Ep 44: Building Business Resilience Through Better Data with Davis DeRodes

In this episode, Kate vanderVoort, CEO, AI Success Lab, sits down with Davis DeRodes, Head of Data Science Innovation at Fusion Risk Management, for a clear and practical look at the role data plays in business resilience. Davis has a rare gift for breaking down technical concepts, helping leaders understand how better data, smarter systems and simple planning can protect organisations from disruption. Davis explains why resilience is no longer just an enterprise issue and shares tangible steps small to medium businesses can take right now to prepare for the rapid change AI is bringing. They talk about AI-generated scenarios, data simulations, model transparency, synthetic data, employee-facing agents and how organisations can approach data in ways that set them up for long-term stability. This episode is perfect for leaders who want a grounded understanding of how data supports smart decisions, resilient systems and confident use of AI. Key Themes What enterprise resilience really means and why every organisation now needs it How AI-generated scenarios work and why they outperform traditional tabletop exercises The difference between data science and decision science How small and medium businesses can transform their data into a resilience asset The role of structured vs unstructured data in an AI-driven world What model context protocol (MCP) means for how AI accesses business systems Practical steps for leaders to strengthen resilience today Future trends in data collaboration, governance and synthetic data Why the “business brain” approach gives companies more control What work looks like when AI becomes a close collaborator Insights Data science vs decision science Davis explains the distinction in a way that helps non-technical leaders understand what data is actually for in a business and why waiting for perfect accuracy can slow teams down. AI-generated scenarios He walks through how Fusion uses AI to create highly tailored disruption scenarios that expose weak points organisations would never have spotted on their own. Monte Carlo simulations Davis describes modern simulation techniques that replace slow, expensive tabletop exercises with fast, repeatable, data-driven insights. Resilience for smaller businesses He outlines simple, accessible steps any organisation can take to strengthen resilience, including mapping revenue drivers, centralising key data, and understanding dependencies. Data governance as a superpower Why businesses that invest early in clean, structured data gain massive efficiency later. Synthetic data, future risks and the pollution of the internet A thoughtful conversation on how AI trains itself, the risks of AI training on AI, and why high-quality walled-off data sources will become even more valuable. AI as an employee How organisations will soon handle agents just like staff members, including permissions, access and responsibilities. Links Mentioned LinkedIn – Davis DeRodes https://www.linkedin.com/in/davis-derodes/ Fusion Risk Management https://www.fusionrm.com/ Kaggle synthetic datasets https://www.kaggle.com/datasets Google AI Studio https://aistudio.google.com/ If you enjoyed this episode, share it with a colleague who needs practical clarity on AI and data. Subscribe to The AI Grapple on your favourite podcast platform so you never miss an episode.