People First, Policy Second: A Café Chat on Real-World Governance

Combining some of my favourite pastimes: meeting with people, exploring different cafes, enjoying a hot latte and talking practical challenges and innovations in data & AI governance.

This week’s feature is Simone the Data Governance and Enablement Manager at Pepperstone Financial.  Simone is a deeply thoughtful and passionate data governance professional whose experience spans countries, industries, and decades. We sat down at Mr Collins café in Melbourne and talked about culture, empathy, architecture, AI, and why soft skills matter.

Simone believes that good data governance starts with understanding people. Her philosophy is what I’d call “EDGE: Empathetic Data Governance Engagement”—meeting people where they are, understanding their history, and taking time to build trust before pushing change. She reminded me that governance is often a change in mindset more than a process.  So much about data governance is really people governance – sometimes I think this is undervalued and misunderstood.

Simone started her data journey at 16 years old in Brazil, and now she’s leading with grace and grit at Pepperstone. Her insights on aligning architecture, enabling single sources of truth, and the role of data governance in enabling AI are spot-on. But what stayed with me most was her grounded perspective: no matter how fast tech moves, governance is still about relationships.  One of the reasons why I love making new connections through this series.

Thanks for the cuppa and your wisdom, Simone—can’t wait for round two.

Want to be featured in an upcoming session?
We’re always looking to share new stories.
Register your interest here: https://dgx.group/data-governors-in-cafes/