As INMA celebrates the one-year anniversary of its Smart Data Initiative, we also celebrate a new voice at its helm: Ariane Bernard.

Bernard is a consultant who focuses on publishing utilities and data products. She is also the CEO of a young incubated company, Helio.cloud. Her last corporate role was as the chief digital officer at Le Parisien. Prior to le Parisien, she was the product lead for editorial products at Taboola and served in a variety of roles during her 14 years at The New York Times. In addition, Bernard has served on the board of Le Geste, the French trade union for Internet publishers. 

INMA launched the Smart Data Initiative one year ago, under the leadership of INMA Researcher-in-Residence Greg Piechota. The initiative shares insights and best practices on creating value with data analytics for media companies and incorporating a data-positive culture across organisations. The initiative has six deliverables for INMA members: a bi-weekly newsletter, a Slack channel for data enthusiasts, regular video meet-ups, reports, and master classes — including one in March looking at transforming what publishers build using data.

While Piechota continues to lead INMA’s expanding Readers First Initiative, Bernard will expand on the foundations established in the Smart Data Initiative’s first year.

Bernard’s three priorities for the Smart Data Initiative in 2022 are:

1. Personalisation.
2. Acquiring and using first-party data.
3. Accelerating the change toward a data-strong organisation.

“The evolution of publishing hinges on the ability to inform our decisions and the products we build with clear, useful data,” Bernard said. “For our users, first of all, so our products are useful in all the ways that can make an impact in their lives. But also to build performant organisations that create value for our partners and investors. The Smart Data Initiative is about sharing with our broader ecosystem all the tools and knowledge needed to support this essential transformation.”

“INMA is thrilled to have Ariane Bernard lead the Smart Data Initiative in its second year, building on the foundations created last year with our focus on first-party data and data democratisation,” said Earl J. Wilkinson, executive director and CEO of INMA. “Ariane brings a rich product and media background from top media companies that will serve INMA members well as we pivot to what’s next with first-party data strategies, personalisation, and more.”

Bernard’s first Smart Data Newsletter debuts on Wednesday. INMA members can click here to subscribe.

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