Charles Thomas is General Motors’ first chief data and analytics officer, reporting to Alan Batey. As leader of the chief data and analytics office, Charles instills a culture of data-driven decision making. The CDAO maximizes the impact data and insights have on business results, operational efficiency and effectiveness. Charles plays a crucial role in GM’s digital transformation to ensure customer, corporate and business data are managed as a strategic asset.

Charles has expertise leveraging data to drive strategy across B2B and B2C segments, digital and traditional routes to market, multiple regions, and industry verticals such as energy, high-tech, pharma, retail, and financial services. This is Charles’ third time as CDO for a major corporation. He’s previously led these efforts for Hewlett-Packard, USAA, and Wells Fargo.

Charles sits on the University of California at Berkeley’s School of Information advisory panel and is a consult for numerous programs across the country. He holds a PhD in Sociology – Organizational Behavior and Quantitative Methods – from Yale University. He is headquartered in Detroit and lives in Austin with his wife and two children.