Data science, ML & AI @ Walmart | ex-Amazon | Mom of 👦👧 | Sharing Real Stories to Inspire Change ✨

Data Science & AI Transformation Leader | Generative AI Pioneer | $200MM+ Value Creator

As a dynamic leader in data science and AI transformation, I drive enterprise-wide adoption of cutting-edge technologies, delivering generative AI solutions that have unlocked over $200 million in measurable business value. With deep expertise in machine learning, AI strategy, and responsible AI governance, I specialize in aligning advanced analytics with strategic goals to optimize workflows, enhance decision-making, and accelerate innovation.

At my current organization, I pioneered a company-wide AI transformation, architecting robust frameworks, upskilling 200+ team members, and embedding ethical AI practices into mission-critical workflows. I thrive at the intersection of data science and strategy, developing predictive models that improved efficiency by 15% and reduced cycle times by 80%. My leadership approach cultivates high-performing teams that consistently exceed expectations and deliver measurable results.

Beyond technical expertise, my background as an educator and mentor empowers me to communicate complex concepts with clarity, fostering collaboration across engineering, product, and executive leadership teams. I hold a Ph.D. in Economics and am passionate about exploring the transformative potential of data science and AI to build solutions that shape the future responsibly and inclusively.

Specialties: Machine Learning | Generative AI | LLMs | Data Science | AI Strategy | Responsible AI | Causal Inference | Data Storytelling | Team Leadership | Stakeholder Engagement

Let’s connect to explore how data science and AI can drive transformation, optimize workflows, and deliver exceptional business outcomes for your organization.

Every day this week, I will be posting gratitude to someone who shaped my journey.

Today, it is for my kids.

“Can you say no to a job offer?”

My 3rd grader asked this a few months after we moved to Arkansas.

Before we left Seattle, I had asked them both how they felt about moving. They were excited. New adventure. New house. New friends to make.

They said yes.

But saying yes in Seattle is different than living it in Arkansas.

The questions came after we arrived.

Why do you have to work? 
I miss my friends. 
When are we going home?

So I sat down with my daughter and we talked. 

Really talked. About my career journey, about dreams, about why this move mattered to me. About the years of work that led to this moment.

And she looked at me and said: “I get it, Mom. I get it.”

She is 8 years old. And she understood.

This Thanksgiving, I am grateful TO my children.

Not because the move was easy. It was not.
Not because they do not miss their Seattle friends. They do.

But because even when reality hit harder than they expected, they chose to understand. 
They chose to adapt. 
They chose to trust me when trust required faith.

To my kids:
You said yes before you knew what it would cost.
And when you found out, when the homesickness and the newness and the hard parts showed up, you dug deeper.
You stayed brave when brave was exhausting.
You carry the weight of my ambition every single day.

Thank you for making room for my dreams in your childhood.

Thank you for your resilience when I needed it most.

Thank you for getting it.

And to every child who has followed their parents across moves and sacrifices:
Your courage matters.
Your adaptability is extraordinary.
You are the reason your parents can chase what they have worked so hard to reach.

This Thanksgiving, this is for you.

#Gratitude2025

Irena Palamani Xhurxhi Ph.D.

It is Thanksgiving week.
Every day, I am posting gratitude to someone who shaped my journey.

Today, it is for my team.

Six months ago, I joined Walmart’s People Science team.

I cannot believe how fast half a year has passed.

I came from Amazon to lead a team I had never met, in a company I was just getting to know.

And here is what I have learned in these six months: The best teams are not built on hierarchy. They are built on trust, curiosity, and the belief that every voice matters.

When people feel safe to challenge ideas, to ask hard questions, to push back respectfully—that is when real innovation happens.

I found exactly that here.

It started before I even joined.

Amelia was my recruiter. The first person I interacted with as a representative of Walmart.
She made me love this company before my first day. Our conversations were so genuine, so warm, that I knew I was making the right choice.

Then there was Beila, my hiring manager. She welcomed me from day one. Made me feel like I belonged before I even had time to wonder if I did. She set the tone for everything that followed.

And then there is my direct team.

