Thomas Glaus

Chief Data Officer · AI Governance · Executive Transformation

Building data and AI organisations that operate at executive and board level.

For highly regulated institutions that want ambition, control and measurable transformation

I build the strategic, organisational and governance backbone that turns data, AI and cloud into institutional capability, executive steering power and sustainable competitive advantage.

Explore career View governance

Years of leadership and transformation experience: 20+
Senior leadership roles: 6
Experience across major regulated institutions: CHF 200bn+

Executive Profile

Strategic leadership at the intersection of business, technology and governance.

Senior executive with more than two decades of experience leading data- and technology-driven transformations across banking, insurance and retail.

My focus goes beyond technology. I work on shaping complex organisations through clear strategy, robust governance, regulatory resilience and transformation that remains commercially meaningful. As Chief Data Officer of a Swiss universal bank, I operate exactly at that intersection of data, AI, cloud, risk and executive leadership.

“Sustainable transformation is not created by technology alone, but through the interplay of strategy, organisation, culture and leadership.”

Banking: Deep expertise in regulated markets
Data & AI Governance: Responsible enablement with clear control mechanisms
Data Science & Analytics: Extensive experience in data-driven modelling and business steering
Data Management: Building scalable data structures, standards and ownership
Cloud & On-Prem: Transformation across hybrid and regulation-sensitive platform landscapes
Leadership: Scaling operating models, teams and cross-functional impact

Core Competencies

Leadership, governance and platform transformation brought together.

Data & AI Strategy

Designing enterprise-wide strategies that connect business value, target architecture, governance and transformation roadmaps.

Data & AI Governance

Building AI boards, risk classifications, release logic and internal control mechanisms for responsible AI deployment.

Cloud & Platform Modernization

Leading migration journeys from legacy and data warehouse environments toward Azure, Fabric and modern data-platform target states.

Operating Model Design

Creating scalable organisational and delivery models with clear ownership, accountability and cross-functional adoption.

Career Timeline

Two decades of leadership across data, analytics and AI.

09.2024 – present

Chief Data Officer & Head AI Governance

Schaffhauser Kantonalbank

CHF 10bn balance sheet total

Leading ~10 indirect reports, budget responsibility for the transformation programme

Defined and executed the enterprise-wide data strategy, target architecture and cloud roadmap.
Led the migration architecture from on-prem data warehouse environments to Microsoft Fabric and Azure.
Designed a US Cloud Act mitigation framework together with VISCHER and Microsoft.
Negotiated and signed Azure Enterprise Agreements including Swiss regulatory addenda.
Established and chaired a bank-wide AI board with inventorying, release logic and risk classification.
Defined AI and cloud risk appetite together with the CRO and the Audit & Risk Committee.
Built an internal control system for data, cloud and AI with consistently minimal audit findings.

Impact: Institutionalised enterprise-wide AI governance, strengthened regulatory resilience and established the foundation for a scalable, cloud-native data architecture.

09.2023 – 08.2024

Head Data Management & Data Platforms

Cembra Money Bank AG

CHF 8bn balance sheet total

~20 FTE, CHF 2m budget responsibility

Led an international data value stream across Switzerland, India and Latvia.
Steered data-platform modernisation and key AI-enabler initiatives.
Owned international recruitment, restructuring and performance management decisions.
Led a Microsoft Fabric proof of concept in a FINMA-adjacent regulated context.

Impact: Harmonised cross-border governance structures and stabilised offshore delivery structures following restructuring.

09.2022 – 08.2023

Head Data Management

Denner AG

CHF 4bn revenue

18 direct and 10 indirect reports, CHF 3m budget responsibility

Re-engineered the data operating model toward a Data-as-a-Product architecture.
Consolidated BI silos and established scalable governance and analytics standards.
Introduced real-time KPI reporting for CFO, supply-chain and sales steering.

