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SPEAKERS AND PANELISTS
DAMA Day 2026 brings together a diverse lineup of data and technology leaders from across the Pacific Northwest and beyond. They will be sharing hard-won lessons from the field and bold visions for what's next. Get to know the voices shaping the future of data.
MORNING KEYNOTE SPEAKER |
Founder & CEO of Identient, focused on advancing Verified Intelligence, an approach to AI that emphasizes accountability, provenance, and human-centered decision-making. Steve has spearheaded identity, governance, and security programs at Oracle, PwC, VMware, and across the public sector including the State of Washington’s CIAM modernization effort. His work sits at the intersection of enterprise leadership, digital transformation, and high-stakes resilience. Steve is the creator of SPI 360, the first Strategic Performance Intelligence system for cybersecurity leadership, designed to measure alignment, governance, and decision control in real time. He hosts The Strategy Layer Live and The Candid CISO podcasts. His book, The CISO on the Razor's Edge: Leading Cybersecurity When the System is Designed to Break, has been praised for reframing the CISO role not as a technical failure, but as a systemic leadership flaw and offering a model to fix it. He is a guest lecturer, keynote speaker, and trusted thought partner for security executives, investors, and policymakers. Steve holds a B.S. in Information Technology and an MBA from Santa Clara University with a focus on innovation and entrepreneurship. He is an ultramarathoner, systems thinker, and builder of tools that turn leadership friction into strategic power. |
AFTERNOON KEYNOTE SPEAKER |
Karl J. Weaver is a bilingual Mandarin Chinese speaking global and Asian market mobile and wireless industry go-to-market business development veteran with decades of experience pitching and scaling cutting-edge smartcard and semiconductor technologies into de facto standards on smartphones and IoT devices. Newport Technologies is Karl's public speaking thought-leadership vehicle to evangelize design-in of mobile and wireless technologies. Karl spent five years at Gemalto China as OEM/ODM Mobile Device Business Development Manager, where he delivered over 45 major wireless technology presentations across Asia, Europe, and the Americas, and closed design-in deals with smartphone giants including Huawei, ZTE, HTC, Sony-Ericsson, and Motorola. Earlier roles at Motorola/Freescale Semiconductor and Intrinsyc deepened his expertise across Bluetooth, ZigBee, NFC, and embedded security technologSoftware ies. A former Adjunct Professor of Globalization at Seattle University, Karl has been recognized in Barron's Who's Who of the Asian Pacific Rim and was appointed by Washington State Secretary of State Ralph Munro as a World Trade Organization liaison officer to the Hong Kong Government Delegation. He holds a professional certification in Wireless Communications from the University of Washington and a three-year Mandarin language scholarship certification from NTNU in Taiwan. |
SESSION SPEAKERS |
Shamnad Shaffi is a Senior Data Architect and PhD researcher with over two decades of industry experience, specializing in distributed systems architecture for public safety and compliance-regulated critical infrastructure. A patent holder and AWS-certified data professional, his expertise spans cloud-native architecture, data governance, AI/ML-ready data foundations, and enterprise modernization with hands-on leadership delivered across multiple Fortune 500 companies spanning telecommunications, media, retail, and regulated government-adjacent environments. Shamnad bridges deep technical execution with executive strategy translating data architecture, governance, and AI readiness into decisions that technology and business leaders can act on. |
Yogiraj is a seasoned technology leader with over a decade of expertise in distributed computing, Agentic AI, and large language models (LLMs). As part of Instacart’s leadership team, he is driving the transformation of grocery shopping through cutting-edge AI solutions, digitizing customer experiences, and empowering retailers with a comprehensive suite of AI-powered offerings. |
Dan Myers is an experienced data management leader and the Principal of DQMatters. His work focuses on helping large enterprises develop successful data quality initiatives and he has worked with many organizations including Farmers Insurance, Apple and Rio Tinto. His data quality framework, the Conformed Dimensions of Data Quality, has been adopted by numerous organizations. He is a CDMP, and member of the DAMA DMBOK 3rd Edition Editorial Committee and he is based in San Jose, CA. |
PANEL MEMBERS |
Founder & CEO of Identient, focused on advancing Verified Intelligence, an approach to AI that emphasizes accountability, provenance, and human-centered decision-making. Steve has spearheaded identity, governance, and security programs at Oracle, PwC, VMware, and across the public sector including the State of Washington’s CIAM modernization effort. His work sits at the intersection of enterprise leadership, digital transformation, and high-stakes resilience. Steve is the creator of SPI 360, the first Strategic Performance Intelligence system for cybersecurity leadership, designed to measure alignment, governance, and decision control in real time. He hosts The Strategy Layer Live and The Candid CISO podcasts. His book, The CISO on the Razor's Edge: Leading Cybersecurity When the System is Designed to Break, has been praised for reframing the CISO role not as a technical failure, but as a systemic leadership flaw and offering a model to fix it. He is a guest lecturer, keynote speaker, and trusted thought partner for security executives, investors, and policymakers. Steve holds a B.S. in Information Technology and an MBA from Santa Clara University with a focus on innovation and entrepreneurship. He is an ultramarathoner, systems thinker, and builder of tools that turn leadership friction into strategic power. |
