2016
While working with American Express’s fraud investigation team, his work to identify patterns of credit card theft led to a $50 million reduction in loss for Amex…in just six months. When he got tired of chasing criminals, Daymond joined CIBC, helping its customer relationship management team target communications to key clientele, bringing in an additional $10 billion in deposit business – a 33 per cent increase.
After nearly 40 years in the field, Daymond is sharing his exceptional skills and experience with Seneca. As a professor in the new Strategic Marketing and Marketing Analytics graduate certificate program, he will help students navigate the world of big data, with a focus on solving real world problems.
“Our program is very different from universities, where they teach the statistic methodologies,” says Daymond. “Every topic we teach is wrapped in a business story.”
Throughout Daymond’s career, he has seen the rapid evolution of data analytics software, provided by companies like Statistics Analysis Systems, now known as “SAS.” He started using SAS in 1980, and sees it as the most dominant player in the analytics software solution space and the product of choice for leaders in insurance, telecommunications, banking and government. While students must be familiar with as much analytics software as possible, a working knowledge of SAS is critical to their success.
“When I came to Seneca, we didn’t have SAS running in the classroom,” says Daymond. “So I reached out to SAS and they were more than happy to give us the entire suite of SAS software, as part of their academics program. Our students will leave Seneca having SAS skills that can land them a job and allow them to be productive very fast.”
The first cohort of Strategic Marketing and Marketing Analytics students graduated in August 2016, and, according to Daymond, they will be in hot demand. For that, they can thank Daymond for the expertise he’s offered and for providing them with access to the global standard in data analytics software. If that weren’t enough, he’s also decided to establish an award to help students in his program. In one short year, Daymond has found a home at Seneca and wants to give back.
“What got me thinking about making a significant contribution was when I got to know my students,” he says. “I really admire their ambition and their desire to better themselves. If I can put them in a slightly better position so they can focus more on studying, rather than putting food on the table, then that’s something I want to do.”