Impact: Increased transparency, strengthened financial steering capability and embedded scalable data governance sustainably.

07.2020 – 08.2022

Head BI & Data Analytics

Swiss Life AG

CHF 216bn balance sheet total

Provided technical leadership for the OneTrust implementation covering enterprise-wide consent and preference management.
Led an advanced customer analytics platform including a Python-based modelling environment.
Strengthened GDPR and revised Swiss data-protection structures in an enterprise setting.

Impact: Modernised the data-protection governance infrastructure and strengthened advanced risk-analytics capabilities.

07.2010 – 06.2020

Head Client Analytics

Zürcher Kantonalbank

CHF 206bn balance sheet total

12 direct reports, budget responsibility up to CHF 1m

Scaled numerous machine-learning and deep-learning use cases across mortgages, advisory and investment banking.
Operationalised data-driven models with measurable contribution to revenue, efficiency and steering capability.
Designed simulation and pricing models for the strategic shift from product pricing to advisory-led models.

Impact: Measurable revenue growth and cost efficiency through industrialised machine-learning applications in advisory and mortgage domains, while strengthening regulatory resilience.

07.2003 – 06.2010

Data Scientist

UBS AG

Tier-1 investment bank

Developed advanced analytics models for investment risk management and portfolio decisions.
Contributed to building scalable enterprise data platforms in a tier-one investment-banking environment.

Governance & Board Exposure

Governance as the foundation of responsible transformation.

Responsible use of data, AI and cloud is not created by technology alone, but through robust governance structures, clear decision rights and regular accountability to executive management, the audit committee and the board.

Board & Committee Reporting

Regular reporting to executive management, the Audit & Risk Committee and board-level stakeholders on data, cloud and AI risk topics.

AI Board & Risk Governance

Established and chaired a bank-wide AI board with inventorying, release logic and risk classification; defined AI and cloud risk appetite together with the CRO and the Audit & Risk Committee.

Regulatory Depth

Combining innovation with regulatory depth across FINMA, DSG and GDPR expectations, including internal controls and audit readiness.

Strategic Partnerships

Collaboration with KPMG, EY, Zühlke, D-ONE, PwC, VISCHER, Microsoft and SoftwareOne, plus regular exchange with other cantonal banks on cloud, data and AI governance.

Education & Credentials

Academic depth, leadership education and continuous development.

Executive MBA in Business Engineering

University of St.Gallen (HSG)

11.2026 – 12.2027

Master of Advanced Studies in Data Science

ZHAW School of Engineering

12.2014 – 03.2018

Master of Advanced Studies in Business Administration

ZHAW School of Management and Law

01.2006 – 01.2008

Dipl.-Ing. FH in Data Analysis and Process Design

ZHAW School of Engineering

09.1999 – 12.2002

Federal VET Diploma, Electronics Technician with Vocational Baccalaureate

Foundational training

09.1995 – 07.1999

Selected certifications

SAFe 6.0 Product Owner / Product Manager
ITIL® 4 Foundation
Azure Data Scientist Fundamentals
Azure Data Analyst Fundamentals
Additional certifications in cloud, agile, data science and leadership

Languages

German: Native
English: Fluent (C1)
French: Conversational

Leadership Aspiration
“My long-term objective is to further expand responsibility at top-management level and shape complex organisations for the digital era.”

Thought Leadership

Executive presence beyond the organisation itself.

Speaker and discussion partner at specialist and executive events focused on data strategy, cloud transformation, analytics and AI governance.

SAS Forum

Advanced Analytics in Banking

SAP Executive Events

Data Strategy & Cloud Migration

IBM Conferences

AI Governance & Risk Management

Contact

Let's talk about data-driven transformation.

Open to confidential conversations regarding executive roles, transformation mandates, advisory topics, speaking requests and strategic exchange.

Mobile: +41 78 788 68 47
Email: contact@thomasglaus.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/thomasglaus

Download CV (PDF)