30 most influential business leaders in tech 2021
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The 30 Most Influential Business Leaders in Tech 2021 features a few inspiring stories of some influential business and tech leaders. Source: https://ciolook.com/the-30-most-influential-business-leaders-in-tech-2021-november2021/.TRANSCRIPT
VOL 11 I ISSUE 04 I 2021
ED OBUCHOWSKIExemplifying Reformative Tech Leadership
Tech to TopInnovative Leadership
in Tech SpaceTHE
Most Influential
BUSINESS LEADERS
in Tech, 2021
Embracing ChangesHow is Technology Shaping the Leadership for the Future?
At the Top of Their Games
t is fascinating to know how technology changes the world
Iaround us. It is now accessible at our fingertips, one tap, and the things we need are around us. Technology has turned the world
upside-down, which makes me ponder that if there were no technology, no internet, and no invention of computers, humans would have nothing to be proud of, wouldn't they? But one thing that technology has made possible is that it has brought the world closer; you can connect with anyone, anywhere, anything, and everything with the help of technology.
Realizing the potential power of technology, business leaders thought of doing something significant to contribute to the world and making it a better place to live and thrive. And the results were astonishing, as technological leaders stood to their word by bringing various new applications with technology to multiple industries, and many leaders followed their entrepreneurial drive to make their mark in their respective fields. The industry grew over time, and today we see people adhering to the technological culture's integrity, innovation, and accountability.
Technological leaders' task is to deal with all the challenges to the best of their abilities. When the pandemic tragedy came into play, businesses were forced to shift their focus and completely go remote and digital, which resulted in various other challenges, and technological leaders were up for these challenges. They did their best to keep things on track and were always approachable for any trouble. These leaders stayed aware of the latest trends and technologies, which is crucial to remaining at the top.
This journey has many challenges, but technological leaders do not feel low and handle every challenge with their knowledge and
EDITOR’S NOTE
expertise. It is what adds credibility to their profile, and building business relationships come along with it. Having that proactive vision to find a solution to every problem is what makes them unique.
They understand their responsibilities, and today they have become the voice of their respective companies. They plan their professional career with loyalty and build a robust technological foundation wherever they go. Technology is the field where you are never short of opportunities, and thus, having the technical skillset will take you places you never imagined. There is so much to add about the technology and the contribution of the technological leaders to this field.
We are already seeing the best of them and are excited about what they hold in the coming years. They have created a culture of innovation and creativity by taking their chances. Recognizing their tough job for creating opportunities for us all, we at CIO LOOK decided to honor such technological leaders through our upcoming edition, "The 30 Most Influential Business Leaders in Tech, 2021.”
Dive into this edition to unveil the inspiring stories of some exemplary tech leaders. Lastly, while flipping the pages, go through the creative articles by the in-house editorial team.
Go on! Explore!
Aditya Gaikar
Exemplifying Reformative Tech Leadership
COVER STORY
Ed Obuchowski
12
ARTICLES
How is Technology Shaping the Leadership for the Future?
Embracing Changes54
Innovative Leadership in Tech Space
Tech to Top76
Leading Transformation through Technology and Digitization
Ann Dozier24
Solving Issues of Humanity by Using Technology
Asokan Ashok28
A Benevolent Leader Unlocking Economic Opportunities
Brad Henderson34
Making Quality IT Services Accessible for All
Carrie Goetz42
Revolutionizing Healthcare by Aligning IT with Business Strategy
Hernando Celada50
Piloting "Tech for Good" Initiative to the Community and Across Borders Globally
Jennifer Lauretta62
Driving Innovation in the Finance Industry
Brandon Mays38
Leading the Digital Transformation of the Medical Imaging Industry
Dr. Germán Arango 46
Adapting Innovative Technologies for Successful Business Drive
Jason Bressler58
Pushing the Boundaries of Traditional Design Practices
Kashif Dafedar66
CONTENTS
Leading with Transformative Approach
Marc Zinsmeister62
Ardent Technologist Driving IT Innovation and Digital Transformation
Max Chan82
A Leader with an Excellent Blend of Technical Expertise and Business Acumen
Paul Miller90
Transforming Insurance Industry with his Excellent Leadership
Rao Tadepalli100
Pushing the Boundaries of Traditional Design Practices
Kashif Dafedar78
Combining Education and Technology to Deliver Exemplary Educational Experience
Nathan Short and Glen Warren86
Paving the Way for Bug-Free Mobile Applications
Ran Rachlin94
Diversified Search Group's on Post-covid Digital Leadership
Tony Leng 104
CONTENT
Senior Editor
DESIGN
Visualizer
SALES
Senior Sales Manager Kshitij S.
TECHNICAL
Technical Head Aditya K.
November, 2021
Copyright © 2021 CIOLOOK, All rights reserved. The content and images used in this magazine should not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission from CIOLOOK. Reprint rights remain solely with CIOLOOK.
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Hitesh Dhamani
Editor-in-Chief
SME-SMO
Research Analyst Eric Smith
BriefCompany Name
Carrie Goetz
CTO and Principal
Dr. German Arango
CEO and co-founder
Amir Arooni
CIO
Brandon Mays
President & CFO
Discover Financial Services create solutions that connect people to commerce in more rewarding ways.
StrategITcom was founded on the premise that quality IT services should be accessible to all without exorbitant price
tags.
IMEXHS is a dedicated company to implement solutions of high technology for the health industry.
Atlas Credit Company prides on offering some of the best loans for bad credit.
Ann Dozier
CIO and SVP
Southern Glazer's Wine is the world's pre-eminent distributor of beverage alcohol, and proud to be a multi-generational, family-
owned company.
Southern Glazer's Wine
and Spirits
southernglazers.com
Discover Financial
Services
discover.com
Atlas Credit Company
atlascredit.com
Ashok Asokan
CEO and Founder UnfoldLabs is an Innovative Products and Services Company.UnfoldLabs Inc.
unfoldlabs.com
Brad Hendersonc
CEO
P33 is committed to reclaiming Chicago's position as the World's Brightest Spot for technological discovery and
development.
P33 Chicago
p33chicago.com
IMEXHS
imexhs.com
Atticus Tysen
CIO
Intuit is a global technology platform that helps customers and communities overcome their most important financial
challenges.
Intuit
intuit.com
StrategITcom
strategitcom.com
Aaron Gwinner
CIO
Reynolds American Inc. is a world-leading manufacturer that’s transforming the tobacco industry through innovation.
Reynolds American Inc.
reynoldsamerican.com
Chris Purcell
CIO
PEMCO Insurance is the Defender of Your Northwest,
providing auto, home, renters and boat coverage.PEMCO Mutual Insurance
pemco.com
Featuring Person
BriefCompany Name
Kashif Dafedar
Design Technology
Specialist
Michele Rodgers
CIO
Franck Fatras
Co-Founder
Jeff Schmidt
CEO
LendingPoint is a financial technology platform that provides financing origination solutions.
CallisonRTKL is a global architecture, planning and design practice.
Exeter is committed to help consumers find the right financing for their next vehicle purchase.
Avertium is the security partner that companies turn to for end-to-end solutions.
Ed Obuchowski
CTO
Advisor Group, Inc. is the nation's largest network of independent financial advisors serving over 11,000 advisors
and overseeing $450 billion in client assets.
Advisor Group
advisorgroup.com
lendingpoint
lendingpoint.com
Avertium
avertium.com
DiAnna Thimjon
CIO
Cherokee Federal is focused on building solutions, solving complex challenges, and serving the nation’s mission around
the globe for more than 60 federal clients.
Cherokee Federal
cherokee-federal.com
Jennifer Lauretta
CTIO
360 Health Tech run numerous processes for large companies and have been striving to automate the processes taken over from other companies which lead to accumulative significant
expertise in RPA.
360 Health Tech
360healthtech.com
Exeter Finance
exeterfinance.com
Hernando Celada
CIO
ChenMed serves the underserved – moderate-to-low-income seniors with complex chronic diseases.
ChenMed
chenmed.com
CallisonRTKL
crtkl.com
Gint Grabauskas
CTO
Offerpad sets itself apart with a personalized customer experience to make buying and selling homes easy.
Offerpad
offerpad.com
Jason Bressler
CTO
UWM is dedicated to making dreams come true for the team
members, the broker partners and homeowners nationwide.United Wholesale Mortgage
uwm.com
Featuring Person
BriefCompany Name
Rao Tadepalli
CIO
Tony Leng
MD Lead Practitioner
and OMP
Marc Zinsmeisterci
VP and CIO
Nathan Short
Director of Information
Technology and Glen
Warren
Director of Literacies
Ullico Inc. is an insurance and financial services holding company.
Seibels offers the Property and Casualty Insurance industry and Financial Services industry, BPO services, and TPA services
powered by world-class technology.
Diversified Search believes that great leadership transforms people, organizations and the world.
Encinitas Union School District works collaboratively with parents and community members in the areas of science,
technology, engineering, mathematics, and the arts.
Mike Santimaw
CIO
Rent-A-Center has kept at the top of the rent-to-own industry, and is looking for people who share this passion.
Rent-A-Center
rentacenter.com
Ullico
ullico.com
Encinitas Union
School District
eusd.net
Michael Wondrasch
CIO
Avantor is a trusted global partner to customers and suppliers in the life sciences, advanced technologies and applied materials
industries.
Avantor
avantorsciences.com
Paul Miller
CTO
Wind River is a global leader in delivering software for the intelligent edge.
Windriver
windriver.com
Diversified Search
diversifiedsearch.com
Matt Mehlbrech
VP of IT
CoorsTek offers high-performance properties of products manufactured from engineered technical ceramics and
advanced materials.
CoorsTek
CoorsTek.com
Seibels
seibels.com
Max Chan
CIOAvnet is a global electronic components distributor.
Avnet
avnet.com
Ran Rachlin
CEO & Co-Founder
Ubertesters is a crowd-based, complete mobile apps/web
testing solution provider.Ubertesters Inc.
ubertesters.com
Featuring Person
Ed Obuchowski
Exemplifying Reformative Tech Leadership
Our mission is to inspire and equip the hero in every
financial professional and acknowledge their profound importance in people's lives.
“
“
COVER STORY
Ed ObuchowskiChief Technology Officer
Advisor Group, Inc.
What once seemed impossible has become possible today, all thanks to technological advancements. Technology has played a
significant role in changing the face of various sectors and, ultimately, enhanced people’s experiences.
Today, technology is evolving at a rapid pace, and thus, organizations are constantly adopting cutting-edge technologies to stay ahead of the curve and deliver enriching experiences to their clients. This evolution requires agile leadership. Advisor Group, Inc. found such an agile leader, Ed Obuchowski.
Ed Obuchowski is serving as the Chief Technology Officer at Advisor Group, the nation’s largest network of independent wealth management firms. He is leading the firm's technology strategy to help advisors efficiently grow and scale their businesses.
Ed’s path to CIO/CTO is a unique one. However, looking back, he thinks it was exactly what he needed to prepare himself for the most challenging and rewarding roles in his career.
We at CIO Look got into conversation with Ed to learn more about his journey, challenges, and how he has spearheaded the technical aspects of Advisor Group.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader until your current position at Advisor Group. What challenges you had to overcome to reach where you are today?After college, I decided to change careers from one love of my life to another. As such, I gave up my flight instructing job and aspirations to become a commercial
We devote millions to arming our financial professionals with the technology and resources that keep them
ahead of the market.
“
“
pilot and transitioned full time into technology as a system and network administrator.
From there, I eventually left that initial role and joined a trading firm in downtown Chicago. It was there I was introduced to the trading culture as well as, at times, stressful responsibilities of running a large trading floor and backend systems. I eventually left that firm and moved into a service and operations role where I learned what customer service was all about as well as the complexities of the financial services world. This role required that I obtain a number of securities licenses and thus learn the brokerage industry from a business perspective in great detail. As my career progressed, my responsibilities shifted back to technology, where I ran a large Market Data Technology team that consumed data from all domestic and some international exchanges. The large team was responsible for all of the quotes, news, charts and other analytics for Charles Schwab and their subsidiaries.
After upgrading the technology and the team, I found myself with the opportunity to move into an SVP role that was responsible for all retail technology at Schwab. Both of these roles would not have been possible had I not understood the voice of our clients and the needs of our business partners. The role was almost purely software development, which remains a lifelong passion.
As fortune would have it, the head of Infrastructure decided to retire, and I was offered the opportunity to move to Phoenix from Austin and become the Infrastructure successor. After more than a decade, I received a late evening call asking if I would be willing to take on the role of SVP of Advisor Services Technology. It was the culmination of many different business, service, operations, and technology roles that eventually prepared me for the next major career opportunity, CTO/CIO of Advisor Group.
Tell us something more about your company and its mission and vision.I sincerely feel that Advisor Group has an extremely honorable and rewarding mission, with a set of values that puts our Advisors and their clients first. Furthermore, AG remains committed to ensuring that we continue to invest in and uncompromisingly support a culture that empowers our teams and attracts top talent to every group and organization in the company. What I truly love about AG is the fact that every business decision must successfully pass through our culture filter. In other words, the people, diversity, the culture, and our commitment to our Financial Professionals comes first. This is critical to a company that plans to grow substantially through organic and
inorganic acquisitions. In my experience, a company whose primary lens is commitment and loyalty to their clients and their employees can successfully grow the company without impacting our secret sauce, our devotion to our clients, our employees, and our culture.
Enlighten us on how you have made an impact in the Financial Services niche through your expertise in the market.As a CIO/CTO who enjoys a tremendous amount of empowerment and support from the CEO, the Executive Committee, and the Board of Directors, I have always felt it is my responsibility to innovate and differentiate through technology. While technology remains a key focus, the reality is that business-driven technology is what changes companies and industries. That goal is only achievable if there is unbending trust built upon strong foundational relationships between technology teams and all of our constituents across the
company, including our Financial Professionals and their clients.
Technology must be an equal player at the table. As the technology lens allows the business and other groups to see solutions to opportunities and challenges that would have otherwise been overlooked. Conversely, the combination of technology ideas and innovations coupled with highly experienced and incredibly capable businesses and other teams can be game-changing.
Examples include hyper-integration between proprietary AG systems and third parties. This approach is applicable to both internal and client-facing systems. AG can thus focus on our core competencies, and in parallel, provide seamlessly integrated solutions and an exceptional user experience with third parties. This approach also enables AG to bring tools and capabilities to our clients much faster than if we relied
on purely internal development. Having a well-defined technology and product strategy also provides our constituents with being able to use the platforms of their choice. As such, continued investment in innovation is certainly important, but so is the ongoing investment in modernization and automation which allows AG to be unencumbered by legacy technologies.
Truth be told, there are numerous ways that AG has influenced and pushed the industry. Partnering with Financial Professionals to keep their offices safe from a cybersecurity perspective was and will be a critical and significant undertaking. Helping our customers and our internal teams to become much more efficient through investments in data analytics and digital solutions has already yielded substantial benefits. And lastly, our ability to empower our advisors with the insights to effectively manage their business and aggressively grow their practices through data-driven insights is both a requirement as well as a differentiator for our Financial Professionals.
