Alumni Discussion Club: Why Data & AI Require a New Decision-Making Culture
Monday, May 18, 2026, 18:00 – 18:30
SSE Riga, Room 303
SSE Riga Rector Anders Paalzow invites all graduates to an on-site Alumni Discussion Club event featuring Rihards Garancs.
Many organisations already have data, reports, KPIs, analytics tools, and now AI. Yet does that help our decision making in a meaningful way?
This keynote explores why data culture often fails — not because of a lack of technology, but because organisations continue to make decisions with old mental models: defending opinions, searching for numbers that confirm existing beliefs, waiting for perfect data, or now using AI to get the answers without thinking for ourselves.
In a world where AI can generate more analysis than ever before, the competitive advantage is no longer just access to data. It is the ability to ask better questions, test hypotheses faster, simplify complexity, and turn insight into action.
The session introduces practical paradigm shifts that help leaders, teams, and organisations move from passive reporting to evidence-based decision-making. Participants will learn how to avoid cherry-picking, reduce the influence of HiPPO & ego based decision-making, use simple frameworks such as the 5B concept to make numbers understandable, comparable, and useful.
This is not a technical talk about data, algorithms, or AI tools. It is a practical keynote about decision-making: how to think better with data, how to use AI more responsibly, and how to build a culture where evidence leads to learning, action, and accountability.
Rihards Garancs teaches Artificial Intelligence, Business Analytics, and the Executive MBA course Problem Solving at SSE Riga. His expertise includes database development, data visualization, automation of data and financial reporting, and process efficiency improvement. He also serves as Strategic Advisor for Executive Education at SSE Riga.
Rihards runs a consulting company specializing in Business Intelligence solutions, helping organizations strengthen their business analytics capabilities through the effective use of modern digital tools. He has worked with clients across the Food & Beverage, Telecommunications & Digital, Media, and Manufacturing industries.
Rihards is a graduate of the SSE Riga Bachelor’s programme and holds a double-degree MBA from HEC Paris and the National University of Singapore, along with a Data Science certification completed in Paris.
Event for SSE Riga Alumni only, registration is required.
