Roy Wada

About Roy Wada

I am a public-sector data leader with more than 15 years of experience building secure, governed, and mission-aligned data ecosystems in highly regulated environments. I currently serve as Director of Informatics and Analytics at the Boston Public Health Commission, where I lead enterprise data strategy, reporting modernization, and governance practices across multiple bureaus.My work centers on treating data as a public asset. I design and oversee enterprise analytics infrastructure, establish standards for documentation and role-based access, and ensure that sensitive information is managed with transparency, auditability, and compliance. I have led adoption of institutional platforms including Power BI Server, RShiny Server, Posit Workbench, and GitHub Enterprise, and oversee integration of EHR-derived datasets and statewide systems such as MAVEN, NSSP, and MIIS.I partner closely with program leadership, IT, finance, and executive stakeholders to align data priorities with operational and policy objectives. My approach emphasizes governance first — certified data views, reusable data models, clear definitions, and explainable methodologies that can withstand audit and public scrutiny. I believe predictive analytics in government must be equitable, documented, and regularly evaluated to prevent unintended bias and protect public confidence.Earlier in my career, I conducted econometric research on taxation and behavioral response to fiscal policy, which informs my commitment to methodological rigor and responsible modeling in public institutions.My long-term focus is leading enterprise data governance and analytics strategy at the Commonwealth or municipal level, strengthening performance management, operational effectiveness, and public trust through disciplined and transparent data stewardship.

Experience

1. Director of Informatics and Analytics

   Boston Public Health Commission

   Jun 2022 — Present · Boston, MA, US

   I lead the enterprise informatics and analytics function responsible for transforming public health data into governed, trusted, and decision-ready products used across the department. My role operates at the intersection of technology, epidemiology, and operations, with emphasis on governance, scalability, and institutional adoption rather than one-off reporting.I partner with program leadership, epidemiologists, IT, and executive stakeholders to define enterprise data priorities, establish authoritative data views, and ensure analytics investments align with operational, policy, and equity-focused objectives. I oversee standards for data architecture, version control, documentation, and role-based access to strengthen transparency, auditability, and public trust.Key areas of responsibility include:• Enterprise informatics and analytics strategy for department-wide reporting• Digital transformation of data workflows and reporting lifecycle• Governance standards for reusable data models and certified dashboards• Building and leading multidisciplinary analytics teams• Designing scalable data pipelines and automated reporting solutions• Cloud-enabled architectures to improve performance and reliability• Institutional adoption of GitHub Enterprise for versioned, auditable analytics development• Data architecture and governance for citywide dashboards using Power BI and R Shiny• Epidemiologic and business intelligence reporting supporting executive and public decision-making

Education

• Georgia State University - Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

  Ph.D, Economics

  2007

Skills

• Stata
• Policy Analysis
• Sas
• Data Analysis
• Sql
• Health Policy
• Disparities
• Qualitative Research
• Program Evaluation
• Economics
• R
• Quantitative Research
• Panel Data Analysis
• Research
• Python
• Econometrics
• Statistics
• Statistical Modeling
• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Health Economics
• Literature Reviews