I build FTE models, inflow forecasts and automated data pipelines that turn ad-hoc workforce planning into repeatable, data-driven decisions, using Python, SQL, Power BI, Snowflake and dbt.
Auckland, New Zealand · remote friendly
4+ years in workforce analytics
PL-300 certified
Python · SQL · Power BI · Snowflake · dbt
Who is Jesse O'Brien?
A little bit about me.
I'm a data specialist with over four years working across workforce modelling, forecasting, reporting, and automation inside ACC, New Zealand's national injury insurer, building FTE models, inflow forecasts, 50+ Power BI dashboards, and automated pipelines that replaced manual processes end-to-end. My toolkit spans Python, SQL, dbt, Snowflake and Power BI.
I'm equally comfortable as a hands-on technical practitioner and as the data SME in the room, translating complex data work into decisions that stakeholders can act on, from planners and real-time analysts through to executive leadership.
Outside of my day-to-day role, I'm still building new tools, forecasting techniques, and side projects, a few of which are below. I also write about what I'm learning on the Blog.
What I'm Building.
Selected projects.
An end-to-end data platform forecasting NYC 311 service request demand across 6.2M records and 14 complaint categories. A production-style dbt + DuckDB pipeline feeds a hybrid Prophet/LightGBM forecasting model (27.6% mean MAPE) and a Gemini-powered natural language data assistant, all served through a Streamlit dashboard with live staffing recommendations.
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An interactive Tableau dashboard that helps you find where your salary goes furthest based on what matters most to you. A Python pipeline combines data from five sources across 618 cities to power an interactive world map, personalised rankings, city comparisons, and a supporting data story.
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Aegis Run
A full-stack fantasy draft game built on a game-agnostic simulation engine: draft a roster, then simulate a group stage and bracket run against a team-strength and synergy model built from scratch. Includes a deterministic (hash-seeded, not random) daily challenge with four independently-varying rulesets, and a Postgres/Drizzle data layer seeded from a CSV pipeline, deployed on Vercel from an npm-workspace monorepo.
View project
View all projects
My experience.
Workforce Modeller
CurrentApr 2026 – Present
- Act as a key modelling and data SME within a WFM function of 70+ staff, advising planners, real-time analysts, and leadership on technical feasibility, data interpretation, and process capability.
- Build FTE scenario models for new business initiatives, quantifying workforce impact of moving work between teams, standing up new functions, or absorbing inflow changes at scale.
- Develop what-if and transition models mapping how changes in one area of the business propagate FTE requirements across the wider organisation.
- Led the end-to-end data modelling and allocation framework design for new workforce functions, from initial scoping through to operationalisation and steady state.
Reporting Analyst
Jul 2025 – Apr 2026
- Designed, developed and maintained 50+ Power BI dashboards, Streamlit applications, and Excel reports supporting WFM operations, planning, and performance reporting up to executive level.
- Extracted, cleaned and modelled workforce data from Snowflake, Salesforce, and SQL sources using Python and dbt, ensuring accuracy and timely delivery across WFM reporting cycles.
- Advised reporting analysts across WFM on data interpretation, query design, and what is achievable within ACC infrastructure constraints.
Workforce Planner
Jul 2024 – Jul 2025
- Built volume forecasting models using Prophet and LightGBM to predict incoming work inflow across departments, providing the demand signal foundation for FTE planning and capacity modelling.
- Designed and built WFM forecasting pipelines and department-level inflow models from the ground up, replacing ad-hoc manual processes with automated, reproducible workflows in dbt, Snowflake, and Python.
Earlier at ACC
Operations Analyst
Aug 2023 – Jun 2024
- Built Python automation scripts that eliminated manual stakeholder processes and directly reduced the need for unplanned overtime, delivering measurable cost avoidance for the business.
WFM Real Time Analyst
May 2022 – Aug 2023
- Monitored real-time workforce activity across multiple business units within a 250+ FTE operation, managing intraday staffing decisions to maintain service levels.
What I Work With.
My skills & credentials.
Workforce Modelling
Languages
Data Platform
Visualisation
Automation
Tools
Certifications
Power BI Data Analyst Associate (PL-300)
Microsoft
2023
IBM Data Analyst Professional Certificate
IBM / Coursera
2025
Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate
Google / Coursera
2022
Google Project Management Professional Certificate
Google / Coursera
2025
Lean Six Sigma: White Belt
2024
Education
Bachelor of Business Administration, Project Management & Information Systems
University of Maine at Presque Isle