Shows
The Official SaaStr Podcast: SaaS | Founders | InvestorsEnterprise Partnerships Bootcamp: How to Land, Scale, and Win with Linear’s COO, Omni’s CEO, Theory Ventures’s Tunguz, and Vesey VenturesTomasz Tunguz of Theory Ventures brought together a strong panel at SaaStr Annual and AI Summit for a deep dive on enterprise partnerships. An Enterprise Partnerships Bootcamp: How to Land, Scale, and Win with Linear, Omni, Theory Ventures, and Vesey Ventures.* Christina Cordova – Chief Operating Officer at Linear, the purpose-built tool for planning and building products. Previously spent 7.5 years at Stripe where she started their partnerships organization, and later led partnerships and platform initiatives at Notion.* Colin Zima – CEO of Omni, rebuilding BI and analytics to create a tool accessible to both developers and end user...
2025-10-0204 min
The Analytics Power Hour#276: BI is Dead! Long Live BI! With Colin ZimaThe post #276: BI is Dead! Long Live BI! With Colin Zima appeared first on The Analytics Power Hour: Data and Analytics Podcast.
2025-07-221h 04
The Analytics Power Hour#276: BI is Dead! Long Live BI! With Colin ZimaProduct managers for BI platforms have it easy. They "just" need to have the dev team build a tool that gives all types of users access to all of the data they should be allowed to see in a way that is quick, simple, and clear while preventing them from pulling data that can be misinterpreted. Of course, there are a lot of different types of users—from the C-level executive who wants ready access to high-level metrics all the way to the analyst or data scientist who wants to drop into a SQL flow state to everyone in be...
2025-07-221h 04
DataFramed#310 The State of BI in 2025 with Howard Dresner, Godfather of BIBusiness intelligence has been transforming organizations for decades, yet many companies still struggle with widespread adoption. With less than 40% of employees in most organizations having access to BI tools, there's a significant 'information underclass' making decisions without data-driven insights. How can businesses bridge this gap and achieve true information democracy? While new technologies like generative AI and semantic layers offer promising solutions, the fundamentals of data quality and governance remain critical. What balance should organizations strike between investing in innovative tools and strengthening their data infrastructure? How can you ensure your business becomes a 'data athlete' capable of making...
2025-07-1447 min
Through the Drama with Chris & LaurenSeparate Beds, Surprise Sequels & Cosmetic Confessions | Through the Drama with Chris & LaurenChris & Lauren are getting ready to head to Lake Tahoe after the 4th for next week’s American Century Celebrity Golf Tournament—where stars like Steph Curry, the Kelce brothers, Miles Teller, and Colin Jost are set to appear. But first, they’re breaking down all the latest Hollywood heat.
Why do Raven-Symoné and her wife sleep in separate beds—and is this growing trend actually healthier for relationships? Plus, major sequel rumors: The Devil Wears Prada 2 and The Social Network may both be in the works. And finally, what’s the deal with the next Ja...
2025-07-0121 min
DataFramed#306 The Next Generation of Business Intelligence with Colin Zima, CEO at OmniThe modern data stack has transformed how organizations work with data, but are our BI tools keeping pace with these changes? As data schemas become increasingly fluid and analysis needs range from quick explorations to production-grade reporting, traditional approaches are being challenged. How can we create analytics experiences that accommodate both casual spreadsheet users and technical data modelers? With semantic layers becoming crucial for AI integration and data governance growing in importance, what skills do today's BI professionals need to master? Finding the balance between flexibility and governance is perhaps the greatest challenge facing data teams today....
2025-06-161h 01
The Data TModel as You Go: A New Take on BIIn this episode of The Data T podcast, Armon Petrossian and Satish Jayanthi sit down with Colin Zima, co-founder and CEO of Omni, to talk about what it takes to reinvent business intelligence. Colin shares his journey from Looker’s early days to building Omni, the lessons learned along the way, and his philosophy of ruthless pragmatism when it comes to data modeling, product development, and AI. The conversation dives deep into the evolving BI landscape, the importance of semantics in AI, and how building trust—whether with customers or stakeholders—can be the real engine of innovation. If you're...
2025-06-1041 min
Hub & Spoken: Data | Analytics | Chief Data Officer | CDO | Data StrategyBusiness Intelligence in an AI worldIn this episode of Hub & Spoken, Jason Foster speaks with Colin Zima, CEO and Co-founder of Omni, a modern business intelligence platform that combines the best of governance and usability. With a background spanning roles at Looker and Google, and two decades as both a data user and builder, Colin brings a unique perspective on the evolution of BI and the real role of AI in shaping its future. They explore why business intelligence remains critical for aligning organisations, how AI is raising the bar for access and self-service, and why semantics and business logic are more imp...
