In a few short weeks, Philippe Chiu will join us from Paris, France to discuss his role in EdTech as the Director of Digital Learning at IONIS and Managing Director at IONISx. Read on as Philippe fields some questions to give you a preview of what you’ll see at the Open edX Conference.
Where is your organization located?
IONISx is based in Paris, France. More precisely, the headquarters office is located in the historical and hip district of Le Marais.
How does working with Open edX relate to your organization’s mission?
IONISx is the courses delivery platform of IONIS Education Group, the 30-year-old French leader in private higher education. IONISx is a key component within the digital learning strategy of our group. We use Open edX for each and every type of course delivered, whether they are MOOCs, SPOCs, or even some private courses for our schools only.
How did you first hear about the Open edX initiative?
Through Stanford’s implementation very shortly after the release of Open edX in June 2013.
How long have you worked with the Open edX platform?
I first started to install and use it in our labs in June 2013. Frankly, as some early adopters might remember, it was quite an achievement to have it up and running at that time. 
Thanks to the community and especially to the edX devops team, we finally launched the very first release of the platform in September 2013. Ever since, we’ve been using Open edX, optimizing and adapting it to meet our needs.
What has been your focus in your work with Open edX?
There is a quote from the French philosopher Auguste Comte: “Savoir pour prévoir, afin de pouvoir.” It literally means “Knowledge brings vision, and vision, ability,” or, translated in a digital manner, “Data brings insight, and insight, actions.” I focus on all kinds of analytics, including collection, processing, extending, and reporting.
What will you be discussing at Open edX Con?
I’m going to share how best to use Open edX with the external data analysis software Splunk. I’ll discuss concepts, architecture, and use cases to bring insights to operations, marketing, and instructors within a single system.
What are some other projects you’ve worked on with Open edX or in the EdTech industry?
At the very early stage of IONISx (Q3 2013), I explored Open edX from a technical standpoint in order to have a better understanding of how things were run and done within. Then, after our tech teams started to be in place, I moved toward the analytical part of the instructional design and execution of courses.
What other topics are you interested in hearing about or talking with your fellow Open edX developers about?
Everything about innovative usage of Open edX, especially in terms of pedagogy. I’m referring to mechanisms such as flipped classrooms, individualized teaching through machine learning (or else), or all kinds of actual gamification.
What inspired you and what keeps you inspired to work in the EdTech space?
There is an extraordinary opportunity to revolutionize the way people learn and behave toward knowledge and skills. Education is an effective way of helping people to evolve in their life and careers, which is much needed in our fast-paced changing society.
Follow Philippe Chiu on Twitter: @pchiu33.
