This episode of the Coeo podcast is hosted by Justin Langford along with our team: Victoria Holt, Jessica Healey and Niall Quinn. They discuss the concept of hybrid events, and we hear from the team on their initial thoughts, expectations, and key takeaways.

As Victoria aptly mentions, the SQLBits event is in many ways 'the event of the year'! With a mixture of novice and seasoned attendees, this conversation takes a deep dive into some of our teams' expectations prior to arrival, honest impressions, and so much more.

A second key element that the team were keen to explore throughout this episode was the topical concept of hybrid events. With the event returning for the very first time since the pandemic, a question on many people's minds is how a physical event measures in comparison to virtual attendance.

Tune in as they discuss their thoughts and experiences of SQLBits 2022.

Join primary speaker Julie Phillipps in conversation with Fiona Lim (alliance manager at Coeo) as they discuss breaking the bias ahead of International Women’s day! As we well know, we each have a collective responsibility to navigate our biased language, actions, and thoughts. Through this conversation, we hope to raise self-awareness and help others recognise what bias looks like in themselves and how to approach it consciously.  

The thoughts expressed throughout this episode of the Coeo podcast transcend context. Bias can arise anywhere and everywhere, from the workplace to the media and even in our personal lives. When discussing the origin of the word, Fiona Lim sheds some light on the etymological meaning: “slope or angle- something that was weighted to one side.” 

All of us are individually responsible for our language, actions and thoughts and should be held accountable as such. However, with a predisposed culture of judgement, how can we avoid making snap judgements based on entrenched conscious and subconscious bias? Listen in as Julie Phillipps, and Fiona Lim delve further into the meaning of bias, the different types, and the importance of recognising it in modern society. 

Despite being one of the greatest assets to modern companies, a common struggle businesses face is how to obtain value from their data. Join us, along with special guest Robin Sutara as we discuss everything from her relocation, her role as Chief Data Officer, and maximising the value of business data.

How does Microsoft empower its customers to drive the business value out of their data? How are they working alongside partners to facilitate the best possible customer experience? Listen as we receive the inside scoop.

The retail industry is undergoing some radical changes right now, and one of the biggest trends to come out of it has been the rise of data in retail – or rather, how retailers are collecting, using, and selling their customers’ personal data. That’s why we’re here to talk about the most important trends in data retail that happened during Covid over the last 18 months. Learn about these trends, what they mean for your business, and how you can capitalise on them! 

Where are we seeing these data trends?
Speaking with retailers, you’ll find that a pandemic-like mentality has taken hold—it’s the hottest thing in town. The question isn’t whether or not to adopt data, but how to do it well. And, unfortunately, poor data quality is one of their biggest challenges.

Read More Here

Data Governance is central to enabling success in the management of data. It allows your business to gain more control over its data assets, provide assured data quality and improve the efficiency of how the data is used.

Following the Latest Best Practice
We can assess where you are on that journey and help drive adoption of data governance in the business.

To ensure success in this area we follow DAMA-DMBoK (Data Management Book of Knowledge), which is a comprehensive guide to international data management standards and practices for data management professionals.

We focus on the following aspects of data governance:

• Policy
• Stewardship & ownership
• Culture change
• Strategy
• Principles & ethics
• Data valuation
• Data maturity assessment
• Data classification

Read More About Data Governance Here

The construction industry has seen some interesting use cases and case studies when it comes to the role of data. Michael Brehony, Azure Specialist – Data & AI at Microsoft, discusses sustainability as a focus area for these innovations, not just in construction but across many industries.

Companies are now starting to take more responsibility for their impact on each other and the planet. Striving for low-cost or no-cost solutions to offset the environmental or social impacts of their activities.

One example industry discussed in the podcast is construction, which is historically considered as high impact. Here the opportunity to harness IoT technologies to optimise building materials or to move to pre-fabricated, offsite, construction is being strongly considered by many organisations. Thus creating less social and environmental impact on-site.

Join Michael and Justin, Coeo's CEO, as they explore the plethora of benefits around how Azure Digital Transformation can benefit your company, regardless of the industry.

One Resource that Michael recommends for you to take a look at is Microsoft Learn. Here you can find 'hands on' resources to help you on any Microsoft topic.

The financial services industry - including insurance and asset management - is undergoing a shift towards seeing data as an asset and embracing cloud technology. The Covid-19 pandemic has acted as a catalyst for these changes as organisations have been forced to adapt to a new way of working.

James Ryder - Principal Client Manager for Coeo's Financial Services team - and Justin Langford discuss recent trends they have seen within finance organisations.

James said:  "If we look at some of the retailers that are offering financial services products, retail has always been very experience-led. So it's about creating that rich customer experience and we, as consumers, expect that.

"So, as a consumer of insurance, why shouldn't I have that seamless experience where the insurer understands me as a customer? We have higher expectations these days and that's only going to continue as we move forward."

Find out more:

• Headway app (iPhone or Android)
• Podcast: Power BI Adoption and Data Governance (with Nick Anderton, M&G)
• Financial services at Coeo

Discover why migrating to a cloud platform comes with its own set of challenges and the considerations that companies need to make when selecting a managed services provider.

Kieran Sutherland - Commercial Lead for Coeo's Dedicated Support Service - talks about the myths around cloud migration, trends we see within companies seeking managed services and the support that Coeo's team can provide.

Find out more:

• Raving Fans! By Kenneth Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles
• A Match Made in Heaven: Managed Service Partnerships for Data-Focused Businesses
• Coeo's Dedicated Support

Microsoft's Power Apps platform enables anyone to build and share low-code apps and is especially useful for automating simple business processes.

Ben Edwards - a  Data Platform Engineer​ at Coeo - explains how he used Power Apps to help a client save time and increase efficiency within their finance team.

Find out more:

• Microsoft Power Platform: Learning Resources
• Power Apps blogs from the Coeo team

Coeo's Simon Osborne (Cloud, Data & AI Architect) explores the benefits of modern data platforms, how organisations can embark on their modernisation journey and the future of SQL Server as a Microsoft product.

Find out more:

• Microsoft Mechanics (YouTube)
• Azure Friday (YouTube)
• Coeo's Guide to Data Platform Modernisation

Azure Cognitive Services is Microsoft's family of AI services and cognitive APIs, designed to help developers build intelligent apps. These solutions try to mimic how the human mind thinks and works. 

Coeo Consultant Jon Gurgul explains the capabilities of these solutions and how we've used the them to support our clients, and gives his thoughts on the future of AI.

Find out more:

• Azure Cognitive Services website
• Coeo's Analytics and AI services