Network Disrupted

On the season finale of Network Disrupted, we’re talking to Rich Penkoski, the Deputy CEO of Markets for Deloitte Consulting. We're going to lean on Rich’s unique role speaking to many different finance and technology leaders to discuss the evolution of the highly important CIO-CFO relationship.

We'll also cover the rapidly changing expectations of technologists, strategies for enabling agile decision making at large organizations, and why intimately trusting your vendors is necessary. Enjoy!

As always, let me know what you thought of today’s discussion! Tweet me at @netwkdisrupted + @awertkin, leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or email me at [email protected].

Read more about Rich on our blog.

With that, I wish you all a happy, safe holiday season. I'll see you in the spring for Season 3.

Today I’m joined by Jason "JJ" James, a three-time IT VP, and current Chief Information Officer at NetHealth. In this episode, we’re going to focus on IT's ever-expending role in enabling smooth strategic pivoting, aiding efficient teamwork, navigating industry disruption (as always).

JJ is an award-winning innovator, and a true believer in driving advancement through human connection - as he has coined the "humanization" of technology. Enjoy!

Let me know what you thought of today’s discussion! Tweet me at @netwkdisrupted + @awertkin, leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or email me at [email protected].

Read more about Jason on our blog.

Today I’m joined by Brian Benn, a former NASA software engineer and current Chief Information Officer at the Atlanta Housing Authority - a leader in transforming public housing to provide affordable communities for those in need. In this episode, we’re going to focus on how technology leaders - particularly in government, can stoke innovation, create a culture that resists complacency, welcomes vulnerability, and actually empowers agile development.

Brian is a truly innovative strategist, technologist, and overall thought leader, with an adamant belief in digital literacy driving the betterment of Atlanta. He has some really awesome stories from his time on the final frontier. Enjoy!

Let me know what you thought of today’s discussion! Tweet me at @netwkdisrupted + @awertkin, leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or email me at [email protected].

Read more about Brian on our blog.

Today, I’m speaking with Tom Andriola, the Vice Chancellor of Information, Technology, and Data over at the University of California, Irvine - an inovation hub for higher education, public research, and healthcare. On this episode, we explore Tom's unique take on enabling partnerships to promote UC Irvine’s ambitious data strategy, discuss the keys to merging technology and business strategy at organizations at the scale of UC Irvine, and investigate emerging thoughts on what’s to come in healthcare and higher ed.

Tom is a brilliant technology leader and a true advocate for innovation. His ambitious strategic approach is reason enough to take notes - enjoy!

Let me know what you thought of today’s discussion! You can tweet me at @netwkdisrupted + @awertkin, leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or email me at [email protected].

Read more about Tom on our blog.

Today, I’m speaking with Gayleen Gray - the Assistant Vice President and CTO at McMaster University in Canada. On this episode, we explore the evolution of the CIO role and why we’re seeing more people adopting the CTO title today, how Gayleen brought the entire university along in her strategic planning process, how she measures success in her department, what peer communities Gayleen is involved in, and so much more.

She is a brilliant open book and I found so much to take away from this episode - it was hard to pick what elements to cut down in editing, so you’ll certainly enjoy this one.

Let me know what you thought of today’s discussion! You can tweet me at @netwkdisrupted + @awertkin, leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, or email me at [email protected].

Read more about Gayleen on our blog.

Today, I talk to Chad Sheridan, Chief Innovation Officer at NetImpact Strategies about:

- How to measure value in the federal context

- The balance between delivering features and technical debt

- Why switching from project to product thinking matters

- The value in leveraging cloud for agencies

- How to lean on peers and overcome other technology leadership challenges

As former service delivery chief for the USDA, Chad recently moved to work at NetImpact Strategies to advise a number of agencies on what we’re about to talk about today. That is, creating and measuring value in the federal context, switching from project to product thinking to nurture innovation, the cloud’s value for agencies, and how to lean on peers to overcome the challenges that inevitably come with the territory of technology leadership.

Read more about Chad on our blog.

Today, I talk to Thomas Sweet, VP in IT Solutions at GM Financial, about:

- How he’s turning his QA organization into a unified engineering team

- The value of certifications and metrics

- Specific tactics he uses to drive continuous learning

- Why he doesn’t want GM Financial’s Cloud Centre of Excellence (CCoE) to return his team members

Tom’s got a real focus on lifting people up in the workplace. I want to give credit where credit is due, so I’d like to thank our friends at Linux Academy (or, rather, A Cloud Guru), for introducing us. Tom gets into the tactical weeds explaining how he’s doing what he’s doing, which is really valuable, so thanks for that Christophe. 

Note: Tom’s opinions are his own and do not represent those of GM or GM Financial.

P.S. Know who I should speak to next? Drop me a line at andrew [at] networkdisrupted [dot] com. 

P.P.S. Short on time? I send episode summaries to my email subscribers. Add yourself to the list if you’d like.

Read more about Thomas on our blog.

In this episode, I talk with Vishal Gupta, CTO @ Unisys, about:

- The value AI actually has (and doesn’t have) in an enterprise setting

- Low-hanging fruit for which an organization can use AI (specifically in the realm of improving customer experience and classifying devices for policy application)

- Common data-collection misconceptions enterprises have

- Bonus: how Unisys is equipping its employees career security through skills training

Vishal is the CTO of Unisys, the IT company we’ve known for over a century. Since he started in 2018, Vishal has been focused on helping Unisys’ customers apply analytics in practical ways, and on enabling his organization to attract, engage, and retain talent. We talk about both things in the episode.

P.S. Know who I should speak to next? Drop me a line at andrew [at] networkdisrupted [dot] com.

P.P.S. Short on time? I send episode summaries to my email subscribers. Add yourself to the list if you’d like.

Read more about Vishal Gupta on our blog

In this episode, I talk with Juha Holkkola, CEO @ FusionLayer about:

- The networking reality at many large organizations

- Automation strategy mistakes he sees organizations making

- The best IP address management (IPAM) tools most organizations cling to

- His advice for effective automation

Juha is the co-founder and CEO of FusionLayer, a DDI company focused on helping large customers automate their infrastructure. While a bit different than my typical guest, Juha – like me – talks to a large number of IT leaders. He therefore understands where widespread holes (and, conversely, opportunities for improvement) exist.

P.S. Know who I should speak to next? Drop me a line at andrew [at] networkdisrupted [dot] com.

P.P.S. Short on time? I send episode summaries to my email subscribers. Add yourself to the list if you’d like.

In this episode, I talk with Jon Macy, Director @ Cerner about:

* How he balances single customer requirements and popular requests * How he engages with the business

* The business-focused platform-as-a-service that he’s effectively built for the organization

* What he thinks makes a valuable technology partnership


Jon is focused on building enduring architectures and systems at Cerner, and it shows in the way he talks about his role and challenges. It’s both reassuring to listen to, and certainly helpful to others on a similar path.

P.S. Know who I should speak to next? Drop me a line at andrew [at] networkdisrupted [dot] com. 

P.P.S. Short on time? I send episode summaries to my email subscribers. Add yourself to the list if you’d like.

Read more about Jon Macy on our blog