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in almost every sector. How are you leveraging technological advancements to make your solutions resourceful?My belief is that all technology organizations must balance their investments between core and innovation. Many people believe that investing in legacy systems or upgrades in infrastructure is not innovative. While most of the time not overly sexy, core investments can absolutely be innovative and game-changing. As an example, AG recently moved two of our data centers onto state-of-the-art technology. This investment will reduce costs, increase automation, improve security, scalability, and performance. When we made this decision, we were careful to be on the leading but not bleeding edge. This approach, which was ingrained in our strategy, was and is game-changing.
On the more traditional innovation front, there are a number of areas and approaches, and decisions that we consciously make to differentiate AG while avoiding the need to reinvent the wheel. Integrating proprietary systems and experiences into many different 3rd parties in a manner that is fully digital and virtually transparent to our customers is an area that allows AG
We offer financial professionals the hard-won experience earned
from decades of industry leadership and the personal
relationships based on the trust that comes from making and
keeping promises.
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to offer solutions that others are still years away from bringing to market. Another example, which is one that I am incredibly proud of, is the approach we have taken to protect our advisor’s business from external security threats. In a model where Financial Professionals chose their own equipment and connectivity, we challenged the team to bring forward solutions that would help them comply with policies and regulations as well as detect and remediate certain threats and vulnerabilities. This initiative will persist in perpetuity as the threats advance. However, with AG in their corner our customers and their clients will remain as protected as possible across an ever-changing threat landscape.
If given a chance, what technological change would you like to bring in the Financial Services industry?Frankly, I feel very strongly that my team and I are constantly given the freedom to influence or even change the industry. From my perspective, real industry change isn’t accomplished via the guide rails of regulations and policies alone. Instead, true industry change occurs through example. Although overused, Amazon is probably the best example of how a business model and strategy wrapped in truly impressive technology with a great user experience can not only change but upend an entire industry across the globe. Social media, while despised by me, is another example of how new capabilities that people didn’t know they needed would also change the world (perhaps not for the better).
Personally, as a very values and customer driven person, I would like to help our industry to become the most ethical and trusted industry in the nation. Over the years Wall Street has been a place that has brought prosperity to millions. A country that invests in their country’s industries are true patriots. Investing in stocks and other instruments, whether directly or through a Financial Professional, amounts to that
person’s investment in their dreams and aspirations. Perhaps they want to retire at a reasonable age, purchase their first house, put their children through college, or donate to worthwhile causes. All of these things, and more are achievable in a system built upon trust and transparency. As such, instead of putting in place more barriers, creating unwanted administrivia, and using the threat of fines and other methods to drive behavior, I would rather implement industry-wide capabilities that ensure mistakes are minimized and best practices are always follows.
Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run and what are your future goals for Advisor Group?In the not-so-long run, I envision seeing Advisor Group in the top three largest providers for Financial Professionals. I expect AG to be the number one most trusted, the number one most customer-focused, and the most innovative provider of digital and data driven solutions that allows our FP’s to grow at an incredibly fast pace via a fully digitized and hyper-efficient set of platforms.
While bold and courageous, it is all extremely feasible. In many regards, our size, our culture, and ability to innovate, and deliver creative business and technology solutions puts AG at an advantage that can be positively exploited as compared to many other firms.
What would be your advice to budding technological entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the financial services sector?Have the courage to take chances. Step out of your comfort zone, even if the challenge is “beyond you” from your perspective. Remember, when you are offered an opportunity, regardless of your experience, someone really trusts in your capabilities. Take the tough jobs, especially in the growth stage of your career. People will have empathy and respect you for it. Have a mentor. Let me repeat that, have multiple
COVER STORY
mentors. Experience and perspective must be learned over time. However, mentors can help you see things about you, your personal life and even your work life that you cannot. Everyone needs a mirror or two during their journey. Build relationships in your community, in your industry, and in your company. Never ever under any circumstances burn a bridge. DO NOT fear change or the future. Instead, embrace it. Delegate and empower by (as my mentor told me) “giving up control to get control”. Learn to work effectively in high-stress conditions. This can jump start your career or set it back if you are not careful.
Be kind, brave, and always respectful. Don’t be negative or engage in gossip regarding the firm or a fellow employee; you’re not going to like the outcome. Never talk down to a person or get into an argument in public. A lot of times behind the scenes private conversations can resolve issues and even strengthen relationships.
Be solutions-driven. It is great to find issues, but you must be willing to come up with solutions that you are prepared to take on. Always help your peers and partners. You all work in the same company. Your pay checks come from the same place. Build aligned teams. Share your values, you mission, your strategy, and your objectives; and be a broken record about them. DO NOT micromanage your career. Be assertive, aggressive, and have the courage to ask for what you deserve. Be willing to accept the positive and negative outcomes. People who are very engaged in their careers, but don’t manage the journey on a daily basis, can find their way up the ladder more effectively, because going up the corporate ladder is rarely a straight line. Be a mentor to others. Coach them and help them. Build successors not fiefdoms. I don’t know anyone who got fired for building a team that is capable of taking over your job. However, the inverse happens constantly.
Live a balanced life. Love and be there for your family and friends. On their death bed, no one ever said, “I wish I worked more”! Treat yourself well. Stay healthy physically and mentally, especially as you age; trust me, I know! Don’t be afraid to ask for help. It doesn’t make you weak, but it can make you more effective and respected. Don’t be someone you are not. Your long-term success will come from what is inside of you. Be willing to put in the hours. If you don’t like them then be a leader in changing the applicable dynamic. Complaining won’t get you anywhere. On a personal
level, sometimes bad things happen to good people. It is critical that you take the time you need to get through the difficult times so you can again reengage when you are ready. You may not always see it, but everyone suffers in their life. It is how you handle it that makes all of the difference.
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Ann DozierSenior Vice President & Chief Information OfficerSouthern Glazer's Wine & Spirits
| November 2021 |24
Ann Dozier
hen a business leverages technology, it not
Wonly streamlines business processes but offers data and insights that drive further
innovation and digitization leading to growth and effectiveness. Pioneering leaders understand this critical aspect and continue to focus on expanding their array to bring transformative change. Ann Dozier is one such leader who has created a vast impact in the technological facet in her workings with transformational leadership skills.
Ann is the Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits. It is the world's pre-eminent selling, logistics, and data insights company for beverage alcohol and a multi-generational, family-owned company operating in 44 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and Canada.
Over the past eight years, Ann has created an enterprise IT function that operates with agility using a product and portfolio model while also leveraging a partner network that allows Southern Glazer's to expand to meet business needs while modernizing and integrating its infrastructure and legacy systems and growing the business through digital innovation.
The Professional VoyageAnn's career in technology began with companies like EDS and IBM, which laid her technological foundation. She considers herself fortunate to work with great companies, fantastic leaders, and capable teams that presented her with opportunities for tremendous learning and growth.
Early in her career, Ann moved into the consumer products industry with a focus on the beverage
industry, where she used transformational leadership expertise, working with high growth companies during times of acquisitions where opportunities were abundant. She was often tapped for the roles that were integral to the business's success with tight timelines to deliver.
Fast-paced environments allowed Ann to embrace new opportunities to learn and collaborate, which is why she decided to join Southern (now Southern Glazer's) in 2013. In addition to modernizing and integrating core business systems as part of the merger, she has also enabled the digitization of the business and partner relationships, while implementing a cyber program focused on managing risk—all key objectives of delivering business value for the company, its supplier partners, and customers.
Ann had great mentors and sponsors that helped her along the way. She now provides her team opportunities to learn and grow while mentoring future leaders, including promoting diversity, inclusion, and belonging. She also spends time giving back to the communities with a focus on building a diverse talent pipeline for the future.
The OverviewSouthern Glazer's mission is to exceed the expectations of its supplier partners and customers with outstanding sales, service, and business results through innovative strategies, unmatched relationships, and cutting-edge technology through the industry's best trained and most talented team.
Southern Glazer's built its culture on FAMILY, with a team that thinks and acts like owners, reflecting core
Leading Transformation through Technology and Digitization
| November 2021 |25
values of respect, transparency, excellence, integrity, inclusiveness, and leadership in everything it does, while recognizing that people are its greatest asset.The company thinks "customer first," recognizing that it sits in the middle of the top supplier brands across wine and spirits and various customers across the U.S. and Canada. It strives to be the partner of choice by offering best-in-class capabilities, while making it easy to do business and offering insights that drive business.
Being a technology leader in a company that understands the value of technology and highlights "data insights" and "cutting edge technology" in its vision and mission enables Ann to partner across the enterprise. She ensures technology is a differentiator for the suppliers, employees, and customers.
Transformative ExpertiseAnn expresses that as an IT leader, she benefits from working across company functions, which provides a
unique opportunity to connect the dots across strategies and objectives. She uses that knowledge to create a clear strategy and goals for the team while creating an environment that inspires the team to maximize their capabilities. It allows Ann to use her market experience to deliver results at scale.
Blending experienced, tenured wine and spirits talent with top tech talent in an environment where each team member is empowered and feels a sense of belonging has allowed Ann to advance the technology and its value for Southern Glazer's. Ann says, "We talk
about being’ your best you,’ which leads to great business
outcomes.”
Implementing Technological AdvancementsA primary focus of technology is to make doing business easier by simplifying a day-in-the-life of customers, suppliers, and employees, states Ann. It comes in many forms, including automating repeatable
“Being your best you.”
ETP Leadership Team
| November 2021 |26
processes through technologies, like Robotic Process Automation (RPA); making data-driven insights readily available for quick decision-making; offers predictive analytics to simplify planning and forecasting; and fully automating day-to-day business operations.
Southern Glazer's wants to offer access to solutions in multiple ways to create a personalized experience that allows its users to connect in a way that best meets their needs. IT has partnered with the commercial business function to create SGProof, an omnichannel solution that offers eCommerce, sales, and service capabilities. It is powered by insights customizing the selling experience to meet each customer's need while also offering valuable insights to its supplier partners.
Ann is constantly looking for ways to continue evolving digital capabilities to make it easy to do business with Southern Glazer’s. She acknowledges the importance of getting the right product in the right place at the right
time for customers—something that is paramount for the company.
Going Above and BeyondAnn expresses that five years ago, Southern Glazer's combined a company that was more than 50 years old with a company that was more than 100 years old, which meant it had a very decentralized technology stack. So naturally, one of her main focuses has been on standardizing and simplifying the company's technology to offer enterprise solutions. It's been an overall transformation for Ann, and she has been extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to make investments in infrastructure, back-office solutions, and digital experiences.
Ann says that success for the technology team comes from offering superior service, automation that drives efficiency and effectiveness, and digital solutions with differentiated value for their business partners. She wants to use technology to continue to be the best distributor of wine and spirits while differentiating Southern Glazer's with capabilities and predictive insights that offer a unique value proposition.
Bequeathing Budding EntrepreneursAnn states that technology is always changing and evolving, so the opportunities are limitless. The key is to offer technology solutions that have a direct correlation to business value. She says, "Knowing what
you are trying to solve and applying new technologies to
address what are often age-old problems can lead to great
results. It's important to constantly challenge the status
quo, not fearing failure and recognizing that often, the
greatest lessons come from turning failures into success.”
| November 2021 |27
Asokan AshokFounder and CEO
UnfoldLabs Inc.
| November 2021 |28
Asokan Ashok
Solving Issues of Humanity by Using
Technology
If technology is used positively, it has the power to make a huge difference in the lives of people. Successful business leaders believe that there is
remarkable potential in technology. By combing their admirable leadership and technical skills with their visionary approach to solving complex business problems, they separate themselves from the herd.
Asokan Ashok is one such impactful business and technology leader who believes in the potential of technology and wants to make the world a better place to live by using technology. Ashok has over 30+ years of experience as a technology leader and innovator. He is CEO of UnfoldLabs, a company that focuses on creating innovative products and solutions for the technology industry. He has led UnfoldLabs to success with his passion for strategic, innovative products and solutions. Being an inspirational and amazing leader with his business relationships and industry expertise, he has nurtured and grown UnfoldLabs with a keen interest towards futuristic and cutting-edge technology.
Innovating Things to Help Humanity GrowStarting his career as a Software Engineer, Ashok has never looked back on innovating things that help humanity grow. His hard work and passion for technology brought him multiple prestigious awards. Ups and Downs are common, and Ashok believes in learning from mistakes and moving forward.
As a technology geek, he is more passionate about writing and motivating people with thoughtful,
forward-thinking ideas. He has presented at various conferences around the world. His vision towards future technologies and experience in implementing strategic business ideas have achieved him the great honor of receiving many awards for leadership, technology, and products.
Easing Lives of People with Innovative Tech Products and SolutionsAs technology trends are growing/changing at a tremendous rate, organizations need to re-focus and align with the new waves to keep pace with the changing trends and technology. That’s why UnfoldLabs started with a motto to ease people’s life with innovative technology products and solutions.
The professionals at UnfoldLabs capture these changes through innovation who are an agile team specializing in mobile, cloud, and new product development/ innovation. They make products from pure ideation to complete product development and marketing, ensuring a high level of success. The company’s vision is to provide the right solution for the customer; hence, its team encourages process, excellence, user experience, and innovation for a quality outcome. UnfoldLabs strives for Strategic Precision in all of its production processes.
Providing Best Experience to Users with Perfect FunctionalityAshok states that passion and engagement are universal features within the UnfoldLabs community. It
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UnfoldLabs is
an Innovative
Products and
Services
Company
based in
Sunny San
Diego,
California.
“
“
| November 2021 |30
has developed products to help people ease their living in day-to-day life. Starting from Fun, Inspiration (unfoldQuotes – App for Motivational, Love, Nature, etc. quotes) to Family Safety and Security (MyFamily – A Digital Parenting Platform), its experts always strive to solve human/humanity issues with technology.
UnfoldLabs also has other amazing solutions like SecureME and uFallAlert that have already positively impacted many of its users. It always strives to provide the best user experience with perfect functionality that can solve user problems.
Collaborating Closely with All Team MembersTalking about the values and the work culture, Ashok mentions that Excellence, Safety, Care, Innovation, and Responsibility define UnfoldLabs. Its culture is based on a flat, hierarchical structure in which it has an open-door policy and collaborates closely with all members of the team, whether they are janitors or CEOs. It has a well-organized structure of frequent meetings and weekly face-to-face briefings in place to ensure that it maintains communication and a much-needed sense of belonging.
UnfoldLabs sets goals for each team so that everyone knows what they're working towards. Setting goals will not only help them perform better, but it will also help their team members collaborate more effectively. In addition to setting goals, UnfoldLabs ensures that every employee is aware of its long-term objectives. This is to aid in the development of a sense of professional purpose among its personnel. UnfoldLabs makes time to make the office environment happier and merrier, even if its work might be challenging at times. Everyone's spirits are lifted with the right amount of inspiration, motivation, and happiness.
