Tech Whisperers: Inside the Playbooks of the Best Digital Leaders

Jane Connell began her career without a college degree and no pre-determined path to executive leadership. Yet through grit, curiosity, authenticity, and an unwavering belief that leadership is ultimately about people, she has built one of the most respected careers in technology. In this episode, we are shining the light on Jane’s remarkable journey ahead of her induction into the CIO Hall of Fam...

While many leaders will put technology and innovation at the center of the story, Sal Companieh, Chief Digital & Information Officer at Cushman & Wakefield, keeps people, trust, and authentic relationships at the center instead. In this episode of Tech Whisperers, Sal sits down with host Dan Roberts for one of the most thoughtful leadership conversations we’ve ever featured. We’re unpackin...

What does successful leadership look like in the age of AI, constant disruption, and accelerating change? In this episode, Dan Roberts sits down with Sears Merritt, CIO at MassMutual. Rather than chasing headlines, Sears has spent more than a decade building systems, teams, and cultures that consistently deliver impact, all while staying deeply grounded in purpose, accountability, and policyholder...

Today’s guest is a technology executive who has mastered the art of honoring a strong legacy while reinventing it in an era of massive disruption. Leigh-Ann Russell is the CIO and Global Head of Engineering at BNY, which was founded 240 years ago. In this episode, Leigh-Ann is opening up her leadership playbook and sharing her perspectives on how to lead through chaos with clarity, why coherence i...

This episode we’re sitting down with Sanjay Shringarpure, CIO at The Freeman Company, to unpack the intangibles of leadership . These are the qualities you can’t easily measure on a dashboard but are often the key difference between leaders who talk about transformation and those who actually achieve it. Over his two decades of technology leadership experience, Sanjay has built a strong track reco...

There is no better guest to celebrate our 100th Whisperers episode with than Denise Russell Fleming, CIO and EVP of Technology & Global Services at BD. Denise has built a remarkable career across telecom, aerospace, defense, and healthcare, leading large-scale transformation while staying laser-focused on three vital areas: purpose, people, and impact. Throughout her leadership journey, her ab...

What does it take to lead technology at enterprise scale in a world defined by AI, ambiguity, and nonstop disruption? That’s one of the big questions we’re exploring in this episode with guest Mojgan Lefebvre, EVP and Chief Technology & Operations Officer at Travelers. Since joining the property casualty insurer in 2018, Mojgan has been the driving force behind its digital and operational tran...

There are leaders who understand technology, and there are leaders who understand people, but when someone comes along who truly masters both, incredible things start to happen. Shelia Anderson , EVP and Chief Information & Digital Officer at Unum , is one of those rare and special leaders. A four-time CIO and Hall of Fame inductee, Shelia has built a career defined by transformation, resilien...

In this episode, we are sitting down with Keith Ferrazzi, bestselling author of Never Eat Alone and Never Lead Alone , to talk about what leadership, teamship, and trust really look like in an AI-driven world, and how to strengthen relationships by embracing candor. Drawing on his research and insights as well as strategies and tools from his books, Keith is opening up his playbook to share how le...

In this episode, we are shining the light on a leader whose journey truly plays out like a movie. Sastry Durvasula has one of those rare stories that blends technical mastery, human-centered leadership, and bold reinvention. After starting out as an engineer, his career journey has included leading transformation for a number of big brand organizationizations. He’s now the Chief Operating, Informa...

In this era of accelerated disruption, leaders who have the right combination of clarity, courage, and conviction stand apart from the pack. GSK Chief Digital & Technology Officer Shobie Ramakrishnan brings all of that to the table—and then some! With her deep and broad experience in both biotech and hi-tech companies, Shobie has mastered the art of leading at scale, engaging the whole organiz...

After years of interviews with dozens of incredible digital leaders, we’ve explored countless “answer the call” moments, and as we’ve seen, great leaders don’t rely on luck to receive those calls. They place themselves in the right place at the right time so that when the time comes, they are at the top of the list.  Jeanine Charlton , the Chief Technology & Digital Officer at Merchants F...

This week, we are shining a light on Mike Anderson , Chief Digital & Information Officer at Netskope , to unpack the mindset and playbook behind his exceptional ability to “lift as he climbs.” Mike’s not your typical tech exec; he’s a business guy in an IT wrapper, someone who’s as comfortable in the boardroom as he is in the scrum room.  From his early days at Schneider Electric to helpi...

