Cxotalk: Leadership, Innovation, Disruption

Salesforce is one of the most important SaaS leaders in the digital economy. What makes this company significant and can it sustain that leadership position? We talk with three top industry analysts to get the inside story on Salesforce.com.In addition to being the author of the best-selling CRM at the Speed of Light: Essential Customer Strategies for the 21st Century, Paul Greenberg is President of The 56 Group, LLC, an enterprise applications consulting services firm, focused on CRM strategic services and a founding partner of the CRM training company, BPT Partners, LLC, a training venture composed of a number of CRM luminaries. Liz Herbert is Vice President and Principal Analyst at Forrester Research. Research Director at the 451 Group, Sheryl Kingstone focuses on improving the customer experience across all interaction channels for customer acquisition and loyalty.

Will A.I. make our government smarter and more responsive – or is that the last step towards the end of privacy? As chief scientist of U.S. Government Accountability Office, Tim Persons conceives its vision for advanced data analytics. Learn about the promise and challenges around government A.I. and what those portend for private sector companies.

The future of retail is omni-channel: identifying and serving the customer from mobile to Web to the sales floor. Eli Rosner, NCR’s SVP and CTO, helped build a $3.7 billion business supplying technology, software, and services to this fast-changing industry. Learn what it takes to continually reinvent a 130-old-company in the face of relentless technology change.Eli Rosner is Senior Vice President & Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Software Solutions for NCR Corporation. In this role, he is accountable for the company's strategy, formulation, development and cross-functional delivery of NCR's software portfolio.

Access to the right information at the right moment can make – or destroy – the effectiveness of a financial services workforce. As CIO for Information at reinsurance giant Swiss Re, Rainer Baumann turns buzzwords like smart analytics and big data into actionable tools for workers. On this episode, he gives us a peek into the future of the digital workplace and what it will take to get there.Rainer Baumann was appointed head of Swiss Re's newly created Shared Information Service (SIS) unit in 2014. The mission of SIS is to drive digital and information innovation and to enable Swiss Re to perform better through a more efficient and effective use of information.

Artificial intelligence is disrupting healthcare, from the largest institutions to the most intimate doctor-patient interactions. What’s driving digital medicine, and what challenges might get in the way? Hear insights from our panel including Shari Langmak, editorial director of the physician network Medscape in Germany, Singularity University’s faculty chair Daniel Kraft, a scientist and inventor and David Bray, Chief Information Officer of the Federal Communications Commission.

Wondering how to make your company more digital -- and why it's worth it? Learn the inside story from Accenture Digital chief Mike Sutcliff. His 36,000 employees -- and 1,300 data scientists -- are on the front lines of digital transformation in companies worldwide. Gain practical insights from an expert's perspective on disruption, business models, and competing in a digital world.Mike Sutcliff is group chief executive of Accenture Digital, which integrates digital assets, software and services across digital marketing, analytics and mobility to help clients drive growth and create new sources of value.

Although insurance has long been protected from digital disruption, the industry faces serious challenges in its current form. This episode will explore the digital transformation of insurance with a leading industry CIO.Tim Baum is the Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Harford Mutual Insurance. Baum leads the IT department as it continues to convert the company’s legacy systems to the Guidewire Insurance Suite. Baum’s extensive technology project management experience allows him to seamlessly take the helm of the Project Team and assist them in the successful implementation in 2017.

Innovation and digital transformation in higher education means using technology to address core strategic goals of the institution. On this episode, we talk with the CIO of Oral Roberts University about their multi-million program to use virtual, augmented, and mixed reality to create a global educational community and foster the educational agenda.Michael L. Mathews has over 24-years of experience as a senior-level IT executive bringing creative solutions that value the end-users of technology and business process management. These solutions have benefited the end-users of higher education, manufacturing, and high technology company products.

Marketing technology is undergoing dramatic transformation as companies seek greater personalization to engage buyers across the customer lifecycle. This episode examines how AI is changing marketing. Our guest are Sameer Patel, CEO, and Andrew Eichenbaum, Lead Data Scientist, at Kahuna software. Sameer joined Kahuna in August, 2016 as CEO and board member. Dr. Andrew Eichenbaum is a leading Data Scientist specializing in artificial intelligence and machine learning. Andrew has been analyzing large scale data sets for over 15 years and leading data-centric projects and teams for more than 8 years.

Digital transformation involves all parts of a company, from sales and marketing to operations, supply chain, and talent. On this episode, a seasoned leader and author shares practical advice for undertaking a program of digital transformation. Our guest is Anurag Harsh, Senior Vice President and Founding Executive at Ziff Davis.Anurag Harsh is an entrepreneur, a company executive, a digital and management guru, a blogger, published author of several books, business columnist for leading US publications, an investor, and a classical musician who has performed two sold out solo concerts at New York’s Carnegie Hall.

