Julia Ostheimer

Data Science for Social Good Berlin is an organization of volunteer data professionals working together with nonprofits. The main goal of DSSG is to help nonprofit organizations by addressing fundamental problems with the correct data & solving these problems with data science and data analysis. As Lead Team Member, I am a primary contact person for nonprofit organizations, and I help to define suitable AI use cases and manage & mentor projects.

In this client-facing consulting role as Machine Learning Scientist at kineo.ai, I have developed production-level ML solutions for clients from various industries. This role required translating business problems into data science use cases and communicating with (non-) technical stakeholders throughout the data science lifecycle - from showcasing the business value of an MVP to collaboratively designing the optimal integration of final results during inference.

My main objective was to leverage the power of data & foster data-driven decision-making. I collected a lot of experience working in cross-disciplinary teams as I transitioned throughout my time from the Product team (frontend, backend, design, data science) to the Growth team (Marketing, data science, CRM). Besides the Execution of Proof of Concepts (PoCs) in Data Science & Analytics, I was responsible for various data-related tasks, such as mobile tracking or user identity handling processes.

In cooperation with the consultancy Sigma Technology, I have been writing my Master's Thesis about human-in-the-loop computing. My thesis investigated design principles when developing a hybrid intelligent algorithm, an algorithm combining machine & human intelligence. Applied in a Design Science Research project with a Swedish manufacturing company, this thesis aimed to make operational processes more efficient. A condensed version of my thesis was published in the Elsevier Journal 'Technology in Society'.

After volunteering on the board of Kodkollektivet for one year, I have taken over the leadership of the IT student organization. Aimed to connect IT-interested students with each other and industry, I have strengthened existing connections between university and business companies in the field of informatics. My highlights as president were organizing the hackathon Open.Science.Hack and facilitating numerous events with Swedish companies (e.g., Volvo, Visma).

I have been assisting professors at the Department of Informatics at Linnaeus University with tasks such as providing feedback on student assignments and preparing examination material. Additionally, I have been researching current topics in Informatics/Information Systems, such as Privacy and Data Security. I was pleased to present one of my articles at the 3rd International Conference on Cryptography, Security, and Privacy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

I have been coordinating construction projects concerning the rail network in Germany, such as expanding the Long-Term Evolution (LTE) supply to train customers in collaboration with Vodafone. Wherever suitable & possible, I have introduced agile methodologies (Kanban/Scrum) to optimally use the team's resources. Furthermore, I have been responsible for supervising student employees & supported project tracking through programming tools using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA).

The Project Engineering cooperative study program was structured in a way that 3-month long theoretical and practical phases alternated constantly. The knowledge from theoretical phases was applied in real projects during the practical phases, such as the analysis of production processes concerning the maintenance of rail cars (Department: Production planning) or the examination of customer information and optimization of product attractiveness of DB Regio (Department: Marketing).

This Master's program in English combines business with IT and is especially focused on contemporary issues in Information Systems research, such as Big Data & the Internet of Things (IoT). With the specialization during my Master thesis, I have put a focus on artificial intelligence in my studies. During 2017/2018, I participated in the mentorship program organized by Linnaeus University, where selected students are matched with experienced mentors in industry.

During my Bachelor studies, I studied two trimesters abroad at the Universidad Europea de Madrid. Within the Erasmus program, I attended courses such as Sales Management or Digital Electronics in either Spanish or English. This study abroad helped me recognize that I love intercultural communication and international environments. I have co-founded the International Club at Universidad Europea de Madrid and organized events to improve the relations between national and international students.

This cooperative study program in Project Engineering combined both business & engineering aspects. Within the mechatronics major, the program focused on project management as a main course. After a trimester of university study, I applied the knowledge gained in my projects at DB Regio. Other main subjects of this program were: Electrical Engineering, Business Administration, Mechanical Engineering. Our class participated in the engineering competition Formula Student as team CURE Mannheim.