a Big4 audit firm. He has a PhD in economic informatics and cybernetics researching threat intelligence driven modular cybersecurity assessment methodologies and he published research articles on threat intelligence and malware reverse engineering. On the offensive side, Sergiu discovered five critical vulnerabilities (CVEs) impacting components that are widely used in critical infrastructure.
In his spare time he is actively contributing to several cybersecurity communities like SANS Advisory Board and ISACA Information Security Advisory Group.
Simon Walsh, Senior Director Business Technology
Salesforce
Senior Director Business Technology
Simon is an experienced technology leader and leads our initiative to deploy AI within Salesforce to make our business more efficient, scalable and profitable. Simon has been with Salesforce for over three years. Simon is using our own on-platform generative AI and predictive AI (Einstein One) so has a wealth of practical experience within this area to deliver these kinds of project. He is focused on our data strategy + ML rollout and specific workflows within our distribution (sales) organisation and success (service) organisation. Simon is happy to discuss how we are leveraging other tech (eg Snowflake) as part of any discussion.
Previously, Simon held a senior technology role at PE backed technology/payments provider Planet, where he engaged with the PE sponsor on value creation initiatives and technology due diligence. Before Planet, Simon held product/technology roles at Optum and HPE
Salesforce
Senior Director Business Technology
Simon is an experienced technology leader and leads our initiative to deploy AI within Salesforce to make our business more efficient, scalable and profitable. Simon has been with Salesforce for over three years. Simon is using our own on-platform generative AI and predictive AI (Einstein One) so has a wealth of practical experience within this area to deliver these kinds of project. He is focused on our data strategy + ML rollout and specific workflows within our distribution (sales) organisation and success (service) organisation. Simon is happy to discuss how we are leveraging other tech (eg Snowflake) as part of any discussion.
Previously, Simon held a senior technology role at PE backed technology/payments provider Planet, where he engaged with the PE sponsor on value creation initiatives and technology due diligence. Before Planet, Simon held product/technology roles at Optum and HPE
Jenn Wong
BCG
Jenn Wong is a Principal in BCG’s private equity practice in London, advising on all topics related to cybersecurity with a focus on cyber diligence in the M&A transaction lifecycle. She has 19 years of experience as an information security and cyber defense professional across consulting, financial and federal government sectors. Notably, she served 10 years in the US Department of Defense (DOD) Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) and Joint Task Force-Global Network Operations (now the US Cyber Command) specialising in information assurance, as well as the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) focusing on cybersecurity assessments. She is a former Cyber Security Advisor for the DHS Office of Cybersecurity & Communications (now CISA), leading on-site cyber resilience assessments of US Critical Infrastructure entities and State/Local governments. Jenn holds a MSc in Information Security & Assurance and several cybersecurity certifications (ISC2 CISSP, GIAC GSLC, ISACA CISA and EC-Council CEH), and is a member of the GIAC Advisory Board.
BCG
Jenn Wong is a Principal in BCG’s private equity practice in London, advising on all topics related to cybersecurity with a focus on cyber diligence in the M&A transaction lifecycle. She has 19 years of experience as an information security and cyber defense professional across consulting, financial and federal government sectors. Notably, she served 10 years in the US Department of Defense (DOD) Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) and Joint Task Force-Global Network Operations (now the US Cyber Command) specialising in information assurance, as well as the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) focusing on cybersecurity assessments. She is a former Cyber Security Advisor for the DHS Office of Cybersecurity & Communications (now CISA), leading on-site cyber resilience assessments of US Critical Infrastructure entities and State/Local governments. Jenn holds a MSc in Information Security & Assurance and several cybersecurity certifications (ISC2 CISSP, GIAC GSLC, ISACA CISA and EC-Council CEH), and is a member of the GIAC Advisory Board.
Markus Zirn, Chief Strategy Officer
Workato
Chief Strategy Officer
Markus Zirn, Chief Strategy Officer - Markus has held product and leadership positions for both start-ups and large public companies in the Big data and Integrations spaces. Prior to Workato, he led the product and solutions teams at Splunk and also headed Product Management at Oracle for integration, business processes, and business event management products.
Workato
Chief Strategy Officer
Markus Zirn, Chief Strategy Officer - Markus has held product and leadership positions for both start-ups and large public companies in the Big data and Integrations spaces. Prior to Workato, he led the product and solutions teams at Splunk and also headed Product Management at Oracle for integration, business processes, and business event management products.