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Cornelia Schaurecker, Global Big Data and AI Director, Vodafone Group

What has been your path to power?

 

I am an experienced leader with long-term experience in big data and artificial intelligence (AI), digitalisation, as well as automotive IT. I am widely recognised in the industry, e.g. within the Data IQ 100 2020 and 2021, and by Global Top 100 Data Visionaries. I started my journey with Vodafone Group in London in June 2019, where I have been responsible for all big data and AI initiatives across the world and lead the teams on group and market level.

 

Before joining Vodafone, I worked for BMW Group as vice president of IT region EMEA, in charge of all IT organisations of BMW AG in all national sales companies and NFSCs (BMW financial service companies) in Europe as well as the Middle East and South Africa (equivalent to CIO EMEA).

 

Previously, I worked in senior IT management within Audi AG and the VW Group (12 premium car brands) for 19 years. In my last position, I founded and was the director of the Volkswagen Data Lab for all Volkswagen Group brands. Before that I studied Commercial Sciences in Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria with a focus on digitisation, IT, eCommerce and CRM and hold a Master’s degree in International Economics from the Swedish Business School in Helsinki.

What impact has the pandemic had on the role of data in your company/organisation?

 

Whilst the pandemic has changed our best laid plans quickly and drastically, we quickly shifted to working from home, with the result that all the team worked remotely as of early March 2020, and the majority of the time since then, and delivered significant value despite being located in approximately 20 markets.

 

I can proudly say that from a bigger picture, our group big data and AI team has delivered innovative and market leading use cases since March 2020 with tremendous results in terms of value generation as well as supporting the Vodafone purpose by delivering data for social good.

 

The Covid-19 pandemic demonstrated the importance of digitalisation and the data that underpins it. As a result, the pandemic has accelerated Vodafone’s journey towards becoming a techcomms company. This is shown by our delivery of the plan to double our central data scientist team in the first half of 2020. While completely unplanned, most of the hiring and onboarding of most of the new colleagues happened fully in digital. Whilst this was unplanned and challenging, it makes me proud that the spirit of Vodafone and our great team supported by many functions such as HR, IT and finance has been able to execute this critical onboarding – from hardware and software, collaboration, training and ultimately ML tools for use case delivery – swiftly and smoothly, fully working in the “new normal”.

Does data now have a seat at the table during strategic discussions? If not, what will it take to get it there?

 

Vodafone’s big data and AI team is omnipresent across the company, with use cases across all functions. This is encapsulated in our “AI Everywhere” strategy, our driver to deliver value for our customers and business at scale and pace. Within the context of industrialising and productionising use cases across markets, we have built Vodafone’s “AI Booster Platform” based on Google Cloud, with the objectives: 

  1. Vertical scaling – PoC to production and streamline typical DS workloads, reducing time and cost to productionise use cases.
  2. Horizontal scaling – replicating use cases across multiple local markets, reducing the time and costs required to scale internationally.

 

What are your key areas of focus for data and analytics in 2022?

 

Firstly, we aim to support in customer experience, retention and growth for our customers, company and shareholders. We will also be assisting Vodafone’s transformation towards a tech company, leveraging our unique AI skills and data to further improve customer interactions and support top management decisions with the appropriate AI-based insights and recommendations.

 

Focusing on business value creation (which is creating GROWTH, implementing AI use cases at speed and scale across our multinational footprint) will also be a priority, as well as AI based end-to-end automation in selected high value business processes, e.g. marketing and customer relationships at fast pace and international scale.

 

From a leadership perspective, I will be ensuring my global team is utilising the latest automation tools and world class/standard algorithms as well as best practices in AI governance and ethical AI, working with silicon valley technology partners. This includes training our entire global data scientist community and democratising AI by training further data teams and developing data/AI “nano-degrees” for selected business partners.

 

Tell us what leadership means to you in the context of your role as a senior data leader.

 

Leadership means delivering our Big Data and AI Strategy 2025 together with our global teams, which consists of some of the best data scientists in Telco as well as experts across the spectrum of relevant industries and data science capabilities such as ML Ops. This also means living, breathing and acting like an international high-performance team.

 

Working in agile also comprises an essential part of my leadership. As I am a trained scrum master, I am eager in ensuring all impediments for speedy delivery of our global top use cases are resolved quickly.

What key skills or attributes do you consider have contributed to your success in this role?

 

Firstly, SPEED, strategy and QUALITY in managing multiple teams in all our global footprint, delivering our “AI Everywhere” strategy, I enjoy reacting and responding instantaneously, and work best under pressure. Also, having to make strategic and yet fast decisions on a daily basis to enhance and improve our business regarding customer retention, growth, cost savings and innovation, for example our future products and supporting high quality AI based Top management decision making.

 

Finally, being an agile scrum master myself, who loves working with people to connect the dots, I am a “no hierarchies, no boundaries person” and encourage our team members, and prefer the best skilled persons to make the decisions.

 

How did you develop – and continue to develop – these skills or attributes?

 

Having worked in the industry for 22 years, I have developed these skills in leading automotive companies as well as telco. What is common in both industries is the need for speed, innovation and change driven by AI and data-insights despite the complex and partially heavily regulated nature of the organisations. I profoundly believe in lifelong learning, and am encouraging both my teams, my children and myself to continue learning and developing new skills.

Is the data tech you have keeping pace with your goals and requirements? Are your providers leading or lagging behind your demands?

 

We ensure that the tools we are using facilitate our high-performance expectations and vast scale. This means we collaborate with the world’s leading technology companies in Silicon Valley. Our ongoing strategic partnership with Google is facilitating our AI Booster programme, where we will rapidly increase the speed of implementation and scaling of our use cases using the Google Cloud platform. This forms the ML ops section of Vodafone’s broader cloud partnership with Google.

Cornelia Schaurecker
has been included in:
  • 100 Brands 2020 (EMEA)
  • 100 Brands 2021 (EMEA)
  • 100 Brands 2022 (EMEA)
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