2025-05-1539 min
North Star LeadersOwnership Culture with Colin ZimaHow can the way you treat your customers radically change your company's success? And, more importantly… What happens when customers become your partners, not just transactions? In this episode of North Star Leaders, Lindsay sits down with Colin Zima, CEO of Omni, to dive into what it takes to build a company where transparency, trust, and real partnerships drive everything. Colin shares his thoughts on leadership, the power of treating customers like true collaborators, and why a culture of openness and authenticity can set you apart in a crowded market.
You’ll hear them discuss:
High...
2025-05-1326 min
Infinite Curiosity Pod with Prateek JoshiWhat it Takes to Build a BI Platform | Colin Zima, CEO of OmniColin Zima is the cofounder and CEO of Omni, a data platform that combines the consistency of a shared data model with the speed and freedom of SQL. They recently raised their $69M Series B led by ICONIQ Growth. He was previously the Chief Analytics Officer at Looker.Colin's favorite book: Blink (Author: Malcolm Gladwell)(00:01) Introduction(01:10) What Is a Data Model and Why It Matters(03:27) Gaps in the Modern Data Stack(05:38) The Staying Power of SQL(07:29) Origin Story: Why Omni Was Created(10:13) Lessons from Building the MVP(12:48) Go-to-Market Insights...
2025-04-1540 min
Drill to DetailDrill to Detail Ep.118 ‘A Look Into the Future of Looker and Google Cloud Data Analytics’ featuring Special Guest Sean ZinsmeisterIn this episode, Sean Zinsmeister from Google joins Mark Rittman to discuss the latest developments for Looker including the integration of Looker Studio, new modeling capabilities and the exciting potential of generative AI for BI.We discuss how Looker is evolving to be a more open, composable platform that can power advanced analytics and data storytelling, with Sean sharing insights on Google's purpose-built Gemini models for natural language to SQL translation and how Looker customers can leverage these AI capabilities. We also explore Looker's agentic API strategy, the long-term vision of using Looker Studio as t...
2025-02-0350 min
“HR Heretics” | How CPOs, CHROs, Founders, and Boards Build High Performing CompaniesThe Anti-Org Chart: Why Colin Zima Traded HR for Chaos (and Won)Colin Zima, former Looker exec turned Omni CEO, reveals how he runs a 65-person Series A startup with no HR or G&A team. Learn why he believes in minimal bureaucracy, why founders should do the "dirty work," and what really breaks after a Google acquisition.*Email us your questions or topics for Kelli & Nolan: hrheretics@turpentine.coFor coaching and advising inquire at https://kellidragovich.com/HR Heretics is a podcast from Turpentine.—📰 Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccessSuppo...
2025-01-0943 min
Silver Creek Insights9. Building the Future of BI: Colin Zima on Omni's Innovative Approach to Data AnalyticsColin Zima, founder of Omni, shares the backstory of the corporation and their mission to build the next great BI company.
Discover how Omni is blending centralized data modeling with decentralized self-service analytics to empower users and streamline insights.
2024-06-1832 min
Stacked Data Podcast016 Omni - The Next Gen of BISelf-serve BI was one of the trailblazers for the modern data stack. The ability to allow business stakeholders to not only see reports but also start exploring their own data was truly a seismic shift in data.What is next for BI?Join me in the latest episode of the Stacked Data podcast as I sit down with Collin Zima, the Co-founder and CEO of Omni, for an insightful discussion on the future of Business Intelligence.🚀 About Colin:Collin Zima's journey from an early Google employee to leading data teams at Hot...
2024-03-2048 min
Office Hours with Tomasz TunguzOffice Hours with Tom Tunguz & Colin ZimaTakeaways from this discussion include:There is a pendulum between governance and self-serve, and that swing is narrowing with developments like OmniThere's a dynamic with centralization and decentralization hybrid execution at the edge which allows super-interactive user experiences. As these experiences improve, the number of people who benefit and can access data in meaningful ways only increases.00:06 Introduction01:27 Being Chief Analytics Officer04:08 Evolution of BI08:23 Data Organization Structure10:53 Data Permissioning Philosophy14:12 Hybrid Execution17:36 BI Application Architecture19:36 Mitigating Buyer Fatigue21:20 BI & AI25...
2024-03-1935 min
Stretch Four PodcastEpisode 021: How to Build a Billion Dollar Analytics Company (Twice): Lessons from Repeat Founder Colin ZimaThe episode is brought to you by ModernTax — Providing comprehensive business data coverage with AI-powered tools.Want more insights from top tech founders like Colin Zima? Check out the full video interview from the Stretch For Podcast now live on our YouTube channel.Here are the show notes with timestamps:Episode 21 - How to Build a Billion-Dollar Analytics Company (Twice): Lessons from Repeat Founder Colin Zima (Omni)[0:00:00] - Introduction and background on Colin's career path from finance to Google to founding companies[0:09:34] - Colin discusses his transition fr...