The financial services industry, including insurance, is undergoing rapid change in response to new technology, FinTech startups, and shifting customer expectations. On this episode, we talk with the CIO and Chief Digital Officer at a large insurance company to understand digital transformation in this important industry.Dr. Alexander Bockelmann is the CEO of the UNIQA IT Service GmbH and responsible for the IT at the UNIQA Insurance Group AG Together with his team, Alexander is building a new international IT shared service provider for the UNIQA Group, rolling out innovative new IT services across 19 countries.

The relationship between digital transformation and investment in technology is critical yet frequently misunderstood. On the episode, we speak with a world-leading expert on this subject.Bill Briggs is the Chief Technology Officer for Deloitte Consulting, former global lead of Deloitte Digital, and a Director in the US technology practice. Bill is a strategist with deep implementation experience – helping clients anticipate the impact that new and emerging technologies may have on their business in the future, and getting there from the realities of today.

For large organizations, digital transformation involves rethinking processes, technology, and customer relationships. On this episode, we talk one of the world's top experts on digital transformation in big companies. Didier Bonnet is an author, researcher, and leader of Capgemini's digital transformation practice.Didier believes that Digital Transformation will have a profound impact on all sectors and that no company will be immune from this transformation. His interest is in understanding how digital technologies are impacting every aspect of business: strategy, customer experience, people and operations. In his view, the digital revolution creates huge opportunities to make organizations more efficient and responsive, to change the way people work and share, as well as strongly enhancing the experience of customers as they interact with organizations.

Artificial intelligence is fraught with legal, ethical, and public policy challenges. This episode brings two esteemed experts to discuss these issues and present guidance for both commercial companies and the public sector policymakers.Dr. David A. Bray began work in public service at age 15, later serving in the private sector before returning as IT Chief for the CDC’s Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Program during 9/11; volunteering to deploy to Afghanistan to “think differently” on military and humanitarian issues; and serving as a Senior Executive advocating for increased information interoperability, cybersecurity, and civil liberty protections.Kay Firth-Butterfield is a Barrister and part-time Judge and has worked as a mediator, arbitrator, business owner and professor in the United Kingdom. In the United States, she is Chief Officer, and member, of the Lucid.ai Ethics Advisory Panel (EAP) and an adjunct Professor of Law.

Hype around artificial intelligence and machine learning continues to explode. In this episode, a prominent data scientist explains AI, explores how the technology works, and discusses the ethical implications. Our guest is Anthony Scriffignano, Chief Data Scientist of Dun & Bradstreet.Scriffignano has over 35 years experience in information technologies, Big-4 management consulting, and international business. Sciffignano leverages deep data expertise and global relationships to position Dun & Bradstreet with strategic customers, partners, and governments.

FinTech startups and technologies such as blockchain are disrupting the financial services industry. On this episode, we talk with a financial services leader about transformation in this important global industry.Our guest is Oliver Bussmann, former Group Chief Information Officer of UBS from June 2013 to March 2016 and currently head of his own advisory firm. At UBS, he successfully led a major IT transformation effort, instituted a new group-wide innovation framework and established UBS as a pioneer in the development of blockchain for use in financial services.

Workday is one of the leading software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies in the world. On this episode, three respected industry analysts examine Workday, its products, and competitive position in the market. It's a rare opportunity to see inside the mind of top industry analysts as they examine this important enterprise software company.

Brooks Brothers is one of America's iconic clothing and retail brands, founded in 1818. On this episode, we learn about the changing retail environment, shifts in consumer expectations, and how this brand is managing digital transformation. Our guest is Sahal Laher, Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer of Brooks Brothers.Sahal is responsible for ensuring that Brooks Brothers information technology investments, resources and project execution are aligned with its strategic business objectives.

A recent article in USA Today describes a study from Accenture, predicting the number of women in technology may drop to 22 percent by the year 2025. On this episode, we explore the role of women in tech with two senior leaders, who are both former CIOs and industry pioneers.Kim Stevenson is corporate vice president of Intel Corporation and chief operating officer for the Client and Internet of Things Businesses and Systems Architecture (CISA) Group.Andi Karaboutis is Executive Vice President Technology & Business Solutions at Biogen, Cambridge, MA. Accountable for technologies that provide insights for drug discovery and patient benefit.

Business expectations of the Chief Information Officer role have changed dramatically, forcing CIOs to adapt and evolve. This episode explores what's happening with CIOs and offers practical advice to both the business side and to CIOs themselves.Our guest is author Martha Heller, who is president of Heller Search Associates. Before she established her career in executive search, Martha was Founder and Managing Director of IDG's CIO Executive Council, a professional organization for CIOs.