Mayor Walsh appoints Boston's First Chief Data Officer

BOSTON - Wednesday, May 25, 2016 - Mayor Martin J. Walsh today announced the appointment of Andrew Therriault to serve as the City's first Chief Data Officer. Therriault will work to advance Boston's role as a leader in data-driven government and will lead the Citywide Analytics Team, building collaborations with outside partners and serving as the public face for the City's data analytics program.

"The Citywide Analytics Team is an invaluable asset, helping to keep Boston at the forefront of data-driven solutions that provide excellent services to the people of Boston," said Mayor Walsh. "I am excited to welcome Andrew to the team to build on our successes in using data to enhance city operations and improve quality of life for our residents. I look forward to working closely together to develop innovative ways to deliver the best possible services to the people of Boston."

Therriault will join the City's team after serving as Director of Data Science for the Democratic National Committee, in Washington, D.C. He previously served as Senior Data Scientist for Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research and Director of Research for Pivotal Targeting. A native of Haverhill, Therriault completed B.A, M.A. and Ph.D. degrees at New York University and a postdoctoral fellowship at Vanderbilt University.

This new position builds on the momentum of the Citywide Analytics Team initiatives, which just recently announced the launch of the City's new data dashboard that tracks the demographics of the City's workforce. In addition, the Citywide Analytics Team also released its first annual Year-In-Review, which highlights several case studies from 2015 in which data was used to improve quality of life and improve government operations.

As a member of the leadership team of the Department of Innovation and Technology, Therriault will manage Boston's Citywide Analytics and GIS Teams. Therriault will also work closely with other Chiefs and Commissioners to expand the use of visualization and analytics to improve operations throughout the City.

"I am thrilled to be joining Boston's Citywide Analytics Team as the city's first Chief Data Officer," Therriault said. "Local governments have a tremendous impact on their citizens' lives, and Boston has been a pioneer in using data and analytics to improve every aspect of City services. It's an exciting time to be part of such an innovative and growing department, and I look forward to leading the Citywide Analytics Team to even greater heights ahead."

The Citywide Analytics Team has led more than a dozen projects across the city, which are captured in their first annual Year-In-Review.

Highlights include:

• Launched CityScore, an initiative that compiles key performance metrics from city departments every day to provide an at-a-glance view of the City's overall performance;
• Created data dashboards, which provides the Mayor and executives with tools for data-driven management and ways to measure the impact of City services on quality of life;
• Building Intelligence System, which combines data from many sources to give firefighters up-to-date hazard information en route to fire scenes;
• Used traffic data from the Waze app to improve the flow of vehicles on the roadway and increase safety for vulnerable road users
• Hosted Hub Hackathons to engage the community with Boston's Open data portal and help residents explore topics that matter to their community.

ABOUT BOSTON'S CITYWIDE ANALYTICS TEAM

The Citywide Analytics Team uses data to improve quality of life and enhance government operations in the City of Boston. By combining modern data analysis and visualizations with a deeply engaged approach to performance improvement and change management, the team works with departments across the City to solve challenging problems, build a more effective government and deliver better outcomes for the people who live and work in Boston.