Member Spotlight - Prodago

Meet Mario Cantin, the CEO and Chief data strategist of Prodago, a Lean Data Governance software as a service (SaaS) company, headquartered in Montreal.

Tell us a little bit about Prodago
Prodago was founded in 2013 with a corporate mission to help businesses and government agencies assess, understand and manage the data risks that could materially impact the success of their initiatives (i.e. projects) by taking a lean approach to data governance. We have been fortunate to count amongst our clients some very large, complex, successful organizations, including Cirque du Soleil, Standard Life Insurance, National Bank of Canada, Alcan, Bell Mobility, Immigration Canada, Desjardins and CN.
 
Our ‘software as a service’ is a cloud-based, affordable solution in which ‘Data Readiness Assessments’ are completed in a non-intrusive manner by not interfacing with operational systems and databases. Prodago produces a set of deliverables that enable the identification of principle data risks for a specific business context and the prioritization of data governance capabilities to mitigate and manage these risks proactively. 

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How has the rapid pace of technological change in the marketplace impacted the ability of firms to effectively govern their data?
I would say that the governance of data has become a much more challenging endeavor as a result of a few factors, including:

• massive volumes of data generated by mobile devices, digital channels & smart meters
• infrastructure in which data is captured, maintained & transformed is very complex as firms operate within legacy data warehouses, data lakes and the cloud.
• enormous interest & promise of gains from artificial intelligence & machine learning has heightened the demand for quality data by expensive resources e.g. data scientists

 
Data is a principal risk that can materially delay or preclude the deployment of AI into an organization’s production environment. This year we have been very active in supporting clients by delivering an ‘AI Readiness Assessment’ whereby we assess the current state of data governance practices, identify the gaps and then work to embed data governance best-practice processes and effective control points within their data ecosystem that will positively enhance confidence, trust and transparency within AI processes.
 
What are the types of regulatory challenges your clients are confronting today?  
In the financial services sector, most recent regulations and those forthcoming will specifically reference the need for data governance around the inputs to risk models and AI / machine learning models. Across many industries, protecting the privacy of data and ensuring it is used ethically are expectations that the public is becoming increasingly attuned to and the Supervisors will be acutely focused on these areas in 2020. Interpreting these regulations and formulating data-management rules to support adherence is how we support our clients.
 
Why did you join the CRTA? How do you think the CRTA will help your business (industry)?
Our clients are operating in highly regulated industries. The CRTA is ideally placed to serve as a catalyst by bringing multiple stakeholders – including regulators, corporations, start-ups and academia – together, to collaborate on innovative ways for leveraging technology and data to deliver more cost-effective compliance programs. In the 3 months in which Prodago has been a CRTA member we have gained tremendous amounts of valuable exposure to both prospective clients and potential service partnerships in tandem with other members. We are committed to actively sharing our experience and data governance expertise within this dynamic community.