Chih-Ting and Jidhu welcomed me in. They brought me into ongoing projects without hesitation. They shared context, asked thoughtful questions, and made space for new ideas.

Then I had the privilege of hiring Anthony and Weibin. Bringing them onto the team has been one of the highlights of these six months.

As a team, we have embraced change when change was hard, and we show up every day ready to build something better.

Working with them has reminded me why I love this work: using data science and economics to answer research questions that improve the experience of our associates. We are people-led, tech-powered. And that mission matters.

To my broader People Science and WII teams (Ashutosh, Stephen, Amal, Anwesha, Scott, Andrew, Jennifer, Matthew, Suhas, Vivekraj, Ashwath, Albert, Hemakshi, Leela, Nivedita, Mindy, Marti):  
You have made collaboration feel effortless. You have welcomed my questions, shared your expertise, and treated me like I had always been part of this team.
Thank you for making this feel like home.

And to my close partners and collaborators across Walmart:
The teams who trust us with their hardest questions. Who partner with us to turn data into action. Who believe that research can drive real change for our associates.

Your trust means everything. Your partnership makes our work possible.

I look forward to deepening that collaboration in the years to come.

This Thanksgiving, I am grateful for a team that leads with trust.
That asks hard questions and listens to the answers.
That believes the best work happens when everyone has a voice.

To everyone who has been part of this journey:
Thank you for showing me what great teams are made of.

Here is to stronger partnerships and a brighter future! 

#gratitude2025 #walmart #peopleledtechpowered #peoplescience

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It is Thanksgiving week.
Every day, I am posting gratitude to someone who shaped my journey.

Today, it is for the adults in my family.

My mom was a teacher who was never satisfied.

Straight A’s? “You are doing okay, but you can always do better.”

I signed up for extra math and English lectures after school. I brought home perfect grades. It was never enough.

But here is what I did not see then: She was not teaching me to chase grades. She was teaching me to chase knowledge. To learn for the sake of learning. To never stop being curious.

That restlessness, that hunger for more, that is her gift to me.

My dad came from a culture where fathers did not say they were proud.

I worked my entire childhood waiting to hear those words.

It finally happened near the end of college. And when he said it, I realized something: I had spent all those years becoming someone worth being proud of.

He taught me to seek better versions of myself. Even when the words came late, the lesson came early.

My sisters were 5 and 8 when I left home.

For years, I carried the guilt of missing their childhood.

But somehow, we grew up together anyway. Across countries. Across time zones. Across years of distance.

Now they are my best friends. My go-to for every problem. Sometimes just being together, not even talking, is all I need.

My husband was my first deskmate in 1st and 2nd grade.

We used to fight about who got better grades.

It is kind of funny that now we are married.

That ambition we had as kids? It never left. It just grew with us.

Now we are the biggest supporters of each other’s careers. Each other’s dreams. We fight for what is best for our family. We make decisions together.

He is not just my partner. He is my teammate in every sense.

This Thanksgiving, I am grateful for a family that raised me in perfectionism and ambition.

Not the toxic kind. The kind that says: You are capable of more than you know.

My mom taught me curiosity.
My dad taught me resilience.
My sisters taught me that love survives distance.
My husband taught me that partnership means cheering for each other’s wins as loud as your own.

To the families who push us, challenge us, and believe in us even when we cannot see it:
Thank you.

You shaped who we became.

Every day, I have been posting gratitude to someone who shaped my journey.

Today, it is for three women who inspire me every single day.

Shelmina Babai Abji 

I first heard her name at GHC 2023.
Everyone was talking about her session. “You have to go.” “She is incredible.” “Get there early.”
So I showed up an hour before it started and waited in line with hundreds of others.

The session was electrifying.

Shelmina has a way of inspiring women like no one I have ever seen. She does not just talk about empowerment. She makes you feel it in your bones.

One thing she said stuck with me: “Power is what people say about you behind closed doors.”
That session was a wake-up call for my career.

I bought her book, Show Your Worth, immediately. I read it cover to cover.

And here is what amazes me most about Shelmina: Despite everything she has achieved, she is so approachable. So humble. So genuinely invested in helping women succeed.