Having Right People and Right Culture to Win Any Technology WarAshok believes that the technology will have a significant impact on most businesses, as it will shift orders of magnitude in terms of data transmission speed and volume and connection quality.
Ashok states the importance of innovating continuous innovation, “Advances in information technology have
ushered in a period of rapid innovation and upheaval. We
will not be able to satisfy the expectations of today's highly
consumerized markets unless we continue to innovate,
particularly in the area of modern digital transformation.”
Ashok says, “You need the right people and the right
culture to win any technology war.” So, UnfoldLabs’ HR team makes sure that the right individuals are hired and cared for so that they can take care of the stakeholders. UnfoldLabs works hard to create the right culture for its people to learn and grow because great companies don't necessarily build great cultures, but great learning cultures do.
Having Perseverance is the KeyThe software industry is advancing quickly, with every piece of tech becoming connected to the cloud. So, Ashok believes that successful entrepreneurs can be only those who can adapt quickly.
In his advice to budding entrepreneurs, he says,“Be it
any product, get to the basics of it. It is very important that
one is always ready to learn, unlearn and move forward
with the right attitude, just not in the software sector but
any sector.” Ashok is completely convinced that pure perseverance separates successful entrepreneurs from non-successful ones.
Providing Unmatched Customer ServiceAshok’s goal has always been to take a more innovative position in the industry on solutions and provide unmatched customer service. UnfoldLabs continuously strives to enhance the lives of the world by providing a simple and better user experience. Its aim is always to contribute towards making the world a better place to live by using technology. Of course, in terms of geography, UnfoldLabs will continue to grow.
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Brad Henderson
A Benevolent Leader Unlocking Economic Opportunities
How often do we come across selfless leaders who bring an innovative aspect to society with the potential for widespread growth for
opportunities? It is astonishing to see how these leaders make their thoughts into reality. A thoughtful leader is filled with a willingness to listen and engage, and it is their humility and transparency that makes them exceptional. With such willingness, Brad Henderson is leading by example.
As the CEO of P33 Chicago, Brad's two decades' worth of professional experience brings a deep understanding of how to unlock economic opportunities that benefit businesses and individuals to P33's efforts. P33 is committed to reclaiming Chicago's position as the World's Brightest Spot for technological discovery and development.
In an interview with CIO Look, Brad unveils his journey and shares his insights regarding economic opportunities.
Below are the highlights of the interview.
Kindly take us through your journey on becoming a proficient tech business leader.
I spent 15 years as a consultant at a large consulting firm, helping companies to solve real, complex problems
related to strategy. About 6 or 7 years ago, it became really clear to me that a lot of the choices that these big companies needed to take on were intertwined with technology and couldn't be solved without addressing the technology itself. It was the realization that technology had become a profound and crucial requisite for helping us all navigate to a better future.
What roadblocks or challenges were faced by you in the corporate business? And how did you overcome them?
For me, it's all about mobilizing people – getting people to do different things - to solve big problems by thinking deeply about what we can do together as a team and then to act collectively as an agent of change and transformation.
How do you diversify P33's offerings to entice the target audience?
P33's mandate and what we take to heart in everything we do is that we first consciously recognize that we must acknowledge many different types of stakeholders and that they must be involved and engaged for us to be successful. Second, and this is really important, we actively listen and recognize that we need to truly understand what people need and
| November 2021 |35
hear what they have to say, over and above of what we want to hear or believe.
What culture change do you suggest for companies to embrace the global technology leadership for the inclusive growth for all?
This is an important question. And it's hard because historically, technology has generally been developed by a non-diverse group of individuals. To be inclusive, it means you must physically go to places and explore how you can get exposure to different people, values, and new ideas that can be built directly into the technology solutions we create. It requires all of us to lean outside of our comfort zone.
How do you keep yourself up to date with the latest technology?
I'm a voracious reader. For me, it means finding a smart, curated resource like the Anti- disciplinarian newsletter from BCG, which gives me a great topline on the latest in complex emerging technologies.
What does it take to attract and retain tech talent?
I think the key is making sure that people get to solve hard, meaningful challenges where you can grow your career and maintain a high quality of life, and that's why we think Chicago's tech ecosystem has so much to offer tech talent.
What are the vital traits that every business leader should possess?
I think humility, transparency, and a vision for what a leader is doing, along with a willingness to listen and engage.
Where are you focusing your energy now, and where do you hope to make an impact next?
We're focused on making Chicago the most welcoming and supportive place for tech talent for all backgrounds. This is really at the core of what we do. That and making sure that we are building toward how we can solve the toughest problems that materially improve millions of lives by creating breakthroughs in agriculture, improving access to healthcare, or helping people build a brighter financial future.
We serve as an ORCHESTRATOR bringing the
voices of business, tech, nonprofit, and government to
the table to the CATALYZEsolutions that will make
CHICAGOLAND an inclusive tech leader.
‘‘
‘‘
| November 2021 |36
Brandon Mays Driving Innovation in
the Finance Industry
ith the digital demand and work from home
Wconditions, the pandemic has resulted in the accelerated growth of the FinTech industry.
To provide seamless experiences to the customers, many leaders in the finance industry came forward with new or revised business ideas, modern solutions, ground-breaking technologies, and robust leadership skills. Amongst those leaders, one such leader is Brandon Mays, the President and Chief Financial Officer at Atlas Credit Company (ACC) since Feb. 2011.
We, at CIO Look, caught up with Brandon to unveil his journey and how ACC has grown into one of the most reputable and responsible consumer lenders in the state of Texas.
About the CompanyACC is assisting families financially since 1968. The company prides itself on offering some of the best loans for bad credit. When customers apply for one of their personal loans, it does not limit approval to their credit score. It considers all the qualifications of customers so that it can offer them a repayment plan that works for their budget. Its personal loans are designed to meet the individual financial needs of its customers. The company prides itself on providing excellent customer service.
Continuing Moving ForwardTalking about the challenges, Brandon mentions one of the primary challenges faced by ACC has always been the dichotomy between its legacy processes and its new, cutting-edge processes. It began significant
expansion efforts in 2014, and from those efforts, it drove innovation for its processes and underlying technology. Since then, its evolution through expansion has never stopped, and it continues to move forward.
It has constant growing pains, stumbling product launches, and unforeseen issues that arise. But it keeps moving forward as a company and keeps exceeding the expectations of its customers every day.
Brandon asserts, “One of the biggest keys to our success is that we keep our people constantly engaged on new ideas, where we are on progress of current projects and what we have coming down the road. That engagement keeps our people motivated and excited for what is yet to come.”
Servant LeadershipThe success of any organization depends on the success and satisfaction of its employees and its customers. Happy employees are able to function more efficiently and are enthusiastic about serving the customers of the organization. Servant leadership in the company plays an important role in ensuring the success and satisfaction of the employees and customers. Brandon Mays leads with servant-style leadership at ACC to create successful employees and happy customers.
Enabling People to Grow with Financial KnowledgeMoreover, Brandon believes that the largest gap that exists for clients lies within a lack of financial literacy. One project ACC has in the works is a financial literacy platform separate from its business operations that will serve as a tool for everyone who wants to take advantage of the various seminars and discussions to
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Brandon MaysPresident/Chief
Financial OfficerAtlas Credit Company
| November 2021 |39
deepen their financial knowledge. This goes back to one of the company’s core beliefs of enabling people to grow once they connect with ACC.
Creating Meaningful ResultsImpactful leadership to Brandon is when his actions create meaningful results in ACC’s employees and its customers. Delivering value that translates into visible results for both its employees and customers is what tells him that they are making a difference that will last far beyond this quarter’s profit projections.
Having Hunger for MoreWe asked Brandon about what essential traits entrepreneurs should possess to thrive in the present-day cutthroat business ecosystem, to which he said, “A hunger for more and the ability to execute that hunger. So many entrepreneurs lack one or the other of these skills, and these are the most critical. The hunger for more drives innovation, expansion, new markets, new products.”
He also opines that the ability to execute things brings life to your aspirations. He has seen too many executives who have great ideas but are not able to bring them to life. While, he has also seen the executives with a great ability to execute but have no creative passion to leverage.
In his opinion, the ability to execute and having a creative passion to leverage are the most important traits for entrepreneurs. He considers that these traits must be present and work in tandem with one another. Then truly great things start happening.
Providing More Seamless Product Experience for ConsumersACC began as a small, locally-owned institution, and it now serves customers across multiple states across the country. With that solid foundation, Brandon believes ACC is positioned appropriately to launch its business model internationally, beginning with a few strategic marketplaces and expanded product lines across all market fronts. To successfully accomplish that scale, it plans to continue enhancing its AI underwriting strategy to provide consumers with a more seamless product experience.
Our personal loans are designed to meet
your individual financial needs, and
we pride ourselves on providing excellent
customer service from the first moment
you contact us.
“
“
| November 2021 |40
Carrie GoetzPrincipal & CTO
StrategITcom
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Carrie GoetzMaking Quality IT Services Accessible for All
here are many companies that need technical
Tdirection but can’t afford, or don’t need, a full-time CTO. This is what led Carrie Goetz to start
StrategITcom. As Principal/ CTO at StrategITcom, Carrie is shaping the technology direction for companies and public entities.
She along with her team, help these companies match and master the technology that will help propel their businesses.
Carries has nearly 40 years of global experience designing, running, and auditing data centers, IT departments, and intelligent buildings. Besides, she is an International Keynote Speaker, STEM evangelist, and Podcaster, and has been published in more than 250 publications.
Inspired by her vision and approach, we at Insights Success got into a conversation with Carrie to know more about her journey and contribution to the IT industry.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader until your current position at StrategITcom.
What challenges you had to overcome to reach where you are today?
Like many people in the data center industry, we sort of inherited it, started it and grew it all out of need. My journey started in architecture. I began teaching civil, architectural, structural, mechanical, and electrical drafting and then computer-aided engineering when Autocad first came out. I started writing code for those packages learning a new language. Then, when networking was in its infancy, there was a project to tie several campuses together and they asked if I would take that project on since I had some computer understanding. I jumped in with both feet. Back then, it was frame relay for the WAN, and LANs were starting to compete for market share.
From there, I quit teaching and started a networking division for an international company and began a journey into consulting. That was a tremendous time in that you learn so much about the way businesses operate, what’s important, the commercial and business aspects, and decision factors. I wouldn’t trade it for anything! That experience led me to some top leadership roles within some large enterprises knocking on and breaking that glass ceiling. I then had
“We strive to provide excellence. Anything
less is just not acceptable.”
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the opportunity to take that expertise global with an established company but as a new line of business, data centers. The global scene was an amazing opportunity both personally and professionally. I have a huge extended family that spans the globe. It’s the “sexy” side of tech, I suppose. The ability to travel and learn about other cultures and business in a global setting is vastly different when you are feet on the ground compared to our preconceived ideas. I also got to show people around the globe other things about our country and culture that they may not have known.
I have been blessed to work on amazing projects with amazing people all over the planet. To date, I have over 4 million miles (that I can actually count) trekking the planet and that doesn’t include trains and automobiles. I have worked with some of the most amazing minds in the industry. I have embraced tech for good and thoroughly enjoy the sustainability aspect of our industry. I don’t mean work on renewables, but of course that is part of it. But really drilling down and making sure that loads are what they need to be, redundancy is under control, power considerations within designs, and the entire ecosystem that makes up a data center.
I am a firm believer in the ecosystem approach. Every business is its own ecosystem. Every data center is its own ecosystem. In working with companies, we take a wholistic approach. After all, you want your tech to work for you; you don’t want to have to fight your technology.
Tell us something more about your company and its mission and vision.
When I opened StrategITcom, the charter was simple. Fifty percent of all employees will be female and 50% of all partner referrals will go to diversely owned enterprises. We believe in being the voice and catalyst for the change we seek. There are two sides to this business, services, and solutions. On the services side of the house, our flagship offering is CTOaaS, or fractional CTO services if you will. On the solutions side, we are a broker and work to bring solutions to those that already have technical expertise in house, but are looking for the right solutions from a vendor agnostic broker from which to choose. We openly disclose any finder’s fees or contracts with our customers. We feel the open and honest method suits us and our customers best.
Enlighten us on how you have made an impact in the Information Technology & Services niche through your expertise in the market?
I have been a stanch advocate of diversity and inclusion from early on in my career. For me, it has been highly beneficial through learning from a vast array of talented individuals. I also am one of the few people that have been down multiple tracks in my own career from coding to design, audits, operations, and the like. As such, I have crafted methodologies to drill down through technologies through a holistic ecosystem approach. As an example, when picking a technology, you should know what that technology provides, that’s a given. But one should also explore what that technology will do to the ecosystem. We also like to take a lifecycle approach. Decisions for short lifecycles will not always be the same as those that are longer term decisions. Our niche really is born out of in house
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and external talent. It’s a matter of working to connect the dots for the good of the customer. Sometimes that means playing the devil’s advocate. We are lucky to have the best customers around!
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in almost every sector. How are you leveraging technological advancements to make your solutions resourceful?
I believe to leverage technology one must constantly stay abreast of the latest and greatest and WHERE those technologies fit. I am not a fan of “one size fits all” statements. We view every piece of technology as a tool in a tool kit. Sometimes you need a hammer, sometimes you need pliers.
Working with the customer is the best of all worlds. When we find some amazing technology; we can evangelize it to those that it can help. Most times, it’s a mixed bag of tricks, like solving a puzzle. Which personally, to me, is the most fun! We don’t believe in technology for technology sake, rather we believe that there is a right solution for the right time period to solve a particular problem. Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run and what are your future goals for StrategITcom?
In the long run, our goal is to catalyze those we can, grow where we can, and enjoy life while doing so. I plan to incorporate as many charitable projects as possible. I’m strongly committed to mentorship and sponsorship for those coming into the industry, so that work will continue as I find it immensely rewarding.
The company continues to grow and our partner network expands selectively building stronger and more robust offerings and referrals. We are steadfastly committed to our sister companies and helping to grow their businesses as well as ours. We are also launching a remote work program for business development to help some of the women that lost their jobs due to covid. We feel that we can be impactful while still supporting work life balance and expectations.
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Built by physicians, for physicians to improve patient care through efficient
diagnosis strategies.
‘‘ ‘‘
Dr. Germán Arango
CEO and co-founder
IMEXHS
| November 2021 |46
Leading the Digital Transformation of the Medical Imaging Industry
Dr. Germán Arango
The modern technological advancements in the healthcare industry have allowed medical professionals to streamline their work process,
which wasn't the case a decade ago. When Dr. Germán needed to send images of a few reports from the Amazon jungle to the capital city of Colombia, Bogota, several problems arose. The internet upload bandwidth available was very limited, and none of the existing software solutions provided by the legacy providers in the marketplace were functional in this environment. To overcome these problems, Dr. Germán, one radiologist, and two engineers co-founded IMEXHS, a software platform to resolve such a problem in 2012.
