Ellen Ambrose, Director of AI

Congrats to our January winner, Ellen Ambrose, Director of AI, for continuously exhibiting Protenus' core values! 

Ellen Ambrose has been with Protenus for 6 ½ years. During that time, she has progressed from Data Scientist to Sr. Data Scientist to Director of Data Science to Director of AI.  

During her time as a manager and co-worker, Ellen has continuously exhibited our corporate values.

Currently, Ellen is directing two groups: the data science team and Project Skyscraper’s data team. She is filling multiple roles as a people manager of those two teams, a product owner that prioritizes the work of those teams, and a contributor to the teams themselves.

Anyone who has worked with Ellen knows that Ellen builds trust. She has strong communication skills, is always respectful, and truly listens to what others say. When she has information to add, or even if she needs to disagree, she will do so with respect and a clear explanation that opens up deeper conversation.  This honest and transparent communication builds trust and reinforces her sincerity to her colleagues and employees.

While Ellen takes her work seriously and understands the importance of commitments, she also realizes the need for a supportive culture that respects appropriate work/life balance. Forming connections with co-workers and giving them the space they need to deliver value is just one way Ellen has embraced “Being Human”.

Ellen doesn’t shy away from taking on ownership herself, however, she is always looking for ways to develop the team by encouraging them to feel empowered in their decision making and work commitments. With each member of her team empowered to do their part, together they are moving forward to deliver critical pieces of the Project Skyscraper. 

I think it’s clear to all of us that Ellen is carrying a lot of responsibility and she’s handling it in a way that demonstrates our values. We are all grateful for her contributions and it is with honor that I recognize her as the first recipient of the Employee Values Spotlight. — Michael Baglio, CTO

Q&A with Ellen

What’s your role at Protenus, and what do you do?

Director of AI. I lead the data science team working on expanding the capabilities of our analytics and machine learning. I am also leading the data pipeline team for the new data platform, which I see as an opportunity to set Protenus up with a system for managing and analyzing data that will unlock future innovation in our analytics.

What do Protenus’ values mean to you?

All of our values place teams and relationships over individual skills or accomplishments. As a manager and leader at Protenus I always try to remember that helping and allowing others to grow is the most important part of my job, because it is ultimately those individuals who will solve problems and deliver value to our customers.

What’s your favorite part of your job?

I love working on hard problems with smart, excited people.

How has working at Protenus impacted your career?

Data Scientist a Protenus was my first job when I finished graduate school and in a lot of ways I feel like I was able to grow up alongside the company, learning from the growing pains that the company experienced at different points in time. I was definitely given opportunities to take on more responsibility at an earlier stage in my career than I may have had at a bigger organization and I’m grateful for that, too.

What challenges have you faced as a woman in a male-dominated discipline (Technology / Data Science)? And what advice would you give to other women who’d like to follow in similar footsteps?

Generally I’ve been lucky, but it’s always difficult to feel like you are the “only one” of something in a room. A good first step is to seek out support in other ways, like with a peer mentor or an interest group, where you feel safe to talk about those kinds of challenges. After a while you may feel prepared to confront or open up about those challenges in the moment and those conversations can lead to truly transformative moments.