(US and Canada) Dessa Gypalo, Chief Data Officer, Illinois Department of Innovation & Technology (DoIT), speaks with Jeff Strane, Director of Government Strategy, SHI International Corp., in a video interview about community support, leadership, and driving data literacy.

Gypalo was the first CDO for Cook County, Ill., the second largest county in the U.S. When asked who inspired her to take on the leadership role, Gypalo mentions her former mentors, highlighting that the National Community of Women encouraged her to step up into leadership. The Community also established the organization “Crack The Code”  to develop mentorship and sponsorship for the next generation of data leaders — specifically women and non-binary professionals.

Sharing her approach to encouraging people to pursue data leadership positions, Gypalo emphasizes that leadership is more than a title; it is a series of actions and behaviors. She breaks data analytics leadership into two key areas — strategic and technical — and points out they are not mutually exclusive. 

She urges midcareer data professionals to build up hard skills and work on communication, translation, teamwork, collaboration, and finding the right people.

Highlighting valuable skills or qualities for women entering the data field, she mentions:

• Understanding data structure and how to move data.

• The ability to communicate and break things down from a technical to a nontechnical level.

• Flexibility and adaptability, and keeping the end goal in sight.

• Learning from others and applying that wisdom to their work.

• Being collaborative and understanding that the data creator, owner, and consumer are not the same.

Gypalo shares that organizations drive data literacy by breaking down barriers and addressing the issue across organizational levels. She emphasizes that appropriate training must be provided in data usage, maintaining high data quality, minimizing data biases, and effectively leveraging sound data.

CDO Magazine appreciates Dessa Gypalo for sharing her insights and data success stories with our global community.