CEO Insights Magazine

Leaders in the field of data science stand out from others in the way they use data-driven strategies to address difficult issues. In order to better comprehend the issue at hand, they collect and analyze massive datasets, drawing on their extensive knowledge of statistics, mathematics, and computer science. Leaders in the field of Data Science harness the power of structured and unstructured streams of high velocity data to create capabilities that are but not limited to predicting and forecasting potential outcomes and provide direction for decision-making. This allows leaders in the field of data science, such as Nakul Gupta, to facilitate their organizations to make decisions not based on conjecture or anecdotes but on factual evidence. Nakul Gupta is an extremely competent data leader with around a decade and a half of experience in the domain of Machine Learning and AI. He has solved business problems in the fields of Retail, Customer Experience, Credit Risk, and Collections using techniques ranging from classical machine learning algorithms to new-age deep learning/reinforcement learning algorithms.

Under Nakul's direction, businesses have been able to better use data to inform strategy and enhance performance.

Below is an excerpt of Nakul Gupta’s exclusive interaction with CEO Insights magazine.

What factors influenced your

decision to pursue a career in data science? Also, as a new-age leader, what keeps you going forward every day?
I have always had a passion for mathematics and wanted to pursue some thing along similar lines. Given my background in computer science, Data Science seemed to be the aptest choice given my interests.

The interdisciplinary nature of problem solving in Data Science, which involves deep technical knowledge and an indepth under standing of the domain, always intrigued me. This is one of the reasons this never gets boring for any leader.

How did your tenure at IIM Tiruchirappalli shape you? In addition, what did you take away from your on campus experience?
I've been a student of the Executive Ph.D. program at IIM Tiruchirappalli for the last two years. As a Data Science leader, I have always had some exposure to research but had no formal training in Research Methods. IIM Trichy helped me to gain perspective on Research Methodologies and understand the nuances around 'How all kinds of knowledge are generated similarly at a deeper level?'

Describe your leadership approach. What is your success mantra?
Leadership to me is having a clear vision around what is getting built and communicating this effectively to your team without any loss of information in the channel. Leadership is also deeply rooted in the quality of owner ship, this is one aspect I value most in my teammates and colleagues.

I would say my success mantra is my ability to align the goals of the

organization with the personal goals of my team members. This is when I found people to exhibit the highest amount of ownership and loyalty towards the organization.

Tell us about how you leverage technologies for the same and how have they eased the processes.
Taking part in data science technology conferences is one method to keep tabs on what people across the globe are up to the challenges they're tackling, and the new models and technologies that are developing in the field. You may stay abreast of whatever is going on in the globe in this way. Moreover, I believe the best part of leading a tech team is the opportunity to collaborate with very bright professionals. And there's a good chance you may pick up some useful information from them as they stay up with the rapid developments in AI that are taking place right now.

What is the future destination you are heading towards?
For the next five years, I want to have settled into a position where I can continue to work on interesting topics, and where I can look forward to the challenges that the Indian FinTech environment will undoubtedly present. The whole field of data science has a significant part to play in the process of resolving those issues. As a result, I am really optimistic and looking forward to the next five years, during which I will be involved in more problem-solving and data management.

Nakul Gupta, Director - Data Science, Yubi
An alumnus of DA-IICT, Gandhinagar, and HSE University in Moscow Russia, where in Nakul has completed his Master of Science in applied mathematics and informatics, and also, he is currently completing his Executive Doctoral program in Information Systems and Analytics from IIM Tiruchirappalli. In his professional journey so far, Nakul has been part of various renowned companies like In Yubi, [24]7.AI, and Davinta Finserv.