Deval Motka is Chief Data Officer at Genesco Inc. and a business-driven technologist with 25 years of experience leading large, data-driven organizations across retail, healthcare, and manufacturing. Throughout her career, she has built and led high-performing teams that embed data and analytics into the core of business strategy and execution.
Deval has played a central role in transforming how organizations think about data, helping leaders move from intuition-led decision-making to insight-driven action across both B2C and B2B environments.
Working closely with executive leadership teams and boards, Deval is known for her ability to answer critical business questions and challenge assumptions when needed. She brings a pragmatic, outcomes-focused approach to data leadership, ensuring analytics is not treated as a support function but as a strategic lever for growth and competitive advantage.
As a data and AI leader, which traits and skills do you think matter most, and which of those have been most influential for you in your current position?
“Data and AI leadership of today needs to be curious, open minded, pragmatic, and empathetic. They need to make swift decisions on what’s working and what’s not to avoid dragging costs or resources into ineffective use cases.”
Reflecting on your career, what is one non-traditional piece of advice (outside of technical skills) you would give to an aspiring data or AI leader aiming for the C-suite?
“The singular advice I would give to an aspiring data and AI leader aiming for C-suite is to remember that they are also human beings just like you. They are looking to be challenged, and they do not always know it all. Remembering this will continue to keep your confidence high.”