Sandeep Shankar — Data & AI Leadership

Career journey

Sixteen years. One direction.

From hands-on data engineering to enterprise AI leadership — a consistent upward arc.

↑ Seniority

2009 – 2017 Data & Technology Wipro · Australia Post

2017 – 2020 Governance & Engineering Manager Australia Post

2020 – 2021 Senior Manager, Data Governance Flybuys

2021 – 2023 Head of Data Engineering & Governance iSelect

2023 – Present Head of Data & Analytics iSelect Current

Selected initiatives

Problems solved. Value delivered.

Three initiatives across cloud transformation, analytics modernisation, and organisational change — real work, real outcomes.

Domain

Challenge

Approach

Outcome

Cloud Platform

Enterprise Data Transformation

Legacy ecosystem limiting scalability & governance. Fragmented reporting across 10+ business units with inconsistent, low-trust data.

Led enterprise migration to Google Cloud — BigQuery medallion architecture supporting 15TB+ of data, real-time streaming, enterprise FinOps model, and a 30-member cross-functional team directed via RFP vendor selection.

$500K+

cost savings via SAP HANA reduction. 50% lift in analytics adoption. Unified platform delivered 6 months ahead of the original 12-month plan.

AI & Analytics

Analytics Modernisation & CX Uplift

On-prem platform, siloed CRM data, heavy reliance on manual reporting, and no formal Data & AI operating model.

Modernised to AWS & Databricks. Architected Single Customer View integrating 1M+ records across 3 CRMs. Designed AI & data operating model, onboarded 250+ agents to Tableau, and established responsible AI governance frameworks.

80%

reduction in repeated data requests. 20% improvement in complaints turnaround. 250+ users on self-service analytics. $100K+ annual cloud savings.

Org Transformation

Organisation Transformation & Culture Uplift

Data capability fragmented, ~30% attrition, IP locked in vendors, slow delivery, and low organisational trust in data.

Established centralised Data & Analytics function. Built 15+ internal capability with structured career frameworks. Embedded analysts as business partners across 5 units. Introduced Agile delivery and governance operating model with Data Owners and Stewards.

85%+

employee engagement sustained over multiple years. Attrition fell from 30% to <10%. 25% faster feature delivery. Fully self-sufficient internal capability — zero vendor reliance.

Real initiatives. Some details adjusted for confidentiality. Happy to go deeper in conversation.

How I lead

Leadership first — the platforms are how I deliver it

The skills that drive every engagement, and the modern data stack I've used to take organisations from fragmented reporting to trusted, self-service decision-making.

Team Building Stakeholder Trust Strategic Thinking Executive Influence Change Leadership Commercial Discipline Data Governance Mentorship Vendor Management Self-Service Enablement Cross-Functional Alignment Operating Model Design P&L Ownership Responsible AI

Enabling organisations at scale on:

Google Cloud

AWS

Azure

Snowflake

Databricks

Tableau

Power BI

Collibra

Erwin

Now