Dr. Germán is the CEO and Co-founder of IMEXHS and is responsible for strategic planning. He leads and manages with the support of the other directors of the company. From the operational standpoint, Dr. Germán is the final decision-maker of all fronts: commercial, technological, administrative, and financial.
Within strategic planning, the most critical part is the definition of the product roadmap. One of Dr. Germán's main activities is product managing, which defines the approaches he leads, develops, and will be valuable for the company's customers.
The Path Filled with Challenges
Initially, Dr. Germán and the team created a teleradiology platform, which was the origin of IMEXHS. They started with continuous growth in product offering, commercial activity, and technology development, now having more than 300 sites installed across 15 countries.
Fundamentally, the first challenge that Dr. Germán faced was his background in medicine, radiology, and neuroradiology, which did not represent a solid experience to create a company. It was challenging to create a company with a background in medicine because most doctors have a different approach than business, which requires much learning and creating.
The second big challenge was listing the company on the Australian stock exchange, making it a public company. "It has required a lot of learning, resilience, and
effort to incorporate the knowledge of this new world,
which is the stock market world," says Dr. Germán.
Dr. German now finds it challenging to manage a multinational company with operations in different countries and corporate governance in Australia and a large part of its operations in Latin America, which implies synchronizing different cultures and languages.IMEXHS has achieved a very efficient corporate order that has managed to operate in a fine-tuned manner, despite the restrictions of the pandemic.
Staying on the Top
IMEXHS has always been disruptive in technology and business models. Besides having a 100% cloud-based platform, it offers high technology tools such as advanced post-processing and artificial intelligence. Beyond that, it has been a pioneer in SaaS models in the Latin American region. A year ago, it launched a completely standardized subscription cloud-based model.
A year ago, IMEXHS launched a completely disruptive subscription-based model called AQUILA in the Cloud. Its objective is to democratize access to high-tech medical imaging across all the market segments, targeting the low and medium complexity segments that are underserved or have low-quality software offerings.
Via AQUILA in the Cloud, the company is offering a subscription model that no one else is doing, taking advantage of its cloud technology and multi-tenant architecture. Since its launch in June 2020, it has completed 84 installations across 15 countries in Latin America, including 6 installations in the United States and 4 in Australia.
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The Post-Pandemic Effect
Talking about the changes in information technology and healthcare services post-pandemic, Dr. Germán expresses that the first major change which was made evident during the pandemic and will be more evident post-pandemic will be the migration of service to remote delivery. Demanding greater stability, security, performance, and functionality of the technology platforms to support these activities.
The first effect, which he believes is a short-term effect that will be established, is that telemedicine tactics will increase the proportion to face-to-face activities.The second element that he thinks is going to be enhanced is the incorporation of artificial intelligence. He mentions that telemedicine is a solution that probably meets the need in the short term. However, the ultimate solution is that information doesn't even have to travel from one place to another and require as much human intervention.
The incorporation of artificial intelligence can simplify the deficit of providers in certain areas, partially replace telemedicine, and make medical practice more efficient and more precise, which are also urgent needs.
Implementing Technological Developments
One of IMEXHS's premises is to improve the quality of life of physicians and patients. From the patient's perspective, which is its main priority, it must offer technological platforms that handle medical information securely and efficiently while increasing its availability for remote or local medical reports and incorporating more functionalities that allow more sophisticated analysis.
All this represents a higher quality of medical practice, greater precision in the results of medical practice, lower medicolegal risks, and fewer failures in the provision of care, which all adds up to improving patient's health.
From the doctors' point of view, the company provides them with tools that make their work much more efficient. It also ensures reducing medical-legal errors and risks, increasing diagnostic accuracy, and resulting in a higher quality of life, greater efficiency, less risk, and ultimately even higher income due to improved productivity.
The Steps Going Forward
Dr. Germán mentions that IMEXHS is focused on continuing with the disruption in the medical imaging technologies market, not only in the radiology space but in many other medical specialties involving imaging. The company will do this disruption from the technology and business model angles.
Its business model, a project that will fill a large gap within an underserved market, will take off significantly in the next few years. The product offering is preparing for more complex customers, with new technologies, incorporating many more elements of artificial intelligence.
The more artificial intelligence tools IMEXHS's products have, the more attractive it will be to its customers. On this front, it is developing an Enterprise Imaging platform that it believes will break the current paradigm of service offerings and be just as successful as AQUILA in the Cloud.
Additionally, in the medical practice, Dr. Germán understands that to the extent that it is permeated with technology and, particularly with artificial intelligence tools, the practice will be more efficient and productive every day.
Furthermore, Dr. Germán believes that the boundary between technology and human practice will be reduced in the medium term. One of the company's visions is that it has to be present on both fronts because eventually, it will become one, and it is preparing for that moment.
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Hernando CeladaChief Information Officer atChenMed and Head of ChenMed’s Software Company
CTech
| November 2021 |50
Hernando Celada
Revolutionizing Healthcare by Aligning IT with Business Strategy
Every industry today needs leaders who are techies at heart, have a deeper understanding of the business, and can effectively collaborate with
other business functions. One such leader we, at CIO Look, came across is Hernando Celada.
Hernando Celada is the Chief Information Officer of
ChenMed, a fast-growing, technology-driven
healthcare provider and long-recognized leader in
value-based care. At ChenMed, Hernando is
responsible for aligning the technology strategy and
assets with the company’s vision and mission.
Hernando is also the Head of ChenMed’s software
company, CTech, where he oversees the development
of ChenMed’s custom-built tools, including their
homegrown electronic health records (EHR) system,
which is designed specifically for value-based care. His
proven track record of aligning IT and business strategy
has enabled ChenMed to scale to about 100 locations
in 12 states.
Disrupting Healthcare with Technology at Center
ChenMed is the largest family-owned, physician-led
primary care provider serving the neediest and most
underserved populations in America. At ChenMed,
Hernando and the team are disrupting healthcare as
they know it with its technology at the center.
ChenMed’s value-based care model allows them to
provide VIP care at a lower cost to the most overlooked
and underserved patients by traditional healthcare
models. Hernando believes the work he and his team do
at ChenMed will revolutionize the way we view
healthcare, both in the United States and across the
globe. And others agree – Fortune Magazine named
ChenMed one of its Change the World companies for
2020 and Great Place to Work Institute certified
ChenMed as a Great Place to Work® in 2021
Solving Complexity for Value-based Providers with
Holistic Solution
Hernando further expresses that CTech has developed
a highly differentiated technology platform built
specifically for at-risk primary care. Most providers
across the country operate in a fee-for-service
environment which is straightforward, but doesn’t
serve doctors nor their patients well.
The value-based care model allows ChenMed to
provide VIP care at a lower cost to patients
underserved by traditional fee-for-service. But value-
based care is complex and requires caring for the whole
patient, which traditional off-the-shelf platforms are
not equipped to support. CTech solves this complexity
for value-based providers and practices with a holistic
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solution that provides a 360-degree view of the patient.
Further, CTech’s platform was built with the physician
in mind: its data-driven best practice alerts are built
directly into the workflow to provide easy-to-action
recommendations.
Building High Performing Teams and Strong Workplace Culture
When it comes to its technology, Hernando believes
that the best way to produce excellent products is by
building high-performing teams and creating a strong
workplace culture.
In addition to driving value through cutting-edge,
custom-built tools that drive the best health outcomes
for ChenMed’s patients, Hernando also has experience
in building high-performing teams and a strong
company culture. IDG’s Insider Pro and Computer
world recently recognized ChenMed as one of the top
100 Best Places to Work in IT. Hernando has built a
culture of positivity, which fosters passion and
innovation among its team members.
Because ChenMed’s work is mission driven, Celada
says that it was crucial to build a custom EHR system
ChenMed’s doctors improve the health of the neediest seniors every day
with its intensive high-touch care model.
‘‘‘‘
| November 2021 |52
that focuses on delivering better patient outcomes for
the neediest populations. ChenMed’s commitment to
improving lives extends beyond its patient care and is
reflected in its investment in its employees. ChenMed
invests in skill-building for its staff by offering
exceptional growth resources, leadership programs,
mentoring, competitive compensation, technical
training and certification.
Delivering Custom-Built Care
Hernando believes that clinical care is just one of
several factors in a patient’s total health. Delivering
complete VIP care requires attention to be paid to
other aspects, including genetic code, zip code, and
lifestyle behaviors, he says. “Our custom-built, 100
percent cloud-based system enables our primary care
physicians and care teams to be successful in this model,”
asserts Hernando.
Providing Best Course of Treatment Possible
Talking about the next big change in the healthcare
industry, Hernando mentions that consumer
expectations will continue to drive innovation in
healthcare. Over the last year and a half, with the boom
of virtual care and other digital healthcare tools,
patients want care on their terms, and technology can
help healthcare systems deliver on that expectation.
Through wearable technology, healthcare providers
can learn more about their patients than ever before in
an effort to tailor care plans and provide the best
course of treatment possible. Finally, augmented, not
artificial, intelligence will be a gamechanger. While
physicians will ultimately make decisions for their
patients’ care, data-driven recommendations can
enable them to do so efficiently and with better
predictability.
Aspiring to Create Impact
Hernando believes his path will lead him where he can
make the greatest amount of impact for ChenMed as
well as the healthcare system overall. His experience in
technology has afforded him the opportunities he has
been presented to date, but he also has a huge passion
for the business overall.
Enlightening Younger Ones
In his advice to budding leaders in the healthcare
sector, Hernando says, “Develop relationships with your
business stakeholders – be a thought partner, not just an
order taker. The best ideas and most successful results are
born from the collaboration between technology and
business leaders.”
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Technology plays a vital role in determining how we live, work, interact, and connect. It has become the most important part of all business
processes. No business can flourish without the adoption of the latest technologies in its business processes. Technology is continuously gaining greater in most of the business processes. The use of evolved technologies in business processes improves the productivity and efficiency of the organizations' workers and leaders. Evolving technologies help leaders manage their businesses in a more organized manner and help them derive maximum profitability.
The streamlining of business processes becomes easy and efficient with the use of technologies. The rapidly evolving innovation in technology is a boon to leaders for availing edge over others. As the role of technology is critical in all businesses, the leaders also need to be technically apt, smart, and capable of utilizing technologies effectively. Knowledge or awareness of the potential of particular technologies and the effective utilization of the technologies or leveraging technologies diligently are important traits business leaders should have in the technology-driven world. Successful business leaders succeed in their businesses because of their ability to tap the potential of the latest technologies for leading people by example and managing their overall business.
The way solutions are delivered to the clients or customers can change drastically with the evolution of collaborative technologies, mobility, advanced big data analytics, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, etc. Leaders can maximize their capabilities with the use of all these latest technologies. They need to be more aware and be updated with the knowledge and utilization of these technologies. Evolving technology certainly demands the evolving capabilities of business leaders. The current digital era requires leaders who are capable of driving digital transformation.
Technology helps business leaders build capable teams by training them and tracking their progress, even remotely. Business leaders can utilize technology to promote remote work culture. With the evolution of increasing connectivity with many connecting devices, artificial intelligence, advanced analytics, and cloud services, there are increased possibilities for
fragmented and remote teams to collaborate efficiently and drive profitable business results. Taking care of all stakeholders is possible for business leaders with the use of innovative technologies. Implementing the latest technologies is no longer an option for business leaders; it has become a necessity. Today, it is critical for them to adopt digitalization for the sustainable growth and development of their business and deriving maximum profitability.
The evolving technology demands leaders to be more innovative, more skilled, and more tech-savvy. They should use the key tools and technologies effectively to strengthen the business potential of their organizations. In the current and future times, business leaders have to embrace advanced business analytics technologies to tap the potential of data to get better insights for taking the most important business decisions. Harmonizing understanding of data analytics with analytical tools and business context will give business leaders a huge edge over others. This will be the most common basic norm in the future for business leaders as this will become the most important aspect of businesses.
Collaborative technologies are becoming the most important part of the business process more than ever since the pandemic has fostered the remote work culture. Business leaders should effectively manage the drawbacks of remote work culture for driving the productive and efficient use of all employees' time. In the future, they need to be sharper to take advantage of collaborative platforms to ensure that there is no communication gap with anyone. Leaders need to be more effective in understanding remote work culture and using communication tools diligently for effectively managing people and projects together.
Technology can also be effectively used to empower leadership with more abilities, take the most informed business decisions, and have future insights to avail competitive advantage over others in the industry. Leaders should empower employees and communicate important messages succinctly and concisely to all stakeholders for critically aligning everyone to organizations' common goals. Business leaders who will make the best use of the right tools at the right time will be the most successful leaders in the technology space.
Embracing Changes
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How is
TECHNOLOGY Shaping the
LEADERSHIP for the FUTURE?
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Jason BresslerAdapting Innovative Technologies for Successful Business Drive
Over the years, businesses had to adapt to the innovative waves of technological and digital advancements to stay relevant and eager.
Adapting to these changes can be difficult at times, but it has become a necessity to welcome these changes with wide arms. The mortgage is one of the sectors that wasn't wholly based on the technological aspect. However, in recent times the views of industry experts have entirely shifted towards implementing technology to have a competitive edge over the cutthroat market. Jason Bressler, the Chief Technology Officer at United Wholesale Mortgage, is one of the early adopters of technology and completely embraces this shift and has helped micro-enterprises adapt and grow through their technology for over two decades.
Jason has worked in every imaginable IT role in an organization from the bottom-up over the course of his career. This experience gives him the depth and breadth necessary to lead and grow a large IT organization inside the mortgage space to be an industry leader.
Jason has had to overcome many obstacles in his career, from starting out young and having to learn to ropes of both the financial industry and teaching himself the technology necessary to power it, to coming into organizations where he was responsible for overhauling and scaling entire IT teams to large-scale enterprise IT organizations. He's proud of having failed a million times because he's always made a point to learn from each failure and never repeat it.
Under Jason's leadership, UWM has set the tone for the entire mortgage industry by reacting to clients quickly, efficiently, and with scale.In an interview conducted between CIO LOOK and Jason Bressler, we tried to gain insights into his career and his passionate approach towards helping upcoming businesses.
Below are the highlights of the interview.
Tell us something more about your company and its mission and vision.United Wholesale Mortgage is a wholesale mortgage lender, which means we work exclusively with independent mortgage brokers to offer borrowers mortgages that are fast, easy and affordable. We are committed to growing the independent mortgage broker channel by offering elite speed and service to their borrower clients and believe that the measure of technology being effective is the time it takes to close a loan. UWM leads the industry by closing loans in 18 days as opposed to the industry average, is between 45-60 days.
