Rod Bates
Verified Expert in Management Consulting
Management Consulting Expert
Atlanta, GA, United States
Toptal member since August 29, 2025
Rod is a results-driven C-level executive with 25+ years of experience unlocking business value through AI, advanced analytics, and data strategy. Known for his ability to quickly immerse himself in a client’s business model, he identifies key objectives and challenges and activates deep domain expertise to deliver measurable impact. Rod has successfully built and led high-performing teams as a chief data and analytics officer, delivering results across Fortune 100 companies and SMBs.
Expertise
- Analytics
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Consulting
- Data
- Data Strategy
- Executive Leadership
- Machine Learning
- Team Leadership
Work Experience
C-level Consultant in AI, Analytics, & Data
Independent Consultant
- Built a new pricing and rating model for mid-sized logistics companies, resulting in significant margin improvements.
- Developed a labor acquisition and retention model for mid-sized logistics companies.
- Implemented new cloud-based data and reporting infrastructure for a mid-sized logistics company.
Chief Data & Analytics Officer
Insight Global
- Implemented AI and machine learning capabilities, resulting in significant top-line revenue and cost efficiency gains.
- Built the first-ever company-wide data infrastructure in Azure Databricks.
- Led the migration from Tableau Server to Tableau Cloud.
- Drove partnerships with key technology providers, including Microsoft, Salesforce, Databricks, Hubspot, and Bullhorn.
- Developed and implemented a pricing analytics platform to support gross margin growth.
- Increased field level by around 3,000 full-time equivalent productivity through optimized implementation of CRM, sales operations, lead management, and territory optimization.
- Built AI, data, and business intelligence teams providing capabilities across the entire enterprise.
- Implemented a master data management strategy for key data domains.
Managing Director
PwC
- Served as the overall lead for multiyear, multi-million dollar data and analytics engagements with clients across all industries, from Fortune 500 to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).
- Advised C-level client stakeholders on strategic roadmap development, investment planning, organization structures and operating models, and the implementation of enterprise data initiatives.
- Coached and mentored across the spectrum of junior associates up to the director level. Built project-level teams while developing individual skill sets and career paths.
- Consulted with a fitness equipment manufacturer on the data and analytics strategy, driving results on marketing and sales ROI improvement and product launch support.
- Consulted with several consumer products and services companies on market sizing, consumer segmentation and targeting, and pricing strategies.
Vice President, Data & Analytics
Coca-Cola Company
- Delivered $50+ million annually of measurable marketing efficiency while maintaining and growing market share in leading product categories.
- Led a $15 million modernization initiative to shift investment from legacy insights platforms to state-of-the-art analytical capabilities.
- Managed 20+ vendor relationships, with an annual budget in excess of $40 million.
- Realized $5+ million of bottom-line improvement on retail merchandising by activating computer vision technology to conduct retail execution measurement.
- Achieved $5+ million in supply chain operating efficiencies by leveraging machine learning and robotic process automation.
- Established and led the enterprise data and analytics center of excellence as the hub for accelerating digital transformation through data and analytics.
- Developed data partnership opportunities with distributors, retailers, food service providers, technology partners, and non-competing CPG manufacturers.
- Managed Coca-Cola’s relationship with Nielsen and an additional 50+ on-site, dedicated outsourced data and analytics resources.
- Led the development of cloud infrastructure for Coca-Cola North America to support analytics and performance measurement.
- Reduced data costs by 30% through a holistic data acquisition strategy to counter increasing data costs, while future-proofing against scarcity in the CPG environment.
Senior Director of Analytics
Epsilon
- Increased services revenue by 20% in one year as the analytics lead in the automotive sector.
- Boosted ROI by 25% by implementing next-generation marketing technology and analytics for clients.
- Contributed to the overall analytics consulting practice as an experienced subject-matter expert, mentor, and coach.
- Led a team of 12 data scientists and data engineers assigned to multiple clients in the automotive industry.
Head of Analytics
FedEx
- Identified and activated the marketing strategy for a $2 billion value opportunity in the small and medium B2B prospect universe.
- Managed a $10 million budget for master data management architecture.
- Negotiated and executed a $12 million enterprise syndicated data purchase from D&B.
- Developed time series and econometric models to deliver short- and long-range demand forecasts.
- Led teams of 10-15 data scientists, marketing analysts, and data engineers.
Statistician
Intel
- Reduced defects in the end product by implementing statistical models in the manufacturing process.
- Applied the practical usage of experimental design, analysis of variance, and predictive modeling in an engineering environment.
- Provided statistical analysis and training to 40+ engineers to support continuous improvement efforts and the introduction of new technology.
Education
Master's Degree in Analytics and Data Science
University of Tennessee - Knoxville, TN, USA
Master’s Degree in Mathematics
University of Mississippi - Oxford, MS, USA
Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics and Computer Science
University of Mississippi - Oxford, MS, USA
Skills
Finance
Business Intelligence (BI), Pricing, Forecasting
Data & Analysis Software
SQL, Tableau, SAS, IBM SPSS
Other
Analytics, Data, Data Strategy, Team Leadership, Text Analytics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, Executive Leadership, Consulting, Azure, Azure Databricks, Databricks, Snowflake, Microsoft AI, Microsoft Power BI, DataViz, SAS SQL, Presentations, B2C Marketing, Statistical Methods, Statistical Modeling, Statistical Analysis, HTML, Unix, Unix Shell Scripting, Data Structures, Mathematics, Mathematical Analysis, Applied Mathematics, Mathematical Logic, Mathematica, C++, JMP, Pascal, C, Fortran, Cloud, Leadership, Leadership Analytics, Leadership Team, Data Visualization, Data Governance, Data Engineering, Management Consulting, Financials, Marketing Mix, Marketing Research & Analysis, Marketing Analytics, Sales Analysis, Pricing Models, Retail Merchandising, Computer Vision, Python, B2B, B2C, Time Series Analysis, Master Data Management (MDM), Multivariate Statistical Modeling
How to Work with Toptal
Toptal matches you directly with global industry experts from our network in hours—not weeks or months.
Share your needs
Choose your talent
Start your risk-free talent trial
Top talent is in high demand.
Start hiring