#224: The role of a CTO in driving a data-driven enterprise, transformative technology strategy and the human side of an agile culture. With KFC Canada’s CTO, Nastaran Bisheban

<p>This week’s guest on the Data Futurology podcast is a 30-year veteran of technology, across many different segments and roles. Nastaran Bisheban, now CTO of KFC in Canada, has previously held roles at Rakuten Kobo, Canadian Tire, and RIM. She additionally sits on the Board of Directors for the CIO Association of Canada.</p> <p>One of the biggest changes that have occurred over the course of Nastaran’s career is the deeper integration of technology roles into the broader business. As she explains in the interview, Nastaran completed an MBA at Harvard Business School because her role has become an even 50/50 split between managing technology and interacting strategically with the rest of the C-suite and groups within the business. Having that broader understanding of business has been enormously valuable to her career.</p> <p>Beyond that, Felipe and Nastaran discuss the role that AI and machine learning is playing in KFC Canada’s operation, how executives are encouraged to spend time “on the floor” in restaurants to learn the day-to-day challenges in operation, and how the company is looking to align its business strategy and data practice to drive growth across the operation.</p> <p>Ultimately, as Nastaran stressed, technology is there to support the human element of the company. Technology that is used to help identify blind spots or notice trends that can be addressed, is an example of technology that has been deployed effectively. For instance, KFC Canada recently completed a significant transformation project to allow for all the delivery and ordering apps to integrate into its systems. It was Nastaran and her team’s human-centric approach to the application of that technology that allowed the project to succeed.</p> <p>Enjoy this in-depth and insightful podcast!</p> <p>Thank you to our sponsor,<a href="https://talentinsights.com.au/"> <u>Talent Insights Group</u></a>!</p> <p>Connect with Nastaran Bisheban, Chief Technology Officer at KFC Canada: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/nastaranb/"><u>https://w