Enlighten us on how you have made an impact in the Technology Focused niche through your expertise in the market?I'm proud to be part of a team that makes a positive impact on our clients and their borrowers every single day by developing propriety software that addresses their needs while helping them grow their business. I believe very strongly in a "build vs. buy" mentality, in part because I believe the only way to truly scale, innovate and deliver a superior product is to grow it, build it and enhance it as much as possible through user feedback. That's just not possible to do successfully unless it's yours so that you have the control and flexibility to adapt and make immediate enhancements to it. We'll deploy to a wide-ranging product suite for both internal team members and our broker community 5 or 6 times a day. Some of the coolest innovations we've launched in the past 12 months include:
UWM InTouch, a mobile app that provides the ability for Independent Mortgage Brokers to navigate everything from Underwriting until the loan is Cleared to Close from anywhere they have their phone.
| November 2021 |58
Jason BresslerChief Technology Officer
Universal Wholesale Mortgage
| November 2021 |59
Including document upload, e-sign capabilities, push notifications, and more.
Blink+, an enhancement to the online mortgage application launched in 2016, which includes the ability to automatically pull credit, e-sign docs, and co-browse screens with borrowers. Blink+ is a Point of Sale (POS), Loan Origination System (LOS), and Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) all-in-one package that UWM makes available as one of its many partnership initiatives to Independent Mortgage Brokers.
Ÿ Investment into machine learning and Robotic Process Automation (RPA) to further advance our operational excellence while driving down costs
Ÿ Investment in our technology platform and on-site teams resulting in additional operational efficiencies focused on reducing costs, reducing closing times, and increasing loan processing speed
Ÿ Investments in the cloud, as well as technologies that increase Underwriting efficiencies, such as Automated Document Recognition and Optical Character Recognition, have strengthened our technology advantage while driving greater efficiency and reducing both fixed and variable costs
Ÿ In 2Q21, we launched a proprietary document management software platform that enables end-to-end document management, making our process more efficient. We expect estimated annual costs savings of approximately $8M.
Undeniably, technology is playing a significant role in almost every sector. How are you leveraging technological advancements to make your solutions
resourceful?We measure the success of our technologies by the time it takes to close a loan. UWM leads the industry by offering the shortest closing times available while also offering our clients elite service.
What, according to you, could be the next big change in the application development industry? How is your company preparing to be a part of that change?A big change coming in the application development industry-specific to the mortgage industry is likely how the capabilities of artificial intelligence are incorporated into what we do. We are continuing to invest in this technology to ensure we have the ability to include it in things we do not need human intervention for in loan processing and eventually allowing us to speed up the loan processing time.
Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run, and what are your future goals for UWM?I envision myself growing our technology team beyond our current 1,300 team members so we can continue to innovate for tomorrow faster, expand our current technology offering even more, and thinking about new ways to help our broker clients with new technology we haven't even considered yet. At this point, it's about innovation. How can my team not only innovate internally, and not just how can we create better and cooler products for the broker community, but how can we reshape the entire FinTech space? I want to be a leader in that, today and in the future.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the application development sector?Don't be afraid to fail. Don't be afraid to take risks—Gamble on yourself. There are so many opportunities to get into the IT field, but it takes courage and confidence to go after it. Know you're not going to be an expert, but also know that if you ask questions and have a tremendous work ethic, it'll come. And it'll come much faster than you think it will.
A better
broker and
borrower
experience.
“
“
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Jennifer LaurettaChief Technology Innovation Officer360 HealthTech Pte. Ltd.
| November 2021 |62
Jennifer LaurettaPiloting "Tech for Good" Initiative to the
Community and Across Borders Globally
he recent technological advancements came at
Tsuch faster pace that it wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for the unprecedented occurrence of pandemic.
Industry leaders are always trying to innovate and improve upon existing technologies to provide better solutions for any respective field. Jennifer Lauretta, is one such leader who is committed, result driven and innovative in the advanced technological industry.
With proven set of expertise, Jennifer Battles COVID with AI and Data Science to control continuous epidemic outbreak at 360 HealthTech. She is the Chief Technology Innovation Officer working with authorities, scientists & engineers pioneering the latest innovation technology to infected regions.
We at CIO Look came across Jennifer in our endeavor to find ‘The 30 Most Influential Business Leaders in Tech.’ We got into conversation with Jennifer to gain in-depth insights about her fight to control the continuous epidemic outbreak.
The Overview of 360 HealthTech 360 HealthTech was founded with a mission in mind to connect the world via a collaborative platform borrowing the strength of the most advanced technologies from developed countries. It helps address social issues and health issues at risk, facing the majority at large through partnerships to achieve goals. 360 HealthTech promotes fostering and building humankind's well-being and good health by using tech and innovation to enhance health infrastructure and industry to serve the aged population living more harmoniously for future communities and sustainable cities.
The company offers Artificial Intelligence Internet of Things (AIoT) and customized designed solutions for B2B & B2C clients. The AIoT products distribution channels from the 360 HealthTech collaborative platform were set up to meet the needs of various countries worldwide, from APAC to Europe.
360 HealthTech is the mainstream distributor for many China AI manufacturers and developers’ new AIoT inventions. Initially, 360 HealthTech was incorporated in the beginning of Year 2020 to address the silver generation’s healthcare issues.
However, there was an upturn of event. Due to the outbreak of global COVID19, 360 HealthTech becomes an immediate contact point of platform in global aid to deploy anti-COVID19 pandemic solutions for humanitarian initiatives addressing world health risks and emergency pandemic issues using Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Cloud Computing, Big Data technologies.
The challenges 360 HealthTech faces are the different countries' governance compliances, adaptation to the changing technologies into the countries' ecosystem, customers' preferences, cultural differences, and practices of the locals affect significantly how fast the AIoT products are being adopted between countries. It partners its technologies vendors, researchers, scientists, manufacturers, and developers will continue to adapt to comply with stringent regulations and to fit into the worldwide.
Award-Winning ExpertiseJennifer expresses that the formula that determines
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her success is the purpose, talent, culture, customer trust and loyalty, customer-centric solutions approach, and building a rapport and trust through friendship first before business.
Jennifer believes that when people come together with a common purpose, it delivers the perfect result, and she is thankful for her teams' supports. She understands that hiring the right people on board strengthens the company to co-create the future by building a culture that fuels innovation to reinvent working methods.
According to Jennifer, building trust in a customer or business relationship takes effort if company management and representatives are willing to be open, honest, and efficient when communicating with customers. She develops a customer-centric approach by learning what the clients do and thinks in-depth of their surrounding circumstances. She analyzes their problems and needs and offers them feasible solutions.
Jennifer states that the people she meets can choose to give business; however, it is crucial to winning their hearts. She says, "Business is not necessarily an open deal;
the best business deals are ones that are hidden. We can
only see this opportunity if that person allows us to, so it's
how they feel about us that can make them open doors for
us." Before she asks people for business, she starts a friendship by giving value and building trust in them. In time, generally, people feel the inclination to make sure they repay us when opportunities arise.
Implying Innovative TechnologiesJennifer states that the industry ahead is full of opportunities that solely depend on business leaders embracing the transformation and performance opportunities from data analytics and digitalization, particularly the rapidly evolving AI, robotics, and automation opportunities. Business leaders need to invest in technology to transform the organization with new mindsets and reimagine business models and processes. Having an action plan to test, experiment, learn and scale fast; digitalize assets and capabilities;
stay calibrated and invest in digital technological implementation to transform; accordingly, combine workers and machines integration to improve a new focus on human capital.
Undeniably, 360 HealthTech's business operation is also constantly evolving with changing times and customers' market demand. It plans to expand its operation in various dimensions to enhance its global supply chain network's currently trending smart technologies application. It will do this by bringing in more partnerships through curated collaborative opportunities in the healthcare industry, using different omnichannel' strategies via technological integration on its platform as a point of contact.
Goals for Fourth Industrial RevolutionJennifer expresses that the business model of 360 HealthTech isn't the conventional global IT platform. Its success is strategized accordingly to geographical positioning to connect world distributors, country managers, account managers, and business development managers to reach out to their targeted audiences within their own countries.
Jennifer states that in the fourth industrial revolution, 360 HealthTech plans to sell and distribute tangible AIoT smart technologies products worldwide. AIoT, import and export products, are regulated mostly in all countries across the globe. However, there are still challenges and gaps to build the full ecosystem to make import and trading seamless. The company has integrated electronic bank transfers and a digital payment gateway to transact for import and export.
Valuable GuidanceJennifer advises budding entrepreneurs aspiring to venture into the technology sector to be courageous to adapt to changes and uncertainty and be willing to learn work on things that are out-of-your comfort zone. "Work alongside with your counterparts to gain first-hand
perspective for better maneuvering of technological
directions," concludes Jennifer.
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“A winning
strategy, powered
by insights from
data and AI when
executed at scale,
will speed up
certainty across
your enterprise.”
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Kashif DafedarDesign Technology Specialist
CallisonRTKL
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Kashif DafedarPushing the Boundaries of Traditional Design Practices
or the past few decades, technology has been
Frevolutionizing the architectural design space. By leveraging technology, many architects are
experimenting and pursuing new horizons in design. They are harnessing emerging technologies to bring transformational design solutions to the table. One such tech-savvy architect is Kashif Dafedar, the Design Technology Specialist at CallisonRTKL.
At CRTKL, Kashif is responsible for digital interventions in design processes and works with project teams to enhance and optimize existing workflows. He has always been adept at most architectural tools and their supportive programming platforms. His passion and proficiency reflect in his work.
We at CIO Look reached out to Kashif in our endeavor to find Most Influential Business Leaders in Tech to know more about his journey and how he has created an impact in the AEC industry through his expertise.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader until your current position at CallisonRTKL. What challenges you had to overcome to reach where you are today?Before I started working as a digital technology specialist, I had the opportunity to work on many planning and architectural projects. My exposure to the diverse collection of project types was critical in my
current understanding of design and technological interventions in the AEC industry.
While I have always been adept at digital technologies and would easily understand concepts like BIM, visual scripting, and programming, this affinity towards digital, coupled with my experience on complex design projects, pushed me towards a career in design technology.
One of the critical factors in my reaching the level I have today is the guidance and support of the CRTKL leadership. While most design managers encourage digital tinkering, very few understand translating prototypical ideas into viable design delivery. We go beyond that at our firm, and I have been fortunate to work with enthusiastic mentors about digital integration; here, I am encouraged to innovate and push the boundaries of conventional design practices.
The journey here has been quite exhilarating, mainly because these are relatively new sets of responsibilities within the AEC industry and the frontier for digital innovation is exceptionally complex. The learning never stops, as opportunities to learn from one's failures are balanced with occasional epiphanies and successes that make it all worthwhile.
Tell us something more about your company and its mission and vision.CRTKL is a global architecture, planning, and design practice, which began over seven decades ago and has
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evolved into a cultural agency to advance positive outcomes in our communities.
Ours is a multicultural, multi-generational team situated across 18 offices worldwide that work as one bringing together a diverse range of skills that advance project outcomes and improve their social and environmental impact. As curious thinkers and changemakers, we face the challenges of this world and are ready to ask the questions that hold others back.
Development initiatives in the Middle East, Europe, and the globe captivate our collective imaginations – we know what is possible and seek to build a more equitable future for our people and our planet.
We embrace digital transformation and all it can do to enhance our design. With strong in-house capabilities
and pioneering research and development programs, we harness its power with incredible speed and efficiency to offer up the best solutions to meet our clients' complex challenges.
Enlighten us on how you have made an impact in the Architecture & Planning niche through your expertise in the market?Data has become the most valuable commodity in the world. It is no different in the AEC industry, with a huge amount of data generated throughout the project's lifecycle. Unfortunately, conventional design processes are not built to leverage this data effectively. Architectural design processes are very classical – while we use computers, the overall process is still very analog.
Where many in the industry still rely on conventional delivery formats like CADs, PDFs, and in a few instances, BIM models, at CRTKL, we are conscious of the benefits of integrating design data into our projects. Apart from the building data found in our BIM, we also provide custom tools that help understand contextual, climatic, and post-occupancy usage data. We are fortunate to work with clients who understand the importance of this insight and the potential value gained throughout the entire lifecycle of their projects.
This is perhaps the best time to invest in integrated practices. The plethora of tools available in the market now can transform the AEC industry for the better and it is up to us to seize the opportunity. I am proud to be part of the team leading that effort at CRTKL.
If given a chance, what change would you like to bring to the Design Technology industry?Technological advancements in the construction industry have paved the way for us to undertake increasingly complex projects and deliver them faster with improved profit margins. Using advanced modelling techniques, we can put together projects that would otherwise be impossible to build.
What I would like to see now is the application of these tools to target climate positive outcomes and greater social impact. From improved operational efficiencies to new construction methodologies and buildings that feed and fuel their communities, l, I believe the technology we have at our disposal can steer the AEC
Our team addresses the
imperatives of resiliency,
wellbeing, and
technology and their
influence in the built
environment through a
human-centric design
approach.
“
“
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industry towards a greener future where our buildings and cities are optimised and able to give back. My mission is to help drive this; I want to apply my knowledge to enable more responsible architecture.
Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run and what are your future goals for CallisonRTKL?CRTKL's vision provides a total commitment to sustainability. It establishes a digital-first culture where technology and data empower our people, and research-based insights enrich our internal processes and client-facing solutions. I am very fortunate to be working alongside individuals who align with these values and are committed to improving the profession and the way we live, work, and play with the help of technology. The digital transformation initiatives at CRTKL empower us with the tools and knowledge needed to deliver on this and instill in us a desire to do and build better.
I see CRTKL as a cultural agency that can provide specialised design solutions that prioritise health and wellbeing, without compromising quality, sustainability, cost, or time. There is still much to be done to reach the goals and ambitions we've laid out here and I see myself as an integral part of this process and the ongoing integration of digital technology in design.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the Design sector?Good architecture and design are fundamental to the health and wellbeing of our planet. The requirements for conscious and responsible designs are incredibly dire. Anyone aspire to work within the design sector should take seriously the responsibility to correct course and transform the built environment into a vehicle for positive environmental and societal change. Technology and digital innovation will be critical to this, so upskill in these areas if you want to effect change and future-proof your position in the sector. In short, don't wait.
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A prosperous future for
America's workers depends
on a dedicated partner.‘‘| November 2021 |72
Marc ZinsmeisterLeading with Transformative Approach
Modern times require a fluid leadership to contemplate the changing times, and it becomes essential to a leader's methods and
behaviors when directing, motivating, and managing others. Akin to such fluid leadership is Marc Zinsmeister, an experienced individual skilled in databases, servers, data centers, management, and networking.
As the Vice President of Ullico Inc., Marc has implied the best practices in the company to provide its clients financial services that protect their families, employees, businesses, and investments.
For more than 90 years, Ullico Inc. has served the union workplace. From insurance products for union members and innovative risk management solutions for contractors and employers to investments in commercial real estate projects that have created thousands of union jobs, Ullico is a proud partner of the American worker.
The InitiationMarc's journey started with DOS: one "delete" command combined with the thought, "what would
happen if I said yes?" The resulting work to restore his parents' computer ultimately led Marc into the realm of information technology, specifically troubleshooting. While the idea of building things was fun, the satisfaction of debugging and fixing an issue was the real draw and led to the beginning of his career path: support desk technician. The issues grew more complex, and with it, the responsibilities. Over a 14-year career with Ullico Inc., Zinsmeister developed into a project manager, then Director of IT Operations, then AVP, and finally Chief Information Officer for Ullico.
