BCIT Centre of Excellence in Analytics faculty have a breadth of knowledge and experience in the areas of statistics, data visualization, and business intelligence across a variety of industries. Our full-time and part-time faculty teach into a wide range of business and computing diploma and degree programs.
Full-time program faculty
Malcolm Ferrier, School of Business
Malcolm Ferrier is program head of the Business Information Technology Management program. He also owns Ferrier Consulting, a Vancouver-based IT consulting company that has developed multiple applications for public and private organizations since 2002. Malcolm has an MBA from Queen’s University, a BSc from the University of Alberta, and a PMP (Project Management Professional) designation.
Amy Goldlist, School of Business
Amy Goldlist is faculty in the Operations Management department in the School of Business at BCIT. She has an MSc in Mathematics from UBC, focusing on Algebraic Number Theory, and an MDS (Masters of Data Science) also from UBC. She is a coauthor of the textbook: “Essentials of Business Statistics” with Ken Black, Timothy Edmunds and Ignacio Castillo, available via Wiley Publishing.
Pat McGee, School of Computing and Academic Studies
Pat McGee is the Option Lead for the Software Systems Developer program at BCIT. He is a former Microsoft MVP and has written three books on software development for McGraw-Hill. He has a Master of Science degree in Data Science from Northwestern University. Pat also has five years of experience as a Technical Engineer with Business Intelligence technologies at SAP.
Ron McMillan, School of Business
Ron McMillan is the Program Head for the graduate certificate in Business Analytics at BCIT. He holds a Master of Science degree in Business Intelligence and Analytics from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. His extensive industry experience includes 12 years as a data analyst consultant at TELUS and TELUS Mobility and four years of custom application development at Fluor Canada. Ron has taught Business Systems, MIS, and Business Intelligence courses at BCIT since 2004. He is keenly interested in all things data and believes that data science is integral to all aspects of business.
Patrick Neal, School of Computing and Academic Studies
Patrick has been involved in the justice and public safety field since 1982, holding positions in the Canadian Forces, prison system, and in corporate security. He has an MA from Royal Roads University, with a focus on the information seeking behavior of police officers. Patrick is currently a doctoral student at Royal Roads University.
Benjamin Yu, School of Computing and Academic Studies
Dr. Benjamin Yu is the Computer Systems Technology Analytics Option head at BCIT. He has taught computing at BCIT for over 20 years, with areas of interest including database, data science, and artificial intelligence (AI). Dr. Yu holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Toronto, as well as an MSc and BSc in Computer Science from UBC.
Part-time program faculty
Nikhil Bhardwaj
Nikhil Bhardwaj is a web entrepreneur with more than 12 years of experience in software development and business consulting. His areas of expertise include business intelligence, web application design and development, and translating tech-speak into something more comprehensible. His educational qualifications include a Master of Business Administration from Nirma University and a Master of Software Systems from the University of British Columbia.
Lorne Hill
Lorne Hill has spent over 25 years turning data into information that drives effective decision making. He has held director level positions in marketing and IT with the likes of SaskTel, TELUS, and Teligence. Today he helps firms make the most of their customer information through customer analytics and business intelligence consulting. Lorne holds a Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Saskatchewan. He has taught database marketing and customer analytics at BCIT and Simon Fraser University. He is active in the community where he is President/Board Chair of Fraserside Community Services Society and Treasurer of the Massey Theatre Society.
Dr. Joe Ilsever
Dr. Ilsever is an expert in statistical business modelling. He holds a PhD degree from SFU in mathematical and statistical modeling of finance and accounting applications, mainly focusing on e-commerce issues. Dr. Ilsever has extensive experience in financial management, corporate treasury operations, corporate tax, trend and forecasting models.
Dr. Ben Pedret
Ben Pedret is a quantitative analyst with more than 20 years of experience providing research and consulting services to private and public companies, not for-profit organizations, and government. His areas of expertise include data modeling, forecasting, risk analysis, applied statistics, and optimization. Ben is a Certified Management Consultant with a Master of Business Administration from Simon Fraser University and a PhD in Mathematics from Strathclyde University, UK.
Donabel Santos
Donabel teaches database, technical business intelligence (BI), and data visualization. She is a Microsoft SQL Server MVP, one of the first Certified Tableau Professionals, and wrote the SQL Server 2012 with PowerShell V3 Cookbook. Donabel works by day as a Business Intelligence Architect at UBC, and is also a database/BI consultant.
John Schaub
John Schaub is Senior Product Manager responsible for security and analytics at Central 1 Credit Union. Prior to joining Central 1, John was the Director of Internal Information Systems and Business Intelligence with HootSuite and has also held a variety of Analyst and Product Manager roles with other organizations. He holds a Master of Science in Information Systems, a Bachelor of Science in Physics and a diploma in Robotics. John serves on the Boards of the Vancouver Public Library and Public Library InterLINK, and volunteers with the MOSAIC Multicultural Society. John is also a founding member of Open Data BC.