Here’s a copy-pastable, cut-to-fit bio. Download the hi-res image below or choose from the inevitable headshots.

Daniel X. O’Neil is founder of Civic Operator, where he’s developing a practice in ethnographic management consulting. He melds design thinking, group ideation, photography, and other forms of documentation & listening to help organizations form and execute on strategy, build the best teams, and make things better in the world.

O’Neil has been a leading writer, convener, and practitioner in the American open data, open government, and civic tech fields. He’s written widely on community-based user testing and commissioned  & edited books on civic tech and community technology design modes. He’s been named to Crain’s Chicago Business’ Tech 50,  served as a member of the Chicago Police Accountability Task Force, and was a White House  Champion of Change for Technology and Innovation .

O’Neil has helped launch some of the most influential projects in civic tech, including CTA Alerts, EveryBlock, CityPayments, and the CUTGroup.  In the late 80s and early 90s he was a member of the thriving Chicago Poetry scene, where he wrote books, produced plays, and did performance tours across the country. He’s a widely published photographer, with tens of thousands of images published as Creative Commons. He serves on the boards of Voqal and City Bureau. He has a degree in English and Anthropology from the University of Illinois at Chicago. See more at https://www.danielxoneil.com/.

O’Neil previously was the CEO at Civic Elevator, maker of enterprise software for the vertical transportation industry. Prior to helping create Civic Elevator, he served as a strategic consultant to one of the largest manufacturers of elevator equipment.

Prior to Civic Elevator, O’Neil held roles in business development, product strategy, and marketing at Ad Hoc, a small software company that designs, builds, and operates consumer-focused services that are fast, scalable, efficient, and usable. O’Neil helped the firm grow from 15 to 150 people in less than two years.

Prior to Ad Hoc, O’Neil was the founding Executive Director of the Smart Chicago Collaborative, a civic organization devoted to improving lives in Chicago through technology. He maintains an archive of that work at http://www.smartchicagowork.com/. He raised millions of dollars in support of community technology throughout the region, and helped conceive and implement programs like Foodborne Chicago, Youth-Led Tech,  Connect Chicago, Expunge.io, Crime and Punishment in Chicago, Chicago School of Data, and the Documenters and Developer Resources program. While at Smart Chicago, he invented the Civic User Testing Group (CUTGroup),  a new model for UX testing, digital skills development, and community engagement in civic tech. Download or purchase his book on the methodology here.

Prior to Smart Chicago, O’Neil was a co-founder of and People Person for EveryBlock, a neighborhood news and discussion site serving 16 cities. He was responsible for uncovering new data sets through online research and working with local governments. In August 2009 EveryBlock was purchased by msnbc.com.  After acquisition, O’Neil ran Business Development for EveryBlock, working on advertising, content partnerships, and integration with the core msnbc.com site. During this time period, O’Neil participated in the open data/ open government movement, advising governments and candidates on policy.