The Compendium of UllicoUllico is a unique company with a complex set of challenges. It was started in 1927 as the life insurance company for organized labor and grew to offer a myriad of insurance and investment products benefitting unions and their members. Ullico's customers include labor organizations, union employers, institutional investors, and the working men and women of America, and it embodies the values and culture they represent. Ullico fosters a work environment that promotes loyalty, integrity, quality, innovation, teamwork, and accountability and has many long-tenured employees to attest to those principles. During new hire
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orientations, CEO Ed Smith has said: "We hope Ullico is
the last company you will ever join.”
Best-in-ClassBetween investments, group life, health, property, and casualty businesses, information technology must be up to the task of meeting the organization's diverse needs. Ullico has also needed to anticipate the needs of the labor movement and be adaptable enough to create and service the unique products it requires. Its flagship since UIF is equal in size product, Separate Account J (also known as "J for Jobs"), receives funds from union pension and annuity plans. It then invests those assets to fund commercial construction projects, with the caveat that all construction is done using 100% union labor as a condition of the lending agreement. Medical stop-loss insurance is offered to help health and welfare plans avoid catastrophic financial liability. Fiduciary and union liability insurance products were created to protect those who represent and serve labor organizations.
Taking a company with a storied history and wide variety of solutions from a traditional, paper-driven organization to a modern, dynamic one was no simple task, but Zinsmeister was up to the challenge. By shifting the enterprise into electronic forms, cloud-based solutions, and remote connectivity, information technology allowed the business to focus on the American worker's principal base.
Leveraging TechnologyVirtualization was the first step: Ullico no longer needed to rely on large, power-hungry machines prone to mechanical failure. Ullico then realized it no longer needed to run its own data center and moved its operations to a hosted private cloud and colocation vendor. This move not only eliminated a critical point of failure for the company but also allowed it to take advantage of additional managed service offerings, like
disaster recovery and backup. The time to implement a new application was reduced to hours instead of days. Shifting other core services, like voice, to hosted solutions allowed Ullico to become less reliant on office space. As a result, the impact of COVID-19 on the organization was minimal: employees were used to being able to access systems and services wherever they were.
Zinsmeister also focused on cyber security, implementing solutions such as email security and threat protection, web security, data loss prevention, identity management, and multi-factor authentication to ensure the employees and customer information was as secure as possible. He also implemented a new cyber awareness training platform and phishing awareness campaigns to update employees on the cyber threat landscape.
As technology constantly evolves, Zinsmeister wants Ullico to evolve with it. The emergence of SD-WAN technology would free Ullico from reliance on a single network carrier. Zero-trust architecture would eliminate the need for VPN and add a new layer of security to employees and any device they work from. Endpoint security is constantly changing to keep up with the latest threats, especially ransomware. Reliance on legacy systems prevents the company from quickly implementing new initiatives and products for its clients. But as cloud and SaaS offerings become more and more common, they come risks: ensuring vendors comply and maintaining data security and confidentiality. Increased reliance on those vendors to innovate their products and the difficulty to change vendors if the need arises.
Envisioning the FutureZinsmeister is happy to embrace every challenge, just like rebuilding his parents' PC. Senior management at Ullico is in sync with all of the business needs and understands that information technology is the mechanism that keeps it all running. That support is critical in getting any IT initiative in motion and getting acceptance from the user base. A successful system is not just one that gets implemented and runs without any errors; it's one that people want to use. And for a company like Ullico, all of these systems continue to drive the mission it has maintained for nearly 95 years: supporting the American worker.
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Unprecedented time calls for unprecedented, innovative, creative, strategic, and thoughtful solutions, and uncertain challenges and
contingencies require an innovative approach to solving the problems. Today, an innovative approach in the leaders is the most fundamental quality to sustain the competency of their solutions in the market. In times of unprecedented circumstances and rapid globalization, the success of businesses is dependent on keeping pace on a global scale by coming up with innovative solutions. Technology trends in cloud computing, social media tools, mobile devices are driving global growth. Leveraging technology changes for availing competitive advantage is essential in an uncertain future. Business leaders need to observe and realize the needs of customers and end-users and deliver solutions accordingly using innovative technologies.
Innovative business leaders strategize about creating a culture that facilitates innovation. They recognize ways to create an impact in the industry by coming up with innovative ideas and innovative technologies or products to meet the evolving needs of users and customers and enhance their reputation as a reliable solution provider. They responsibly plan to build and deploy the technology to serve the needs of the users and customers. They don’t want to stay behind in any way that may hamper the business growth. Instead, innovative leaders have a forward thought approach, and their insights help them think ahead of the time and be prepared to deliver innovative products to meet the needs of the changing times.
Leaders are an extremely important part of any business as they set the tone for the functioning of the
business. The right kind of leaders inspire employees; they keep everyone focused on the right direction and ensure that they overcome common challenges for the sustainable growth of the organization they are leading. While every leader has to face challenges from dealing with conflicts in the office to supporting people from different generations in the organizations, technology leaders have to face additional and unique issues. In the technology space, leaders have to be very up-to-date, precise, innovative, clever, and move continuously at a rapid pace to suit the changing marketplace trends. They also have to ensure high levels of reliability, speed with accuracy, and deliver continuously good performance. Technology leaders have to manage many more things than conventional leaders.
Today’s technology is changing rapidly, and because of that technology, leaders have to face new challenges related to managing their teams and supporting staff effectively. They need the support of staff that is competitive in understanding the need for upgraded technology. They have to train their staff in operating the latest software as well as hardware efficiently. Leaders with special skills and expertise can help them be more creative and more innovative in making sure that they are leveraging technology effectively for the growth of the businesses.
Succeeding in the technology sector means grabbing opportunities as they appear and be prepared to convert opportunities into success. Tech leaders should be able to recognize and evaluate all the opportunities related to their business, especially with a more keen sense of optimism. They should install the latest technologies for meeting regulatory and compliance issues for organizations. They should be able to deal
I N N O V A T I V E
LEADERSHIP IN TECH SPACE
Tech to Top
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with a rapid rate of pace and should also ensure precise accuracy. They should be able to handle the pressure, explore new concepts, and come up with innovations to increase the affordability of their solutions.
Technology leaders should have confidence and decisiveness to take clever decisions in the interest of the businesses. They should have an empowering and collaborative nature to promote the cooperative spirit in teammates for delivering good results to all stakeholders. Innovative leaders should also have excellent communication skills and be willing to continuously learn and grow. Innovative business leaders in technology can be highly successful if they have great technical abilities, innovative approaches, and shrewd business acumen.
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Matt Mehlbrech, who leads the global IT organization at CoorsTek, Inc. as Vice President of Information Technology, is clear
about his priorities. He’s committed to continually modernizing operations and collecting actionable data, and creating an environment that contributes to individual and organizational growth. This mindset is just one of the many positive attributes that Matt brings to the enterprise.
CoorsTek is the international partner of choice for companies requiring the unique, high-performance properties of products manufactured from engineered technical ceramics and advanced materials. The company partners with customers from a wide variety of industries, offering expertise in materials engineering as well as broad research, development, and manufacturing capabilities.
The company has recently added to the traditional IT oversight by providing greater support and leadership for operational technology. Matt and his team are focused on capturing and using shop floor data to increase output, improve product quality, ensure on-time delivery, and eliminate waste.
Responding to Needs QuicklyWhen Matt joined CoorsTek, it was a time of major transformation at the company. There were countless opportunities to improve effectiveness, and Matt felt it was IT’s role to help the organization see what was possible. He wanted IT to be a strategic partner, but the IT team first needed to build credibility and trust.
Matt and the IT team built a clear strategy for what they wanted to accomplish, ensuring they could successfully prioritize important initiatives and respond to needs quickly. This focus resulted in better delivery for customers, better talent development, and stronger partnerships within the business.
Learning from Incredibly Valuable ExperiencesMatt feels fortunate that he’s worked for some exceptional bosses; outstanding mentors who helped shape him as a leader. They gave him the opportunity to work in different businesses, IT disciplines, and regions of the world, which exposed him to a variety of manufacturing environments, technologies, and business processes. The faith that various leaders put in Matt resulted in hands-on experiences that were incredibly valuable. One experience that stands out was when he worked on a global acquisition integration. Matt says he can’t overstate how much he learned because of these experiences. He firmly believes that these “stretch assignments” contributed to his individual growth like nothing else.
Managing Unprecedented Times EffectivelyTalking about the impact of the pandemic, Matt mentions that manufacturing companies had their own set of challenges because they need people to be physically present to make their products. CoorsTek was fortunate because it has a large presence in Asia, which allowed it to develop and learn Covid safety protocols quickly for the rest of the world. That helped CoorsTek minimize some of the production and workforce impacts.
CoorsTek has also been fortunate because of its diversification. Covid caused many of its markets to struggle, but some of its markets have flourished due to technology demand, such as semiconductor. The fact that CoorsTek offers a wide range of products to various industries allowed it to flex its production capabilities, which helped it manage better than some others.
Recognizing and Rewarding WinsCoorsTek operates under The CoorsTek Way, a set of values that guides how company leaders and employees treat business partners, fellow team
Matt MehlbrechA Strong Example of Technical and Business Leadership
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CoorsTek is the international partner of choice for companies requiring the
unique, high-performance properties of products manufactured from engineered
technical ceramics and advanced materials.
‘‘
‘‘
Ma� MehlbrechVice President
Informa�on Technology
CoorsTek
| November 2021 |79
members, and members of the community. One of the value statements within The CoorsTek Way that really speaks to Matt is “We share responsibility, risk,
opportunity and reward.” Matt tries to instill this idea within the IT organization by communicating how what they do each day ties to business results, which only works through transparency in how they are executing. He also tries to create a positive work culture by recognizing and rewarding wins, no matter how small.
Matt states, “In IT, a lot of great work done by the team
goes on behind the scenes, but it is vital to the health of the
company. It’s important that the team understand how
valuable that work is and how appreciated they are.”
Improving All Facets of BusinessAccording to Matt, it is of utmost importance for businesses to align their offerings with newer technological developments. CoorsTek is always looking for opportunities to create more sustainable, predictable products and processes and better meet the needs of its customers. New technologies, such as machine learning and AI, offer tremendous opportunities for CoorsTek to improve all facets of its business.
Doing Remarkable Things for CommunityWhen it comes to giving back to the community, CoorsTek is doing remarkable things through Family for
Families, its Employee Hardship Assistance Fund. It’s been especially helpful recently as people have grappled with the pandemic and winter storm disasters.
And then, this summer, CoorsTek announced an exciting revitalization effort within its headquarters city of Golden, Colorado. It is transforming one of its oldest and largest manufacturing properties into a mixed-use district with restaurants, offices, residences
and possibly a hotel, which is expected to provide a real economic boost to the area. At the same time, the project is factoring in the unique history of the town by preserving and restoring many of the vintage buildings on the property.
Expecting Enhanced Capabilities in Operational Technology RealmIf given a chance to bring one change in the tech sector for manufacturing processes, Matt would love to see solution providers bring capabilities in the Operational Technology realm that better appreciate how they need to tie into the IT landscape, such as network and security requirements.
According to Matt, OT providers are too often so narrowly focused on a niche piece of functionality that they forget how complex it is to make it usable and secure in a modern, global manufacturing setting. Today, it actually makes it harder to move quickly because re-engineering is essential to help plants get value.
Staying Ahead with High Degree of AutomationMatt mentions that CoorsTek has been experiencing phenomenal growth, and there are no signs of it slowing down. From an IT perspective, he wants to make sure CoorsTek stays ahead with a high degree of automation, both on the shop floor and in the office.
For customers, Matt would like to provide more in the way of market insights. CoorsTek is in a unique position to do that, and it’s especially meaningful in unpredictable times like these.
| November 2021 |80
Max ChanCIO
Avnet
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Max ChanArdent Technologist Driving IT Innovation
and Digital Transformation
here is a dire need for leaders who can navigate a
Tcomplex IT environment, understand business requirements, employ emerging technologies,
and deliver robust solutions to any challenge with their expertise. We, at CIO Look, came across one such leader, Max Chan, who can translate complex technical requirements into practical and actionable deliverables with his logical and pragmatic approach to IT.
Max, the Chief Information Officer of Avnet, oversees the resources and capabilities of the global IT team and ensures54 that the organization maintains an evolving yet robust IT environment that is optimized to provide the business a sharp competitive edge. He brings business-centric IT leadership to Avnet and his technical knowledge, responsiveness, and collaboration skills make him an invaluable member of the company.
Driving Customer SuccessAvnet is a global technology distributor and solutions provider that has been at the forefront of technological innovation for 100 years. The company started as a radio component distributor and has adapted to wave after wave of technological change by expanding its capabilities to guide customers through the greatest technological advances of the last century.
Today, Avnet acts as an extension of its customers’ teams so they can leverage the company’s deep technical and supply chain expertise throughout the product lifecycle. This helps maximize their return on investment. It is seeing particularly high demand for its supply chain expertise today, as more companies rethink their supply chain strategies in the wake of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent supply shortages.
Max states that customers often come to Avnet to accelerate product design or streamline their supply chain, and they can plug in its capabilities to optimize their own. Avnet offers comprehensive design expertise and services for technology selection and prototype guidance to reduce complexity during the product design process.
“As products move into production, our customers find scale
through flexible supply chain services and global
infrastructure,” says Max. He further adds, “Support
doesn’t end once a product is launched – we also extend
product longevity throughout the entire lifecycle and can
support with any redesign requirements.”
Generating Business Value Through TechnologyAs a leading global distributor, Avnet sits at the center of the technology value chain. It helps manufacturers bring their products to market – from medical devices to home automation solutions. Similarly, the IT team is central to everything the company does, ensuring that Avnet’s IT environment is equipped to efficiently and effectively4 meet customers’ and suppliers’ needs.The organization achieves this by focusing on several key priorities:Ÿ Providing the tools necessary for Avnet to seek out
new business and grow existing onesŸ Maintaining a modernized environment that drives
business efficienciesŸ Ensuring that customers’ and suppliers’ data and
transactions are securely protectedŸ Connecting employees safely and securely across
the world Ÿ Establishing an environment that is geared up to
enable the business to scale and grow as needed
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Powering Through Uncertain TimesSharing his views on the impact of the pandemic, Max states that COVID-19 shifted the typical seasonal and cyclical trends in most industries and regions, which required Avnet to stay extremely nimble over the past year.
Avnet is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2021, so it goes without saying that it has navigated through industry disruption in the industry before. Its experience and culture of collaboration enable the team to overcome many challenges over the past year.
Avnet’s #1 priority throughout the pandemic was maintaining the health and safety of its employees. Max says, “For my team, that meant that during the start of the
pandemic our main priority was maintaining an
environment that would enable our nearly 15,000
employees to work from home. We made sure our
employees had the necessary equipment to re-establish
business as usual as quickly as possible and have continued
to provide support all along the way.”