She is helping women in tech in every corner of the world. And now she has her own AI GPT to scale that impact even further.

Elena Hoffer, PhD

Elena co-founded Alma.Me, a company that helps PhDs transition into industry.
I wish she had been around when I was on the job market. I would have signed up in a heartbeat.

Elena is a beautiful soul, inside and out.
The first time we met, I knew we would have been great friends if we lived closer. There is so much kindness in her heart. She truly wants to help every PhD lead a successful, fulfilling life.

She was so generous to invite me onto her podcast. It gave me visibility I had never had before. It let me express myself in ways I had not done publicly.

That kind of support? It changes everything.

Samira Hosseini

Samira is the founder of Autonomous Academic Accelerator, where she has helped hundreds of academics publish in top journals.

More recently, she became Editor-in-Chief of Artificial Intelligence Advances in Education, a peer-reviewed journal focused on research at the intersection of AI and higher education.

She was so kind to offer me an opportunity to be an advisor on the journal’s board. And she invited me to speak at the SAMYRAD Conference in Sevilla in October 2026.

These opportunities mean the world to me. They push me to grow. They remind me that my voice matters.

These three women inspire me daily.
They are not just role models for me. They are role models for every young professional trying to find their way.

Shelmina taught me to own my worth.
Elena taught me that kindness and ambition go hand in hand.
Samira taught me that lifting others up is the greatest form of leadership.

To Shelmina, Elena, and Samira:
Thank you for your generosity. Thank you for your belief in me. Thank you for showing me what it looks like to lead with purpose and heart.

And to everyone reading this:
Follow their journeys. Learn from them. And when they help you—because they will—pay it forward.

That is how we build a community that truly lifts each other up.

Open article: Alma.Me | Helping PhDs Transition from Academia to Industry by alma.me

Alma.Me | Helping PhDs Transition from Academia to Industry

It is Thanksgiving week.
Every day, I am posting gratitude to someone who shaped my journey.

Today, it is for my LinkedIn community.

It just crossed 30,000 people.

Less than a year ago, there were maybe 500.

I was terrified to post. Terrified that no one would care. Terrified that I had nothing valuable to say.

And then three people changed everything.
Venkata, Dean, and Taha.

Venkata met with me early on and shared his learnings. Dean gave me visibility by shouting out my profile. Taha believed in my voice before I did.

They did not have to do any of that. But they did. And it made all the difference.

Here is what no one tells you about being a creator:
Some days, you pour your heart into a post and get nothing.
No likes. No comments. No sign that anyone even saw it.
And you start to wonder: Am I wasting my time? Does anyone care? Am I adding any value at all?
Those days are brutal. And they come more often than you think.

But then someone comments. Someone shares your post. Someone messages you to say “this resonated with me.”

And suddenly, you remember why you started.
I could not have gotten here without this community.

The people who comment on my posts even when engagement is low.
The people who like, share, and bring my work to their networks.
The people who reach out privately to say “keep going.”

You gave me a voice when I was still finding it. You gave me confidence when I was full of doubt. You showed up on the hard days and made me believe this mattered.

To everyone who has engaged with my content, shared my posts, or sent me a kind message:
Thank you for being part of this journey.
Thank you for making space for my story.
Thank you for reminding me that showing up is worth it.

This Thanksgiving, I am grateful for a community that lifts each other up.
That celebrates wins, big and small.
That believes in people before they believe in themselves.

Here is to the next chapter—together.

To Elena, David, Samira, Andrea, Rohit, Sujoy, Hari, Sairam, Hem, Jorge, Brett, Hina, Andres, Igor, Renuka, Anshul, Carmen, Paras, Svet, Xhoni, Lucienne, Soribel, Malik, Pravarshi, Girish, Jason, Muhammad, Karrie, Anant, Nuong, Maria, Maria, Lira, Francesca, W., Mike, Aleksey— Thank you 🙏🏻 

I exceeded the maximum mention limit and will continue in the comments!

taplio

Irena Palamani Xhurxhi Ph.D.'s Linkedin Analytics