This week, we are shining the light on one of the most intentional and inspiring CIOs in the game, Ken Piddington , Chief Digital, Technology, & Integration Officer at RelaDyne . Ken exemplifies what it means to be a leader who teaches, mentors, and communicates with purpose. Over the years, we’ve collected several of his “Ken-isms,” the short, punchy expressions that encompass his leadership...

Mindy Simon’s path from a Nebraska farm to her current role as Chief Operating Officer of Aon , where she helms a 22,000-person global operation, is anything but conventional—and that's exactly what makes her story so compelling. Mindy’s a great example of how embracing your roots can empower your future, and in this episode, we are shining a light on why she is the kind of transformational leader...

In this episode we’re shining the light on the leadership superpowers and industry impact of Diane Schwarz, Group CIO of Smurfit Westrock, a global leader in sustainable packaging. Diane’s leadership style is a unique blend of calm confidence, strategic clarity, and operational excellence that turns traditional roles inside out. You’ll hear why those around her refer to her not just as a CIO but a...

In this episode of Tech Whisperers , we are joined by two experts who are shaping the future of AI in the enterprise, Dr. Lisa Palmer, CEO of Dr. Lisa AI, and Ashwin Rangan, CEO at DoubleCheck Solutions. Lisa and Ash are sharing a wealth of practical, actionable insights to help us uncover why AI initiatives stall out at the “messy middle” and what leaders can do to reignite progress and start gen...

Over the past three years, we’ve had the privilege to sit down with more than 100 of the most visionary and impactful technology leaders across industries. They've shared their bold strategies and hard-earned lessons, and unpacked playbooks that are continuing to shape the future of leadership and innovation. In this special “Best of the Best” episode, we’ve curated some of the top insights from o...

Our CI4CI miniseries continues with guest Katrina Redmond, EVP and CIO of Eaton Corporation. As the world hits a historic inflection point in infrastructure — driven by AI, electrification, and massive investments in data centers and energy — Katrina is playing a pivotal role, helping lead one of the most mission-critical companies into the future. Join us as we explore how Katrina is spearheading...

In part 2 of our Critical Infrastructure for Critical Infrastructure (CI4CI) miniseries, we are joined by Mike Adams , a digital executive who is playing a leading role in this once-in-a-generation inflection point. As the Chief Digital Technology Officer at Black & Veatch (BV), Mike has a front row seat to the critical infrastructure transformation being driven by the convergence of AI, data...

The lightning-fast rise of AI has come with a cost: the need to overhaul America’s power grids, pipelines, and water systems to accommodate its explosive growth. As trillions of dollars pour into this complete overhaul, there are key leaders paving the way.  In a special mini-series focusing on “Critical Infrastructure for Critical Infrastructure (CI4CI),” we’re shining the light on a few of...

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but they’ll never forget how you made them feel.” Perhaps no Tech Whisperer embodies that timeless Maya Angelou insight better than 7 Brew CIO Danyel Bischof-Forsyth. She is a master at creating cultures where people feel safe, empowered, and inspired, which means she isn’t just driving digital strategy, she is creating an environ...

Bhaskar Ramachandran is the powerhouse CIO behind PPG’s digital transformation. A master at driving culture change, building strong IT teams, and rallying everyone around the organization’s vision, he has a long track record of delivering real business results across industries. We were fortunate to have the opportunity to sit down with Bhaskar in person at PMI Digital’s studio in Pittsburgh for a...

Tech Whisperer Earl Newsome is the pinnacle of modern, mission-driven IT leadership. Informed by a decade-long military career, Earl has fully unlocked his ability to lead through adaptation, inspiration, and ambition. Now, as the CIO of Cummins, Inc. and with 20 years of experience in corporate America under his belt, he has also become skilled at nurturing those traits in his team. In this episo...

In this episode, we are sitting down with a very special guest who has had a massive impact on the CIO profession–Monte Ford. Monte is a CIO Hall of Fame inductee, an advisor to many of the top CIOs and business leaders, and a board member for several large companies, such as JetBlue and Centene.  For all of his accolades and accomplishments, Monte is a leader who prefers to keep a low profil...