Even when you get
to the top, never get
comfortable with
what is happening
in the now and pre-
pare for what is
coming in the
future.
“
“
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significant industrial disruption. And as a company that has been built through perseverance and driven by transformation, it understands what it takes to be successful, no matter the environment. Its team’s incredible resilience over the past year has only proven this further. Max mentions that Avnet is a part of the elite 1% of U.S. companies that have celebrated their centennial because technological transformation is deeply rooted in its DNA.
As Avnet enters its second century in business, it does so deeply-rooted in the same principle that has helped the company succeed in the preceding century. “We stay
situated at the center of the technology value
chain—constantly adjusting our position as this center
morphs and grows with time,” says Max.
Avnet’s purpose is “guiding today’s ideas into tomorrow’s technology”. It truly takes that to heart by working with the world’s leading technology manufacturers to bring the latest technological advancements to their customers. Max confidently expresses that Avnet will continue to drive innovation forward, from its position at the center of the technology value chain, into the next century and beyond.
Challenge the Status QuoIn his advice to aspiring IT professionals, Max says, “The
industry is always changing so remember that continuous
learning is essential to your growth. Remain agile and
commit yourself to forever being a student of technology. Be
open-minded to the possibility of other ideas, solutions, and
ways of approaching problems. Welcome differing opinions
and challenges to the status quo in order to find the best
outcome to the problems you’re facing.
He further adds, “Look at the unknown as an opportunity
for growth, even in situations of ambiguity. Being a risk-
taker can pay off for you when you have the agile mindset
to fail fast and learn from your mistakes so that you can
come to solutions quicker.”
Max further mentions that his team played an important role in keeping Avnet’s employees connected to the company’s mission and aligned on its priorities. As countries started to lock down across the world, the team accelerated the deployment of Microsoft Teams, at the same time providing training and support to successfully pivot employees to a work from home model. This enabled Avnet to continue running its business as usual without missing a beat as employees were able to work just as effectively from home.
Transforming the FutureThroughout its history, Avnet has helped steer the electronics industry and technology sector through
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Nathan Short
Director
Informa�on Technology
Glen WarrenDirector of Literacies
Outreach and Libraries
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Nathan Short
Glen Warrenand
Combining Education and Technology to Deliver Exemplary Educational Experience
If you’re looking for inspiration, look no further than the Encinitas Union School District. It’s here that you’ll find a ‘dynamic duo’ of collaborative forces
housed within their Information Technology and Educational Services Departments. The source of that leadership can be summed up through the friendship, the bond, and the close collaboration of Directors Nathan Short and Glen Warren.
Mr. Short and Mr. Warren both work in separate departments, one in Information Technology and the other in Educational Technology, in what would normally be siloed and isolated environments.
However, that is not the case in Encinitas, as they meet on a regular basis to brainstorm and work to improve every operating condition of any scale in their District with the goal of improving a love of learning on every level, from student to teacher to all staff members. It’s here that you won’t just find “best practices” but “NEXT Practices”.
But what are “next” practices? As an influential business leader in tech, how can you surpass what would be considered “best practice”? Well, by expanding your scope and breaking down siloed departmental boundaries. This can allow for far more creative solutions, as well as far-reaching alternative applications of solutions than you may have previously thought.
How do you get to that point, you might ask? Well, it starts with common goals. It is finding that common ground and realizing that your colleagues are all working for the betterment of your company. Cross-collaboration opens so many doorways, and it doesn’t
stop with Educational Services and Information Technology.
Short and Warren commonly reach out to Student Services, Special Education, Human Resources, and Maintenance and Grounds Departments. “Extraordinary Customer Service” is a theme that can cross all departmental boundaries, and in the Encinitas Union School District, it shows, as they are recognized on a national level.
Rising to Challenges
Prior to the pandemic, Short and Warren were already in the process of acquiring WiFi hotspots in an effort to take the District’s already fantastic one-to-one (one device per child) technology program to a level of equity that would provide 100% Internet connectivity for every child when away from school. When the pandemic hit, never was this more relevant, as all classes shifted to streaming online, whether that child was homeless or not. That shift meant providing classroom support that extended beyond the classroom, extending the coverage footprint 30-fold as every child’s location, whether it be a homeless shelter, a public park or library, a car, or a bedroom. All this became the new classroom that needed connectivity.
With the help of a superb network of teachers, rapidly trained in the new world of streaming video and cloud-based file services, as well as online web-help desk ticket tools, any problem could be triaged. Whether it was reported up from parent or student to teacher, to various tiers of technical support, all the way to the director level, every member played a part in improving one of the most challenging times for education.
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That challenge is even greater when special needs and special education come into play.
Using Technology to Empower Students
Short and Warren have worked hard to build relationships with the Student Services Special Education Department and NCCSE, the North County Coastal Consortium for Special Education, to modernize outdated solutions with the latest in technology. Whether that is taking closed-circuit television assistive technology solutions for the visually impaired and downsizing them from something the size of a shopping cart to a solution that can discretely fit in the palm of a student’s hand, helping that student feel so much more at home in the classroom. Or putting together a solution for many of the “locked-in” categories of syndromes with little to no motor function, demonstrating the capability of a student with the aid of eye-tracking cameras and software, so that a
child that has never been able to communicate a word in their life could begin speaking sentences with the aid of technology that tracked their pupils, within days. This demonstrated the worthwhile perseverance of countless special education teachers, who continued to teach a student that they could not be sure was absorbing their lessons. It yielded a return on investment that brings tears to everyone’s eyes, giving a child who could not communicate a voice.
Towards Betterment of Future Generations
The duo has spoken together at several conferences and seminars, including the San Diego Equity Conference, CETPA/CITE, SDCOE, and more. They’ve both won a wall full of awards over the years, including San Diego Top Tech Exec, Classroom of the Future Innovative Educator Award, CUE Gold Disc Award, and many more. They continue to pour their hearts into their work, for the betterment of future generations.
From a strong and committed Board of Trustees, to the unique programming at each school, to the innovation in design thinking
and real-world project-based learning, to the emphasis on the whole child, there is much to be proud of in EUSD!
‘‘ ‘‘
| November 2021 |88
Paul MillerA Leader with an Excellent Blend
of Technical Expertise and Business Acumen
Today, technology is at the core of the business strategy, as it touches all parts of a business and gives it a competitive edge. Thus, the role of tech
leaders has started gaining momentum.
In our endeavor to find Most Influential Leaders in Tech, we at CIO Look crossed our paths with Paul Miller, the Chief Technology Officer at Wind River, a global leader in delivering software for intelligent systems.
Paul possesses nearly three decades of telecommunications and advanced technology leadership at both large companies and successful startups. In his role, he is dedicated to creating and implementing technology strategies that drive business success for customers.
Paul started his career in hardware engineering and embedded technology, which eventually led to cloud technology, and then on to business leadership roles. With a passion for understanding technology and innovating complete solutions, Paul followed a path towards being a technologist. As a CTO, Paul is focused on driving innovation to deliver solutions and business results for customers.
Inspired by his passion and proficiency, we interviewed Paul to learn more about his journey and how Wind River is accelerating the digital transformation of critical infrastructure.
Below are the detailed insights of the interview:
Please list the solutions, services, and security that make your company stand out from the competition.
A global leader in delivering software for intelligent systems, Wind River’s technology has been powering the safest, most secure devices in the world since 1981
and is found in billions of products. Wind River software and expertise are accelerating the transformation of mission-critical intelligent systems that will increasingly demand greater compute and AI capabilities while delivering the highest levels of security, safety, and reliability.
Unique to the industry, Wind River Studio is a cloud native platform for the development, deployment, operations, and servicing of mission-critical intelligent systems from devices to cloud. It enables dramatic improvements in productivity, agility, and time-to-market, with seamless technology integration that includes far edge cloud compute, data analytics, security, 5G, and AI/ML.
Wind River has been a leader in helping customers in mission critical industries, such as aerospace and defense, automotive, medical, industrial, and telecommunications, on their journey towards an intelligent systems future. For 40 years, the company has been an industry innovator, playing key roles on the NASA Mars rovers, the world’s first successful 5G data session with Verizon, and working with Vodafone in building one of the largest Open RAN networks in the world.
As a tech leader, what is your opinion on the impact of the current pandemic on the Computer Software Industry?
The pandemic has affected the way that companies work with respect to the increase of remote workers and how to successfully support software development across, in some cases, very dispersed teams around the globe.
Fortunately, modern tools are helping to bridge some of this gap in this sort of work. However, there is still an
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Paul MillerChief Technology Officer
Wind River
| November 2021 |91
impact of not being able to work physically together through especially complex problems or architectural work.
At the same time, in the industry overall, you have the increasing costs that are happening as a result of the pandemic. Industries are looking at the effect on customers and whether they're willing to purchase and deploy goods and software during a time when the process has become more challenging.
In looking at the global supply chain, the impact of things like silicon chip availability, which ultimately is what our software will run on, must be considered too. If the customers are having problems obtaining hardware systems that can affect the adoption of software products. So, it's a complex interaction of many factors: the changing nature of work, software development in the pandemic environment, and global supply chain. On top of that, we must look at the customer and see if they are willing to or can adopt new software and deploy it in the face of the pandemic. With all of these elements, it is a complex environment right now.
Wind River understands the evolving nature of work and a shifting technology landscape heading towards a more intelligent future and has developed solutions to address these challenges. Our newest offering is Wind River Studio - a cloud native platform for the development, deployment, operations, and servicing of mission-critical intelligent systems from devices to cloud.
Wind River Studio creates a highly automated environment that's cloud based for teams to develop software. The ability to collaborate more easily across
dispersed teams and team members by working in the cloud will continue to be key during and well after the pandemic.
How are you accelerating digital transformation with deep technical skills from concept to production for the customers?
Wind River has delivered something unique to the industry with Wind River Studio. As mentioned, Studio is a cloud-native platform for the development, deployment, operations, and servicing of mission-critical intelligent systems – essentially, the entire lifecycle of an intelligent system.
The growth of 5G and sophisticated AI applications and the emergence of more intelligent systems and autonomous systems deliver on the promise of IoT. Wind River Studio delivers a flexible and collaborative platform that addresses the dynamic automation needs surrounding the intelligent systems of the future, providing a complete lifecycle experience adapted for a cloud-native environment. It enables dramatic improvements in productivity, agility, and time-to-market, with seamless technology integration that includes far edge cloud compute, data analytics, security, 5G, and AI/ML.
In your opinion, what could be the future of Networking/Telecommunications? And how are you strategizing your operations for that future?
Networking/telecommunications is undergoing major changes and evolving to a software environment. Going back 10 or 15 years, networking and telecommunications was all bespoke appliances and custom hardware to solve different problems in the
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network. We’re now moving to a software-based paradigm.
At the edge of the network, with 5G and virtualized RAN, we're starting to embrace virtualization, which is also laying the groundwork for applications such as autonomous vehicle control, drone control, and factory automation as software applications. So, the future of networking telecommunications is that service providers end up with a fully virtualized environment from core to edge that's heavily software-defined and automated. It has embedded AI and machine learning throughout it to automate the management and oversight of that, and one that supports the deployment of new applications rapidly and a pure software-based domain.
At the end of this transformation, where everything that was previously bespoke hardware-based just 15-20 years ago, is now ending up in a fully software cloud-oriented architecture going forward.
As an established tech leader, what would be your advice to the entrepreneurs aspiring to venture into Computer Software Industry?
You must have a willingness to embrace innovation in order to be successful in the computer software industry. It’s important to embrace innovation but to do so in a way that follows a rigorous, objective process. Coming from a CTO perspective, this process starts with market analysis and understanding the actual customer problem, and then doing research to understand how you solve that problem. It’s important to keep the customer problem in mind and then build a vision and a solution that solves that problem and then getting sign-in from the investors and moving forward into implementation. Then in closing that loop, ensuring that you continuously check what you're doing against that customer problem.
“ Wind River is accelerating the
transformation of mission-critical
intelligent systems that will
increasingly demand greater
compute and AI while delivering
the highest levels of security, safety,
and reliability.
“
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Ran Rachlin CEO & Co-FounderUbertesters
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Ran RachlinPaving the Way for Bug-Free Mobile Applications
Since the rise of smartphone users in the last decade, the world has been an enormous playground for mobile apps. Everyday thousands
of apps are added to the different app stores to gain millions of downloads and soar in the trending media. However, these apps are buggy and have several drawbacks, making them difficult and irritating to use. To avoid such disasters, Ran Rachlin came up with a professional mobile beta testing platform, Ubertesters.Ran leads the company as the Co-founder and CEO. He is an accomplished, well-rounded senior executive with extensive global experience in several industries. With his vast experience, Ran can make Ubertesters, the world's top QA professionals, on-demand to help its launch excellent software.
We at CIO Look, in our endeavor to find 'The 30 Most Influential Business Leaders in Tech, 2021', came across Ran. We talked with him to get insights into his journey and how his expertise makes Ubertesters the new way to monitor and manage the mobile beta testing process.Let's have a deep dive into his success story.
Up Until Now
Ran has trained himself to become an effective leader from a very young age with a global view. His first job was in sales at a Hi-Tech Israeli company that sold products globally. His goal was to gain cross-cultural experience.
Soon after, to pursue MBA, Ran moved to the USA, the 'center' of where things truly happen. He advanced in roles, holding several high-profile management positions, doing business in six continents and different industries with several large companies.Ran brings his massive global experience, managing, and leading companies from inception to significant sales and leading during times of prosperity or global crisis to Ubertesters.
As the CEO of several organizations, Ran says that there are three major challenges.
People, communications, and alignment. People are the most important part of any organization; thus, the challenge is hiring and maintaining great committed, engaged, and accountable employees.
Communicating the right message internally to encourage collaboration.
Lastly, it's about aligning business units and people to ensure they are all on the same page and stay there.
The Mission and Vision
Ubertesters offers a complete, end-to-end software testing solution for digital products to help organizations beta test before launching. It offers two complementary services:Ÿ A crowd testing service of global, professional
freelance testers for hire with devices (part of the "sharing economy" model) for the most flexible and cost-effective global testing under real-life conditions.
Ÿ An offshore outsourcing service of remote QA experts on a full-time basis based in the company's East European facilities.
Ran has a clear vision and mission statements created in the early days of Ubertesters as a company. Its vision is "to provide cost-effective, innovative, and quality testing
services that exceed the expectations of our esteemed
customers.”
The mission statement of Ubertesters can be summarized as "help digital organizations launch better,
well-tested, bug-free products by enhancing natural best
testing practices while providing exceptional customer
services.”
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Ubertesters' goal is to help digital consumers (the end-user) get a great bug-free product from its business customers for a better, faster, simpler, and no-frustration digital experience.
Implementing Experience to Curate Next Generation
Ran is a great believer in the "sharing economy" (or gig economy) term that allows companies to use available resources to benefit clients while allowing the resources to earn money. He helped implement this within the software testing segment.