Katy Ruckles serves as the Chief Privacy Officer for the State of Washington, appointed to the role in 2020. In this capacity, she develops statewide privacy policy, published Washington's Privacy Principles and Privacy Framework, and created privacy training programs for public employees across the state. A recognized leader at the intersection of privacy and artificial intelligence, Katy co-chairs Washington's AI Community of Practice alongside the State CTO and served on the State AI Task Force appointed by the Attorney General. She played a central role in shaping Governor Inslee's Executive Order on AI, including procurement guidelines. Her work earned her the inaugural Public Sector AI 50 award, GovTech's Top 25 Doers, Dreamers & Drivers, StateScoop's Top 50 (2024), and the Governor's Outstanding Leadership Award (2023). Prior to her current role, Katy served as Privacy Officer at the Department of Social and Health Services and as its Contracts Counsel, specializing in healthcare and technology procurement. A licensed Washington State attorney since 2005, Katy holds IAPP certifications in AI Governance (AIGP), U.S. privacy law (CIPP/US), and privacy program management (CIPM), and is recognized as a Fellow of Information Privacy |
Aaron Weller is a globally recognized privacy and information security leader with over 25 years of consulting and industry experience. He currently serves as Leader of Privacy Innovation & Assurance at HP Inc., where he leads the company's efforts around privacy controls for innovative technologies (including AI), Privacy Engineering, and Privacy Assurance. Aaron's career spans executive consulting and entrepreneurship. After five years leading PwC's Privacy practice for the Western US, he co-founded a consulting and technology firm, partnering with numerous Fortune 500 technology companies to tackle complex, strategic privacy challenges. A respected thought leader, Aaron was named a Fellow of Information Privacy (FIP) by the IAPP in 2016 and contributed to the development of ISO 31700, the international standard for Privacy by Design in Consumer Products and Services. He presents at national and international conferences, guest lectures on privacy and risk management at the University of Washington, and has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal and published in Using Security Metrics to Drive Action. Aaron holds a BSc in Physics with Business and Management from the University of Manchester and a Certificate in Information Assurance and Cybersecurity from the University of Washington. |
PANEL MEMBERS |
Karl J. Weaver is a bilingual Mandarin Chinese speaking global and Asian market mobile and wireless industry go-to-market business development veteran with decades of experience pitching and scaling cutting-edge smartcard and semiconductor technologies into de facto standards on smartphones and IoT devices. Newport Technologies is Karl's public speaking thought-leadership vehicle to evangelize design-in of mobile and wireless technologies. Karl spent five years at Gemalto China as OEM/ODM Mobile Device Business Development Manager, where he delivered over 45 major wireless technology presentations across Asia, Europe, and the Americas, and closed design-in deals with smartphone giants including Huawei, ZTE, HTC, Sony-Ericsson, and Motorola. Earlier roles at Motorola/Freescale Semiconductor and Intrinsyc deepened his expertise across Bluetooth, ZigBee, NFC, and embedded security technologSoftware ies. A former Adjunct Professor of Globalization at Seattle University, Karl has been recognized in Barron's Who's Who of the Asian Pacific Rim and was appointed by Washington State Secretary of State Ralph Munro as a World Trade Organization liaison officer to the Hong Kong Government Delegation. He holds a professional certification in Wireless Communications from the University of Washington and a three-year Mandarin language scholarship certification from NTNU in Taiwan. |
Mark Sellars is a System Engineer at The Boeing Company, where he has spent over a decade at the forefront of immersive technology and simulation in aerospace. Specializing in Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, and motion capture, Mark leads cross-functional teams to develop cutting-edge simulation tools that accelerate product design, testing, and manufacturing. Using platforms like Unreal Engine, Mark has delivered solutions that improve design accuracy and reduce development timelines — bringing digital innovation directly to the factory floor and engineering lab. He is also a patent holder for a process that automates the conversion of CAD models into real-time VR/AR environments, enabling faster and more precise simulations. A collaborative innovator and trusted technical leader, Mark works closely with senior leadership to shape the future of aerospace simulation and vehicle design. Before moving into immersive technology, Mark spent seven years as a Maintainability Engineer at Boeing, deepening his expertise in aircraft systems. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. |
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