Imagine the following scenario: You’re building next year’s budget in Microsoft Excel, using current year-to-date actuals that you exported from your enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. You also have this year’s approved budget on hand for reference. During this process, you notice that maintenance and repair expenses were especially high in June and July. That increase wasn’t in the budget, but maybe you should budget for it next year.

For our latest expert interview on our blog, we’ve welcomed the Director of Data Science and Machine Learning at Included, Michael Chang. Michael helps measure and optimize workforce diversity and inclusion efforts through data. Prior to Included, Michael worked in various data capacities at Facebook, Teach for America, Interactive Corp, and eBay. Michael also enjoys teaching and is an adjunct instructor for data science at UCLA Extension and Harvard FAS.