The Analytics Lab harnesses the power of Ardonagh’s data to develop and deliver unrivalled risk insight and innovative data-driven solutions to our colleagues, customers and insurance partners.

With more than 50 diverse brands in Ardonagh’s portfolio of businesses, the Analytics Lab has unparalleled insight into risk, emerging trends and the solutions needed to meet customer needs on a global scale.

Ardonagh is a business run by insurance experts. Our exceptional culture of collaboration means the Analytics Lab benefits from the deep bench of experience, talent and relationships that exist within the Group.

The Ardonagh Group is a leading independent insurance platform with global scale and local networks. Our presence, expertise and local knowledge across six continents means the Ardonagh Analytics Lab is perfectly placed to improve outcomes across the whole insurance value chain.

We're speaking to Hijesh Lohidhakshan who is based over in Mullingar Ireland. Hijesh is a Data Engineer at the Ardonagh Analytics Lab, which is part of Group Functions. The Ardonagh Analytics Lab was established in 2021 to deliver unrivalled risk insight and innovative data-driven solutions for The Ardonagh Group’s collective of leading businesses, their customers and insurance partners. Here Hijesh tells us about his role, what attracted him to Ardonagh and what he thinks of Mullingar.

Hi Hijesh, lovely to meet you! Where are you today?

Hello, I’m in the Analytics Lab in Mullingar in Ireland. It’s nearly the weekend and it’s been a busy week, but Friday is always a fun day - we have a very friendly and sociable office.

That’s great to hear. Can you tell me a little about what you do at the Ardonagh Analytics Lab?

I’m a data engineer, so my role is to collect data from different sources across the organisation and make that fit for analysis and reporting purposes. Ardonagh has lots of new companies, and the Analytics Lab needs to pull data from a lot of heterogenous systems efficiently. I look for ways to bring that data in from our companies and get that data into the format we need.

First, I have to look at the source data and figure out the volume and format of the data and then I have to think about what is actually required for our purposes. Once we’ve defined what it is we actually need, we think about the best ways to bring the data to our systems and transform the data to suit to the reporting and analysis purposes.

Is it a challenge working across all those different businesses and systems?

Well, it’s Ardonagh, so there’s always a lot going on! Obviously, the businesses can work in very different ways, but that’s one of the most interesting parts of the job – it’s certainly never boring and there are a lot of people here to bounce ideas off so it’s good to work in a supportive team. The people here are very passionate about what they do and are always trying to improve the systems or the way we work.

What are the main skills you need to be able to do your role?

The primary skill you need in any data engineer job is SQL and knowledge around data warehouses. You also need to be able to interpret the needs of the business and have an eye on the future. I always need to think about how I can scale up my solution, add in more systems, how it can develop and grow to support the growing needs of the business. What we build today has to be future proof.

Why did you want to come and work at the Analytics Lab?

I really liked the idea behind what we’re trying to achieve. There’s a lot of thought that has gone into how to use the data to achieve results for the business – I can see how the work I do feeds into the business’ outcome which is very rewarding.

I also really wanted to work as part of the team. It’s a very supportive environment, but it’s also very exciting because we’re quite a new team. I think it’s really a nice time to join because you can see the impact of your work and you get the chance to shape what happens next.

I was also working in Dublin before, and I really wanted to get away from the busy city life and it’s been a good move for me.

How are you finding Mullingar?

I’m originally from Kerala in India and previously worked in Bengaluru (Bangalore) which is a very big city. I moved to Dublin five years ago, but I’ve always wanted to live in a small town, and I wanted to have that experience in Ireland. I really like living in Mullingar, everyone has been very welcoming and friendly, and I feel like I know a lot of the people in town.

The team at the analytics lab did a lot to help me settle in. Right from interview stage, they were always checking in to make sure I was ok and when I was successful in getting the job, they even helped me to find somewhere to live.

It sounds like you went on a bit of an adventure five years ago when you first came to Ireland. What was that like?

It was very exciting and a big change, but I was ready for something new. When I saw Ireland for the first time from the plane it was a huge moment for me.

I really like living in Ireland - it’s a very multicultural environment which wasn’t something I really expected. When I first came to Dublin five years ago, I met people of all nationalities and cultures and that was something I’d not really experienced before I came to Ireland. In my first shared house, I was living with people from Brazil and Mexico, and it was a great experience.

It’s a bit rainy, but I really like it. I lived a lot of my life in very hot areas, so I’m quite happy to escape that. All the rain makes this country beautiful.

What are your plans for the weekend?

My parents are visiting from India so I’m going to be pretty busy with them taking them out and entertaining them. We might have a trip over to Dublin, which is a great day out.

Have a lovely time with them Hijesh and thank you for speaking to me today, it’s been a pleasure to get to know you better.