San Diego, California

Data · Systems · Engineering

Mike Zhao.Building at the intersection of data and software.

I'm a Principal Data Informatics Analyst with a foundation in project management, process improvement, and product delivery. My professional work spans analytics and business intelligence; outside that role, I build software and explore more reliable ways to work.

01 / Selected work

Ideas, made tangible.

A small, growing collection of work and the thinking behind it.

Professional analytics · Senior tenure, 2026

Making transactional data useful for reporting

Investigated unfamiliar transactional data, established analytical grain and relationships, and developed a Power BI reporting solution. Documented the design to support team understanding and maintenance.

Generalized professional example; implementation details are confidential.

Professional analytics · Senior tenure, 2026

Owning a reporting solution from design to delivery

Designed and delivered reporting for a new product offering, developing SQL transformations and technical documentation to help colleagues understand the solution.

Generalized professional example; no customer data or internal architecture is shared.

Current exploration

BI as Code

Exploring how version control, modularity, automated validation, and repeatable delivery can improve analytics development. I am starting this conversation with my manager and colleagues.

Early-stage exploration; organization-wide adoption is not claimed.

Personal software project

This portfolio

A Next.js and TypeScript website with reusable content, responsive styling, semantic HTML, and automated lint, typecheck, and build validation. Developed through Git and pull requests, with Vercel hosting.

Software development outside my professional analytics role.

View source on GitHub

02 / Professional direction

A career in motion.

Different disciplines, connected by a single question: how can we build it better?

I started in project management, bringing people, priorities, and delivery together. Earning my PMP in August 2018 strengthened my approach to planning, stakeholder alignment, and execution. Lean Six Sigma reinforced my interest in removing friction and repetitive work.

At Mitchell International, that interest led from Excel and VBA automation to Oracle SQL, Tableau, analytical data modeling, and reporting architecture. As a Senior Analyst, I developed Power BI expertise through self-directed learning and hands-on delivery.

Since my promotion to Principal on September 28, 2026, I am collaborating with my manager and colleagues to explore BI as Code. This is early-stage work; my personal software projects offer another place to learn, experiment, and build.

THE ARC / DELIVERY TO ENGINEERING

A project-management foundation, growing into technical ownership.

  1. 01

    Principal Data Informatics AnalystCurrent

    Mitchell International · September 28, 2026–present

    Collaborating with my manager and colleagues to explore BI as Code: version control, modular development, testing, and repeatable delivery for analytics. This work is at an early stage.

  2. 02

    Senior Data Informatics Analyst

    Mitchell International · January 12, 2024–September 27, 2026

    Independently owned complex reporting solutions, developed analytical data models, and introduced Power BI through self-directed learning and project delivery. Created technical design documentation for team knowledge sharing.

  3. 03

    Data Informatics Analyst

    Mitchell International · March 9, 2020–January 11, 2024

    Developed Oracle SQL, Tableau, Excel, and VBA capabilities. Automated reporting verification, improved dashboard performance and accessibility, and documented reusable workflows.

  4. 04

    Project Manager

    Mitchell International · September 2018–March 2020

    Coordinated cloud-product customer onboarding and worked across operations, finance, and data teams to improve delivery and billing workflows.

  5. 05

    Project Management Lead

    Entra Health / CRF Health · May 2016–March 2018

    Supported project managers and consistent project governance across clinical-trial supply programs, coordinating stakeholders and delivery.

  6. 06

    Project Manager

    Entra Health / CRF Health · May 2015–May 2016

    Managed clinical-trial supply projects, bringing together customer requirements, schedules, and delivery coordination.

03 / Technical practice

Tools are the means.
Good systems are the point.

The practices behind the work, plus the stack powering this site.

Analytics engineering

  • 01Version control
  • 02Automated testing
  • 03CI / CD
  • 04Reusable metrics
  • 05Code-driven analytics

Current site stack

  • Next.js
  • React
  • TypeScript
  • Tailwind CSS

04 / Capabilities

Experience across disciplines.

Data & Analytics

Professional reporting and analytical problem-solving.

  • Power BI
  • Oracle SQL
  • Tableau
  • Excel & VBA
  • Data modeling
  • Query optimization
  • Python coursework

Analytics Engineering

Practices developed through technical ownership of reporting.

  • Reporting architecture
  • SQL transformations
  • Reusable SQL patterns
  • Reporting verification
  • Process automation
  • Technical documentation

Software Development

Personal projects and continued learning.

  • Next.js & React
  • TypeScript
  • Tailwind CSS
  • Git
  • Automated validation & CI/CD
  • AI-assisted development

Delivery & Leadership

A project-management foundation applied to technical work.

  • Project management
  • Stakeholder collaboration
  • Process improvement
  • Technical ownership
  • Team training
  • Knowledge transfer

05 / Foundations & continued learning

Education & certifications.

University of California, San Diego

BS, Management Science · 2014

06 / Contact

Good work starts with a conversation.

I'm interested in thoughtful teams, useful problems, and the space where analytics meets software.

FIND ME ONGitHubLinkedInGET IN TOUCHhello@mikezhao.devSan Diego, CA · Pacific Time