In this live episode of The Bridgecast from the Bridgepointe Tech Summit 2025, host Scott Kinka welcomes Aaron Darcy, Senior Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Go-to-Market for Lumen, for a deep dive into digital transformation, network modernization, and the infrastructure requirements for the AI era.
This conversation tackles the hard truths about digital transformation: why 90% of IT projects still fail, why CIOs can no longer afford to be operators, and why even the most advanced AI tools won't fix dirty data. Aaron shares the practical budgeting framework he's used for 25 years—splitting investments into "run the business" and "change the business" categories—and explains why having an experimentation fund isn't optional anymore.

What you will learn:

• Why CIOs must transition from operators to transformation leaders in the AI era
• The "run vs. change the business" budgeting framework for funding innovation
• How Lumen is building network fabric for Cloud 2.0 and AI workloads
• Why dirty data remains the biggest blocker to AI success (and how to fix it)
• What network-as-a-service actually means and how Lumen Connect delivers it
• The role of validated designs in reducing integration burden for customers
• How to lead transformation when your organization has competing priorities
• Why network security must be baked in at the infrastructure level
• The realistic timeline for AI maturity and where we are on the hype curve
  
  

About the Guest:

Aaron Darcy is the Senior Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Go-to-Market at Lumen, where he's driving the company's transformation into an AI-ready network infrastructure provider. With a career built on transformation from Microsoft to GE Digital to Lumen, Aaron specializes in building and scaling new capabilities within large organizations. He's worked alongside several Lumen executives across multiple companies, drawn by the common thread of building something new. His philosophy centers on fundamentals: people first, process second, technology third. At Lumen, he's executing a three-pillar growth strategy focused on physical infrastructure investment, digital platform development (Lumen Connect), and partner ecosystem expansion—all aimed at making Lumen the network backbone for the AI economy.

To find out how Bridgepointe Technologies helps businesses make IT decisions faster with world-class engineering support and ongoing guidance, head to https://bridgepointetechnologies.com/

Episode Highlights:

• [04:25] Shift from Operator to Transformation Leader
  
  

Aaron Darcy stresses that CIOs can't survive in today's landscape by simply keeping the lights on; they must embrace transformation as a core responsibility. This shift matters because 90% of IT projects still fail, and most failures stem from people, culture, and process—not technology. The challenge is that many IT leaders lack the mindset or surrounding team to drive meaningful change across their organizations. Start by surrounding yourself with transformation-minded people who understand that you're not moving from point A to point B without fundamental change in processes, data management, and organizational thinking. At Lumen, Darcy refuses to fund large projects without deep business leader engagement, ensuring every initiative answers the critical questions: "So what?" and "Who cares?" For IT leaders ready to evolve, this transformation-first mindset directly impacts your organization's ability to compete in the AI economy and deliver measurable business outcomes.

• [07:20] The Run vs. Change the Business Framework
  
  

Aaron shares a two-bucket budgeting strategy he's deployed for 25+ years: allocate funds for operational expenses that keep systems running, while also carving out a separate experimentation fund for transformation bets. This framework matters because it forces deliberate thinking about where you're investing and prevents the trap of either thrashing with too much change or stagnating with too little. The main challenge IT leaders face is deciding how much to invest in each bucket without jeopardizing business continuity or missing innovation opportunities. Split your budget explicitly: ensure baseline operational funding covers "keep the lights on" needs, then allocate a measurable percentage to experimentation and transformation initiatives. After pilots succeed, successful experiments become next year's operational baseline—creating a sustainable cycle of learning and growth. This structured approach gives you confidence in your bets, measurable outcomes, and a clear pathway for advancing your technology strategy without destabilizing core operations.

• [10:06] Technology Isn't the Problem—People and Process Are
  
  

Aaron makes a provocative point: AI won't fix dirty data, because dirty data is a symptom of broken processes, not a technology gap that AI tools can magically resolve. This matters immensely because organizations investing heavily in AI often overlook data governance, expecting AI to deliver value even when underlying data is unreliable or poorly organized. The challenge is that many leaders see data quality as a technology issue and throw AI solutions at it, missing the real problem: the processes that created the bad data in the first place. Before deploying any AI initiative, conduct a data audit and ask: Where's the dirt coming from? What processes allowed bad data to accumulate? Fix the process, not just the symptom. For IT leaders and CIOs, this means shifting conversations from "Which AI tool should we buy?" to "What process improvements must we make first?" This disciplined approach ensures your AI investments deliver real ROI and prevents the common trap of buying expensive tools that fail because foundational data practices weren't addressed.

• [18:33] Modernizing Networks for Cloud 2.0
  
  

Aaron explains that networks architected for Cloud 1.0 are now bottlenecks for AI workloads, featuring hairpins, choke points, and limited flexibility for multi-cloud environments where companies juggle multiple cloud vendors, SaaS providers, and data centers simultaneously. This is critical because network architecture directly impacts your ability to scale AI initiatives, move data efficiently, and support distributed workloads—yet many IT leaders haven't modernized their network infrastructure since the early cloud era. The challenge is that legacy networks weren't designed for the mesh architecture, direct cloud connections, and unified management that AI-driven applications require today. Evaluate your current network design: Are you managing multiple clouds and data centers with a unified fabric, or do you have fragmented connections with hairpins and bottlenecks? Modernize by moving toward a fabric-based architecture that supports direct, high-speed connections to hyperscalers, dynamic bandwidth management, and centralized control across all endpoints. For IT leaders planning AI deployments, network modernization isn't optional—it's foundational to enabling the performance, reliability, and scalability your AI workloads demand.

• [22:12] Security Baked Into the Network Layer
  
  

Aaron argues that IT leaders should demand security baked into their networking solutions rather than treating it as an afterthought or separate layer, with providers catching threats at the network level before they propagate to application and data layers. This shift matters because security layered on top of poor network architecture creates operational complexity, performance drag, and higher costs—while security integrated into the network fabric provides protection closer to the threat source. The challenge is that vendors have historically sold networking and security as separate products, forcing IT teams to manage integration, compatibility, and multiple vendor relationships. When evaluating network solutions, ask: Is security integrated into the platform, or am I buying separate point solutions that require custom integration? Look for validated designs and reference architectures that guarantee security, networking, and storage components work together seamlessly—removing integration burden from your team. For IT leaders and procurement officers, demanding integrated security-network solutions reduces deployment friction, improves threat detection, lowers total cost of ownership, and simplifies management across your multi-cloud and hybrid infrastructure.

Episode Resources:

• Aaron Darcy on LinkedIn
• Lumen Technologies Website
• Scott Kinka on LinkedIn
• Bridgepointe Technologies Website
• The Bridgecast on Apple Podcasts
• The Bridgecast on Spotify
• The Bridgecast on YouTube

The Bridgecast is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so