A Class Act: Conversations in Data and Leadership
A Class Act: Conversations in Data and Leadership
Podcast Description
Welcome to A Class Act: Conversations in Data and Leadership. Hosted by Michael Young of MBN Solutions, a data talent expert with nearly two decades of experience at the forefront of tech recruitment, this show dives deep into what it really takes to build high-performing teams. Each episode features candid conversations with the leaders behind the progress - those hiring top tech talent, scaling data science teams, driving digital transformation, and leading with purpose (not just a job title).Whether you're a data leader, people manager, recruiter, or simply passionate about building great teams, you'll walk away with insights, lessons learned, and fresh perspectives on talent, strategy, and leadership in today’s tech economy.Follow A Class Act for honest, human-first leadership conversations in the data and tech space.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast covers themes such as data leadership, team dynamics, and personal growth, with episodes featuring topics like leading with trust, building diversity in teams, and navigating complexity in tech environments. For example, episodes have explored how cognitive diversity improves decision-making and the importance of vulnerability in leadership.
What does it really take to build world-class tech teams and lead with impact in today’s data-driven AI landscape?
I’m Michael Young from MBN Solutions and after two decades placing top talent across data, AI, and tech, I’ve seen the real stories behind high-performing teams.
On A Class Act, we go beyond buzzwords.
You’ll hear real life, experience-led conversations with the AI and data leaders shaping digital transformation right now – those hiring top tech talent, building data science capability, and leading with purpose.
Whether you’re a data leader, people manager, or recruiter, join us for honest, practical insights into hiring, leadership, strategy, and building great teams in AI and data.
Follow A Class Act for honest, beyond the hype leadership conversations in the AI, data and tech space.
If you run a data team, you already know that the hardest part of being a great data leader isn’t always the technology.
In this episode of A Class Act, host Michael Young chats with Asia Faulds, Head of Data Science at Booksy.
Asia has built data science teams from the ground up at the BBC, Trustpilot, and now Booksy, and she’s seen first-hand why brilliant technical teams still fail when prioritisation breaks down.
In this conversation, they get into:
- Why most data teams don’t fail technically
- What it’s actually like building a data science function from zero at Booksy
- How Gen AI has expanded the scope of the data science role and what hasn’t changed
- Why producing 200 dashboards instead of 2 doesn’t mean your team is more productive
- The difference between activity and progress, and how to tell which one your team is doing
- Why sometimes a well-written SQL script beats a neural network
- How to protect your team’s energy and focus as a data leader
- The one thing Asia says every listener should do this week
Guest Information
Asia Faulds is Head of Data Science at Booksy, the two-sided marketplace connecting beauty and wellness providers with consumers. She’s building the company’s first data science and applied AI function from scratch, defining the strategy, hiring the team, and establishing ML infrastructure.
Before Booksy, Asia spent five years at Trustpilot, progressing from individual contributor to management across product and go-to-market data science. Before that, she built recommendation engines for BBC Sounds at the BBC. She holds a Master’s in Physics from the University of Edinburgh and writes The Data Pragmatist on Medium.
Connect with Asia Faulds on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/asia-data/
Read The Data Pragmatist on Medium:
About Your Host
Michael Young is the Managing Director of MBN Solutions and host of A Class Act: Conversations in Data & Leadership. With nearly two decades of experience helping organisations build high-performing data, analytics, and AI teams, he brings frontline insight into what makes exceptional talent and leadership.
Please note: The views expressed by the guest in this episode are their own and do not reflect those of their current or former employers.
Subscribe & Follow
Enjoying the series? Don’t miss an episode. Follow A Class Act wherever you get your podcasts and leave us a review to help more listeners discover these conversations in data and leadership.
Connect with MBN Solutions
If you’re hiring for data or AI leadership roles, scaling AI capability, or rethinking how talent supports your AI strategy, the team at MBN partners with organisations to build data and AI teams that actually deliver.
MBN Solutions on LinkedIn – Explore industry updates, groundbreaking projects, and the latest in data and analytics talent. Join the conversation and discover how MBN Solutions is shaping the future of data leadership. Visit the company page here.
For questions, guest recommendations, or to connect:
Email: [email protected]
Disclaimer
This podcast’s information is provided for general reference and was obtained from publicly accessible sources. The Podcast Collaborative neither produces nor verifies the content, accuracy, or suitability of this podcast. Views and opinions belong solely to the podcast creators and guests.
For a complete disclaimer, please see our Full Disclaimer on the archive page. The Podcast Collaborative bears no responsibility for the podcast’s themes, language, or overall content. Listener discretion is advised. Read our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy for more details.