One of the major changes Ubertesters does is providing the opportunity for young, inexperienced QA people who just completed their QA education to gain experience in the QA and testing world. It works with many QA schools worldwide and allows recent graduates to get their first testing experience by working for the company as freelance testers. It allows them to earn money during their free time. More importantly, it allows them to gain the needed testing experience and put this job experience in their resume while looking for their first job opportunity in the IT world.
Organizational Values
Ran believes that the core values of Ubertesters shape its work culture and inspires its employees to do more for its clients and, as a result, is better motivated. The core values of Ubertesters are:Ÿ We believe in customer focus and treating our
customers with respect and faith.Ÿ We integrate honesty, integrity, transparency, and
business ethics into all aspects of our business functioning.
Ÿ We care about our employee's satisfaction and personal growth.
Ubertesters work culture puts the customer and superior customer service at the true center. It is the company's DNA that starts with Ran as the CEO.Further, Ran believes in accountability and recognition.
Crowdsourced testing is the most flexible, fast, easy, and cost-effective way to scale your QA
testing just when needed. Anytime!
Anywhere!
‘‘‘‘
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All employees must be accountable for achieving their goals and the company goals. He follows their work and either hold them accountable when underperforming or recognizes a job well done.
Ubertesters also build a culture that is based on "make it fun." People work better when they love what they do, and they can't perform strict tasks all day without fun.
Lastly, Ran provides its employees with "room to grow" and makes sure they are presented with interesting new roles and responsibilities.
Hand-in-Hand with Technology
Ran states that technology and human touch are the main values Ubertesters provide. It had to develop its own proprietary QA management platform to provide a great solution to allow easy bug reporting. The platform allows the testers to easily submit bugs and issues (including video recordings and screenshots) while providing the client with an easy-to-use and clear tool to review the bugs/crashes. Technology allowed Ubertesters to make the bug reporting process much easier for the client. Thus, allowing the client a much faster 'time-to-market.
Attaining the Peak
Ran expresses that Ubertesters aspires to become the #1 global player in the field of crowdsourced testing within the next 3 years period. It will achieve this by continuing to grow through creativity, invention, and innovation.
As for personal goals - In the next few years, Ran sees himself continue developing Ubertesters and making sure it continues to grow. After a few years, he hopes to build a new company to find a product that will help humanity by improving the quality of life and life longevity.
Leading The Way
In his advice to budding entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the IT sector, Ran says, "The most important
advice is "take Care of Your Team." Trust your team and let
them shine but also be prepared to accept responsibility
when things don't go as planned. Help your employees
advance their careers and always respect them."
"As a leader, maintain the personal touch and often speak
to your team. Lastly, stay humble. Humility is not a
weakness; it's a strength," concludes Ran.
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Rao TadepalliChief Informa�on Officer
Great American Insurance, Digitran, Seibels
| November 2021 |100
Tech-savvy leaders are responsible for transformative technological changes in every industry. Their proficient knowledge about
modern technology gives them an advantageous edge in the given volatile insurance market. Rao Tadepalli is one such leader who has a proven history of success in the insurance industry as an experienced Chief Information Officer. He is an advisor and mentor for several Silicon Valley Startups. He is also a speaker and author of several industry articles.
Journey So Far
After completing graduation in Computer Science, Rao Tadepalli started his journey as a Management Trainee with Tata Consultancy Services in India. Early in his career, Rao worked in Australia, Malaysia, and Europe before coming to the United States. Initially, Rao worked for consulting companies and helped many clients successfully implement systems.
After spending few years in middle Management, Rao became CIO and Sr. Vice President with Great American Insurance in 2007. Rao successfully navigated the challenges of seamlessly moving from technical roles to executive roles by focusing on executive communication and people skills.
Impactful Niche
Rao is an award-winning CIO who drives innovation throughout the entire value chain by combining the deep insurance industry with technology expertise to improve efficiencies, cost savings, customer experience, and competitive advantage. He is reputed for
propelling profitability by implementing best-in-class technology solutions and delivering superior project execution with a relentless focus on managing stakeholder collaboration and communication. He can leverage vast knowledge of the InsurTech ecosystem to capitalize on digital transformation and value creation opportunities. Rao is a recognized leader in the insurance industry, a thought leader, visionary, and a sought-after speaker.
Rao is known for aligning IT with business to lockstep with business strategy, reducing Combined Operating Ratio (COR) by implementing technology solutions that focus on increasing premiums, reducing losses, and lowering expenses. He cultivates relationships to uncover areas for improvement, then building the business case to secure executive buy-in for change and the optimal teams to execute solutions.
Rao is an expert in managing tight IT budgets by leveraging business savvy and strong financial acumen to contain costs and negotiate favorable contracts. He makes the tough decisions necessary to integrate complex projects across ongoing business operations, consistently delivering them on time and under budget. He also creates a transformational impact by proactively solving problems with a clear vision and a collaborative approach.
Awards, Accomplishments & Accolades
Ÿ Implemented full suite of Guidewire Products including Policy Center, Claims Center, and Billing Center on time or ahead of schedule, realizing implementation cost savings of 20% against budget.
Rao Tadepalli
Transforming Insurance Industry with his Excellent Leadership
| November 2021 |101
Ÿ Increased new business submissions by 20% by implementing an AI and ML-driven electronic quoting system that provided agents with real-time information and enabled Straight Thru Processing (STP).
Ÿ Eliminated $600K in monthly IT vendor expenses and improved user experience by accelerating the implementation of a previously lagging Policy, Billing, and Digital Portals project by managing scope and simplifying the technology infrastructure environment.
Ÿ Drove a 25% increase in productivity in one year through various business process improvements, strengthening customer satisfaction and competitive advantage.
Ÿ Propelled customer retention levels to 85% within one year by deploying digital portals with Analytics and Omnichannel capabilities that dramatically enhanced user experience.
Ÿ Consistently delivered IT operating cost savings and actuals significantly below budget through effective contract negotiations, vendor management, and volume discounts.
Ÿ Enabled senior management to make critical business decisions by establishing data management systems and processes that kept operational and reporting data in sync.
Ÿ Chosen to be part of the US delegation that attended GES2017 led by Ms. Ivanka Trump in India.
Ÿ As a CIO, Rao won the Celent Model Insurer award for successful transformation.
Changing with Time
Rao recommends creative adoption of Insurers striving to become smarter project managers should be flexible and be open to ideas from other industries.
Having worked with a company close to Hollywood, Rao has been able to take inspiration from television production procedures in the form of a "runner" role. Rao explained, "A runner is someone who does most of
the odd jobs," In large projects, teams tend to act as silos and neglect things that don't belong neatly within their responsibilities. To close the gaps, Rao applied the runner concept to keep projects on track.
Assistive Guidance
Rao believes a CIO needs the following four skills, among others. Traditional IT skills, Subject area expertise in the specific industry, Financial acumen, including budget preparation and innovation.Rao's advice to be successful as a CIO:Ÿ Tailor Communications to Styles and Needs of
Business Owners.Ÿ Set and Manage Expectations Up-Front.Ÿ Learn to Live with Ambiguity.Ÿ Emphasize Talent along with the Process.Ÿ Users Must own the projects and must be Involved
Throughout the Project.
Rao's advice to Insurtech experts is that a clear message of the value proposition is critical. The carriers are looking at three things, either increase the premium or decrease the losses or lower the expenses. So, making sure there is a clear value proposition and at least the value proposition should focus on one of these three things.
Rao says, "If you can do all three, fantastic, but at least one
of them should be there. And then assembling a diversified
leadership team is extremely critical. That should be multi-
generational, and the team should have challengers and
enablers with networking connections to the industries.
Also, don't underestimate the capital needed. Finally, one
has to understand emotion and not always the reason that
drives most decision-making.”
Rao calls it two EC's; they stand for Economic Connection and Emotional Connection. These are extremely important. "If you don't have a story, someone
else will make up a story, and that could be your
competitors," he concludes.
‘‘ ‘‘
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TONY LENG DIVERSIFIED SEARCH GROUP'S
Covid accelerated every organization’s digitaltransformation processes, and there is no going back. Technology and business have become inextricably linked, and the talent war for capable digital leaders has become more intense.
Tony Leng, a Managing Director and Leader of the Digital Transformation and CIO/IT Practice at Diversified Search Group (DSG), has witnessed firsthand how successfully—or not—companies have responded to these challenges. Frequently cited as the most well-networked CIO search executive in the country, Tony helps companies upgrade their digital capacity by conducting searches for transformational digital leaders. Working for Diversified Search Group, one of the fastest-growing executive search firms and the only -ten firm founded by a woman, Tony Forbes tophas placed over 100 high-level IT executives. This search experience, combined with his leadership of the Bay Area CIO Forum (comprising top CIOs) for the last 15+ years, gives him a unique insight into the technology talent landscape.
Trends in CIO/IT Executive Search
Tony identifies several key trends currently taking place:
(1) COVID-19 was an existential threat to many businesses and brought digital preparedness into sharp focus. Organizations that pivoted effectively because of the groundwork previously laid had their digital strategies and budgets accelerated in 2020. Poorly prepared ones? They rapidly discovered that they needed to replace their technology leadership.
(2) Digital technologies allowing organizations to enhance their customer/user experience have forced organizations to address their technology stack and introduce modern architectures.
Simply put: compute/cloud, store/data, presentation/ engagement—these must all be thought through, which has given rise to roles overseeing strategic architecture.
(3) Particularly crucial to the points above are data, the fuel for digital. The ingestion, quality, privacy, security, availability, and use of analytics (AL/ML) are key to
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TONY LENG DIVERSIFIED SEARCH GROUP'S
on Post-COVID Digital Leadership
Tony LengManaging Director,
Lead Practitioner, and OMPDiversified Search Group
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(1) It has become apparent that top-down leadership, with all the bottlenecks it creates, is simply unsustainable—it cannot provide the speed necessary to be competitive.
(2) The increased digitalization of the workplace is forcing leaders to find relevant ways to empower, challenge, and build trust with staff. The leaders best equipped to do so typically nurture the following attributes: empathy, vulnerability, authenticity, and openness. It is vital for leaders to demonstrate these attributes if they are to build any kind of meaningful trust with their teams, particularly in the digitalized world brought about by the pandemic.
(3) Culture-building in particular has become more difficult. Work-from-home (WFH) technologies enabled businesses to function during the pandemic, but social capital built up over years is being eroded, and new techniques must be adopted if cultures are to remain intact. There is a “Great Resignation/Reevaluation” taking place at present (see Tony’s blog: www.tonyleng.com), and in light of the unprecedented workforce turnover and quit rates, urgent innovation is necessary to build culture in our predominantly digitally mediated times.
(4) Relatedly, many entry-level staff members are understandably feeling disenfranchised, since mentorship by osmosis and the office-based connections typically formed early in one’s career are harder to recreate digitally.
(5) One counterpoint is that productivity has typically increased during Covid, sometimes as a function of reduced travel, but also because agile teams are often autonomous and self-governing. This is typical of a Product-based (rather than a Project-based) Agile team, because of its focus and frequent interaction, and CIOs are reorganizing their departments on this basis.
(6) Combined, despite the historic relevance and scope of responsibility currently experienced by senior tech executives, the above factors are causing IT executives great stress, because they are spending lots of time with peers, direct reports, and in skip-level meetings, to ensure that they maintain contact with all relevant constituents, build culture, and that there is broad motivation across the organization. Consequently, they
driving digital transformation—and this is making the chief data officer (CDO) position increasingly vital.
(4) The cloud, data, micro-services/APIs, work from home, etc. have also increased the focus on an organization’s cyber elements, making digital security and privacy issues key agenda items at every board meeting.
(5) Digital trend acceleration is being mediated by societal shifts related to the slaying of George Floyd, which has rightfully increased the urgency of creating a more representative workforce. The United States’ lack of success in systematically addressing this over the past few decades has been exposed, and most organizations are consequently seeking technical talent that is more illustrative of the country at large.
(6) The pandemic has exacerbated the imbalance of men and women in the tech workforce: while the ratio of men and women entering the workforce is 50/50, many women quickly leave, with but a few rising to senior technical ranks. As a result, myriad organizations are increasingly implementing new strategies to provide more effective support for women in their careers, including sponsorships, mentorships, and potential-based recruiting. Equally vital are STEM initiatives being adopted across the country, which are designed to lay the groundwork for future tech talent.
The Leadership Agenda
COVID-19 has also influenced the leadership agenda, bringing about in its wake widespread acknowledgement of the need for rapid change.
Cultivating new
leadership for a
changing world
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are working longer hours, which is resulting in increased burnout among their ranks as well. This is one reason for the “Great Resignation” at senior levels.
A Limited Talent Pool
The skyrocketing demand for tech talent has inevitably strained the talent pool. Many traditional organizations are now competing for talent with the FAANG companies (Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Google), and this competition has yielded a number of insights:
(1) Speed is—unsurprisingly—of the essence. Traditional companies must move quickly if they are to hire good tech talent. An inability to act quickly and decisively is a clear signal that either digital initiatives are not particularly important to a company, or that the culture/environment won’t allow prospective hires to be successful even if they do join.
(2) Traditional pay bands are accompanied by a slew of problems. Particularly:
a. Historic marketplace data employed by an HR department are out of date within six months, and the current war for talent is hot.
b. Traditional pay bands and internal equity prevent some traditional organizations from being competitive in hiring DEI talent.
c. A vital strategic question organizations must address is: “How important is hiring senior-level DEI talent to us, and what are we willing to do to make it happen?”
d. Many CIOs are adjusting pay to reflect the market, and it looks particularly bad if someone comes to poach your talent, and only after they receive an offer do you attempt to bring them
up to the market rate. You need to know the market rate and pay accordingly; otherwise, your candidates will assume you are taking advantage of them.
(3) One technique organizations are employing to access tech talent is recruiting in secondary U.S. markets or offshore. It helps ameliorate some of the aforementioned challenges, but it does increase the pressure on leaders to manage remote workforces effectively.
(4) A degree is no longer considered vital. Many traditional organizations are still fixated on bachelor’s or master’s degrees in the tech arena, but they are not as relevant in the tech disciplines as they are in other fields. Technology is advancing so quickly that the material someone covers in college is out of date within five years. Degree-related requirements are often an artificial barrier. Most CIOs are looking for curious, continuous learners—candidates must possess IQ, EQ, a thirst for knowledge, and a healthy dose of humility (which typically grows over time as a specialist understands how much there is left to learn!).
Moving Forward
Working in the executive search industry allows Tony and his colleagues to be among the first to see marketplace trends. As a result, executive search professionals find themselves uniquely positioned to guide technology leaders as they lead their organizations on their digital journeys.
Looking at 2022 and beyond, the work being done by Tony and his colleagues to cultivate new leadership for changing world will result in exceptionally prepared CIOs and other digital transformation leaders who will empower organizations to navigate the societal transformations taking place now and in the future.
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