In the opening episode of 2026, Juan and Tim discuss what happened in the data world during 2025 and what they are looking forward to in 2026. We discuss semantics, ontologies, context, tool/vendor consolidation, data teams, platform convergence, governance, and of course... AI!

In the episode we mention the talk we gave at BigDataLDN "Why Data Teams Must Lead the Next AI Revolution" which you can find here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULfcjlXxyXg

In the opening episode of 2026, Juan and Tim discuss what happened in the data world during 2025 and what they are looking forward to in 2026. We discuss semantics, ontologies, context, tool/vendor consolidation, data teams, platform convergence, governance, and of course... AI!
In the episode we mention the talk we gave at BigDataLDN "Why Data Teams Must Lead the Next AI Revolution" which you can find here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULfcjlXxyXg

Catalog and Cocktails is the honest, No-BS, non-sales-y podcast about data and analytics. This is your unfiltered chat about everything interesting in data and analytics. Join Juan Sequeda and Tim Gasper to explore emerging topics and hear from thought leaders, practitioners and executives across the data and analytics space.

Catalog and Cocktails is the honest, No-BS, non-sales-y podcast about data and analytics. This is your unfiltered chat about everything interesting in data and analytics. Join Juan Sequeda and Tim Gasper to explore emerging topics and hear from thought leaders, practitioners and executives across the data and analytics space.

Catalog & Cocktails: The Honest, No-BS Data Podcast

ServiceNow Podcast Program is a collection of podcast shows hosted by various ServiceNow experts and professionals covering different focus areas and a broad variety of topics. Come listen to our experts talk about what's going on at ServiceNow. Join the conversation!

Visit the Now Community forums

ServiceNow Podcast Program is a collection of podcast shows hosted by various ServiceNow experts and professionals covering different focus areas and a broad variety of topics. Come listen to our experts talk about what's going on at ServiceNow. Join the conversation!
<a href="https://community.servicenow.com/community">Visit the Now Community forums</a>

ServiceNow Podcasts

Season 11 Premiere: What happened in 2025 and where are we going in 2026

Most organisations know they're not getting value from their data and AI investments, but few are willing to name the real culprit: the boardroom. In this episode, Kyle Winterbottom joins Juan and Tim to argue that the mandates handed to CDAOs are fundamentally broken because the people hiring them don't understand what good looks like. Boards continue to build capability without starting with the end in mind, creating a culture where data leaders are rewarded for building things rather than delivering outcomes. The result? An entire industry that has learned to play the wrong game. 

Most organisations know they're not getting value from their data and AI investments, but few are willing to name the real culprit: the boardroom. In this episode, Kyle Winterbottom joins Juan and Tim to argue that the mandates handed to CDAOs are fundamentally broken because the people hiring them don't understand what good looks like. Boards continue to build capability without starting with the end in mind, creating a culture where data leaders are rewarded for building things rather than delivering outcomes. The result? An entire industry that has learned to play the wrong game.&nbsp;

The Wrong Mandate: Why Boards Set Data & AI to Fail with Kyle Winterbottom

This is the takeaway episode with Kyle Winterbottom where he argues that the mandates handed to CDAOs from the board are fundamentally broken because the people hiring them don't understand what good looks like. The result? An entire industry that has learned to play the wrong game. 

This is the takeaway episode with Kyle Winterbottom where he argues that the mandates handed to CDAOs from the board are fundamentally broken because the people hiring them don't understand what good looks like. The result? An entire industry that has learned to play the wrong game.&nbsp;

TAKEAWAY - The Wrong Mandate: Why Boards Set Data & AI to Fail with Kyle Winterbottom

Stop treating AI governance like a compliance checkbox handed down from the boardroom. Kierra Dotson joins Juan and Tim to argue that the chasm between ambitious AI strategy and messy technical reality exists precisely because we've made governance someone else's problem. The fix? Empower engineers, data scientists, and product owners to own their role in shaping ethical, sustainable AI — not as a burden, but as the thing that makes the work actually matter.

Stop treating AI governance like a compliance checkbox handed down from the boardroom. Kierra Dotson joins Juan and Tim to argue that the chasm between ambitious AI strategy and messy technical reality exists precisely because we've made governance someone else's problem. The fix? Empower engineers, data scientists, and product owners to own their role in shaping ethical, sustainable AI &mdash; not as a burden, but as the thing that makes the work actually matter.

Season 11 Premiere: What happened in 2025 and where are we going in 2026

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Catalog & Cocktails: The Honest, No-BS Data Podcast

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