Today, we see standard vendors of databases approach this problem with a “bolt on” approach. Just because an organization has an expertise in handling databases does not mean they have earned their stripes in understanding that data.

Alan Ford, director of government systems pre-sales for Teradata, joined Federal News Radio to discuss the state of data analytics today. Teradata has been in business for almost 40 years constantly learning better ways to understand data. Advances in storage have made the cost of storage a minor issue. What is top of mind is seeking to understand how to maximize those mountains of data.

Teradata has been involved in a wide range of data analytics both in the United States and around the world. They have helped large insurance organizations leverage data sets to improve service to customers and reduce fraud. Federal information technology professionals can take advantage of this range by applying it to their unique range of concerns: everything from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to fraud detection to cyber security.

One way that it can become useful is by deploying it to understand the frequency of repair for aircraft.  During the discussion, Ford addressed how Teradata has assisted agencies in understanding the frequency of repair and how to reduce costs by being able to predict future events.

John Gilroy, Host of Federal Tech Talk, Federal News Radio

John Gilroy has been a member of the Washington D.C. technology community for over twenty years. In 2007 he began weekly interviews on Federal News Radio called “Federal Tech Talk with John Gilroy.”   His 428 interviews provides the basis for profitable referral business. In 2009 he created a successful breakfast club of previous radio guests called The Technology Leadership Roundtable. He has been instrumental in two of his guests forming their own radio shows:  Derrick Dortch with “Fed Access” and Aileen Black and Gigi Schumm with “Women in Washington.”

In 2011 he began teaching a course in social media marketing at Georgetown University; in March of 2014, John won the Tropaia Award for Outstanding Faculty.  John conducts monthly corporate training for large companies on how to leverage social media to generate revenue.

Guest

Alan Ford, Director of Government Systems Pre-Sales, Teradata

Alan Ford is the Director of Presales Consulting for Teradata Government Systems, LLC, the division of Teradata supporting federal, state, and municipal government agencies in the United States.  He is responsible for managing sales engineer activity within the government sector for Teradata.

In his 15 years with Teradata, Ford has worked as a senior solution architect for both the government and communication industry verticals within Teradata.  Additionally, as a consulting partner he has also managed post-sales consulting projects and activity in the manufacturing, financial, and travel & transportation divisions of Teradata.  Ford also worked at Navy Federal Credit Union managing its enterprise data warehouse team.  Prior to pursuing a career in Information Technology, Alan worked as a clinical researcher concentrating in neurological disorders and infectious diseases in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries.

Ford leads his presales team in gathering requirements and architecting leading-edge and comprehensive data warehouse and analytics solutions for Teradata’s government customers.  He also helps evaluate and manage partnership opportunities between Teradata Government Systems and vendors offering complementary technologies to Teradata’s offerings.

Alan attended Arizona State University where he earned a BS in Microbiology with a focus on Bacterial Genetics.  He also holds an MBA in Finance and Information Technology and an MS in Information Systems from the University of Maryland at College Park.

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