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Blake Hodges, Deputy CISO at Albemarle, brings a rare blend of military discipline, enterprise leadership, and disarming honesty to the world of cybersecurity. His path from Army cyber operations to consulting, defense, a global nonprofit, and now one of the world’s leading lithium manufacturers gives him a vantage point few technologists ever experience.

In this conversation, Blake pulls back the curtain on what he’s learned across those worlds: why the most expensive tool won’t fix a broken culture, how communication and emotional intelligence beat complexity every time, and what really determines whether a system becomes beloved… or quietly sabotaged.

He also shares a line that lingers: only IT and drug dealers call their customers “users.” It’s funny with a sting — a reminder that adoption starts with humanity, not hardware.

We explore everything from the lithium supply chain powering modern batteries to the shifting expectations of today’s technologists, who now need sales acumen, stakeholder fluency, and the confidence to explain value without hiding behind jargon. Blake’s perspective on where AI is headed — and why IT may soon function as “HR for AI” — offers a grounded roadmap for the next decade of transformation.

🎧 Tune in for a thoughtful, practical conversation about culture, communication, and why technology only works when people do.

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