Podchaser Logo Rate on Podchaser

Episode 2

full
Published on:

14th Apr 2026

S7 | Ep 2 | Are we Splitting the CDAO Role in Two with Barry Panayi, Group Chief Data Officer at Howden

In Episode 2, of Season 7 of Driven by Data: The Podcast, Kyle Winterbottom was re-joined (over 2.5 years on) by Barry Panayi, Group Chief Data Officer at Howden, where they discuss, how the CDAO role continues to evolve and whether accountability is being diluted, which includes;

  • Why the CDAO role is splitting between commercial outcomes and BAU leadership
  • Why the biggest trade-off today is speed vs sustainable value
  • A pragmatic view on AI ownership: enterprise enablement vs bespoke build
  • The risk of over-indexing on ROI and neglecting foundational data capability
  • The danger of the CDAO role being watered down
  • Why many organisations still hire CDAOs for the wrong mandate
  • How culture and incentives shape whether data leaders can succeed
  • How AI is making value measurement easier than traditional data work
  • Why proving quick wins can sometimes slow long-term progress
  • Why CDAO–CTO chemistry now matters more than job titles
  • The leadership lesson: make the least bad decision with conviction
  • Why Barry wrote The AI of the Beholder as a leadership decision simulator
  • The reality that there is rarely one “right” leadership choice
  • Why future board opportunities for CDAOs require broader leadership breadth
  • What boards actually value from ex-CDAO leaders in NED roles
Next Episode All Episodes Previous Episode

Listen for free

Show artwork for Driven by Data: The Podcast

About the Podcast

Driven by Data: The Podcast
Designed for Data Enthusiasts to hear from the Data & Analytics industry's thought leaders
Orbition Group is delighted to bring you this podcast series, which is designed for Data Enthusiasts, to hear from some of the most high-profile Data, Analytics and AI thought leaders from around the globe.

Each episode will detail the guests journey to the top while bringing unique insights, drawn from first-hand experience on the industry’s most trending topics.

This podcast was created as a way for our industry's most respected leadership figures from across the world to give back to the Data & Analytics community, by sharing; knowledge, experiences and ideas, to inspire, innovate and provide real-life use cases on the industries most pressing topics/challenges.

About your host

Profile picture for Kyle Winterbottom

Kyle Winterbottom

Founder of Orbition Group, a Search and Talent Solutions business that operates exclusively within the world of Data, Analytics & AI.

I am hugely passionate about enabling organisations to drive decisions and obtain value from the use of Data, Analytics & Artificial Intelligence.

As such, I believe it is imperative that as a community, we share; knowledge, ideas, real-life use cases and inspiration to collectively give back to our industry.

Given my fortunate position of speaking with hundreds, if not thousands of leadership figures within the global Data & Analytics community each year , I feel it is my duty to share the successes, failures, challenges and opportunities.

Therefore, I have positioned Orbition Group to be a facilitator of that knowledge sharing, through these podcasts, events we host and public speaking.