2024-02-0654 min
The Data Stack Show165: SQL Queries, Data Modeling, and Data Visualization with Colin Zima of OmniHighlights from this week’s conversation include:Colin's Background and Starting Omni (1:48)Defining “good” at Google search early in his career (4:42)Looker's Unique Approach to Analytics (9:48)The paradigm shift in analytics (10:52)The architecture of Looker and its influence (12:04)Combatting the challenge of unbundling in the data stack (14:26)The evolution of analytics engineering (21:50)Enhancing user flexibility in Omni (23:44)The evolution of BI tools (32:53)What does the future look like for BI tools? (35:14)The role of Python and notebooks in BI (39:48)The product experience of Omni and its vision (45:27)Expectations for the future of Omni (47:52)The relationship between algorithms and busine...
2023-11-2254 min
The Data Stack ShowThe PRQL: Building a Data Product for Data People: Looker's Vision and Omni's Future with Colin ZimaIn this bonus episode, Eric and Kostas preview their upcoming conversation with Colin Zima of Omni. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
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2023-11-2001 min
In DepthHow to leverage intuition, customer support, and raw effort | Colin Zima (Omni & Looker)Colin Zima is the co-founder and CEO of Omni, a business intelligence tool that has raised over $26.9m. Prior to starting Omni, Colin was Chief Analytics Officer and VP of Product at Looker, which was acquired by Google for $2.6b. Colin was an early employee at Looker, and stood up its high-touch customer support arm, which turned into a cornerstone competitive advantage for the company.—In today’s episode we discuss:
Lessons from Looker
When, why and how to invest in white-glove customer support
Tactics for scaling high-touch customer support
Colin’s intuition-based approach to pro...
2023-10-121h 14
Monday Morning Data Chat#130 - Data Modeling in 2023 w/ Colin ZimaColin Zima joins the show to chat about what data modeling should look like in 2023 and beyond. We'll chat about real ETL, semantic layers, the troubles with BI, and much more.
#datamodeling #data #dataengineering #analytics
2023-06-121h 00
The Official SaaStr Podcast: SaaS | Founders | InvestorsSaaStr 658: SaaStr CRO Confidential: Omni Founder Colin Zima on the Power of Leveraging Your Network for Sales and RecruitingOmni Co-Founder and CEO Colin Zima and CRO Confidential host Sam Blond discuss how leveraging your network can supercharge sales and recruiting in the early days. You don't have to be a former founder or be part of YC to have a great network. Everyone will have friends, family, former college classmates, former work colleagues, or other sources. Colin encourages founders to find your particular "cheat code," whether that's your network or an amazing skill, and lean into it. Watch the video: https://youtu.be/9kQIke7x7F4 ***** SaaStr Eu...
2023-05-1051 minDrill to DetailEp.96 'Omni's Mission to Answer the First 100 Questions' with Special Guest Colin ZimaMark Rittman is joined in this very special episode by Colin Zima, ex-Head of Analytics at Looker and now co-founder of Omni, a new analytics startup looking to become the fastest way to ask the first 100 questions.Introducing Omni: The fastest way to turn SQL into intelligenceOmni Analytics Homepage
2022-04-2636 min
Data UnlockedThe Value Behind Being a Data-Driven Company - With Colin Zima, Chief Analytics Officer and VP Strategy, Looker“I think back to this example when I was at HotelTonight where we built this beautiful statistical model to forecast hotel prices because we were trying to figure out what to price hotels out on different days. It was the heaviest data science I’ve done in my career from technical complexity, and it performed terribly. And we went and looked at it. We were just like. “Why is this doing so badly?”And we found out that one of the main drivers of hotel room prices is when conferences are in town. I know tha...
2021-07-2022 min
What Do You Do? with Rodolfo CooperColin Zima – Chief Analytics Officer (Looker / Google)Listen to Colin Zima, Chief Analytics Officer at Looker, discuss his experiences in analytics, going from Wall Street to Silicon Valley, helping build Looker from a company of a handful of employees to what it is today and much more.
2021-02-1100 minDrill to DetailDrill to Detail Ep. 73 'Luck, Thinking Different and Designing Looker Data Platform' with Special Guest Colin ZimaThe Drill to Detail Podcast returns for a new season with Mark Rittman joined in this episode by Colin Zima, VP of Product and Chief Analytics Officer at Looker to talk about luck, thinking differently and the deliberate design choices behind Looker Data Platform.JOIN 2018 - Colin Zima Product Keynote - Part 1GrowthHackers.com AMA with Colin Zima, Chief Analytics Officer & VP of Product at LookerHotelTonight - Story of a Modern Data-Driven BusinessDrill to Detail Ep.60 'A Deeper Look Into Looker' With Special Guest Lloyd Tabb
2019-10-2955 min