Enterprise AI Innovators

On the tenth episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Scott Howitt, CDO at Ultimate Kronos Group. Scott has been a CIO, CTO, CISO, and CDO across several industries during his career, giving him a unique perspective into the world of deploying technological initiatives at large companies. Today, Scott joins the show to discuss how CIOs and CDOs can become ‘chief bridge builders’ within organizations to optimize business outcomes, create a culture of innovation, and evaluate startups to form great partnerships.Quick hits from Scott:On CIOs speaking multiple languages: “As techies, we're really good at not having much respect for people who don't understand all the techno jargon that we use, guess what? The CFO is thinking the same thing when you don't understand EBITDA and how revenue is recognized and what ARR is and what PEPM is. You need to be like a UN translator. You have to know multiple different languages to be a successful executive."On CIOs understanding the business: “Sometimes, you're way up above the business, doing a strategic plan, but occasionally, you’ve got to dive down and get exactly where the troops are and understand what they're doing. I think too often technologists are like, ‘Hey, I'm just a technologist. I don't need to understand the business.’ You have no purpose in life if it were not for the business, and too often, technologists forget that they're here to support the business, not the other way around.”On how CIOs and CDOs can evaluate startups to form great partnerships: "Look at who's on their board, who's investing in them. But then, go ahead and have a dialogue too. My thing with all the vendors is it needs to be the CEO, the CTO, or the Chief Product Officer. Otherwise, I don't want to talk to him because I want to get the heartbeat of where this company is going, what's your vision, what's your exit strategy, all those things. Because if it's a partnership, let's not worry about the price. It is the last thing I get to. It's how we would come together and work together if we formed a partnership. And it should be a partnership, not a vendor-consumer relationship.”Recent book recommendations: The Phoenix Project by Gene Kim, Kevin Behr, and George SpaffordHue 1968: A Turning Point of the American War in Vietnam by Mark Bowden--Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts.Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at enterprisesoftware.blog.Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Josh Meer and Luke Reiser.

On the ninth episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Vish Narendra, CIO & SVP, Global Business Services of Graphic Packaging International. GPI is an integrated paper packaging company that services hundreds of the world’s most recognized brands. Vish shares insights on how he’s leading digital transformation at GPI, how to measure the success of digital transformation, how to find the right startups to work with, and the state of AR/VR for enterprise.Quick hits from Vish:On Graphic Packaging International’s digital transformation: “At a 50,000 foot level, we're putting in processes and systems that will be used by this company ten to fifteen years from now. Not in a static way but an agile and flexible way that can evolve and adapt to the changing needs of the economy, the business, and the industry.”On maintaining dynamism in a highly-volatile world: “Technology itself is not the biggest challenge. It is prioritization and adaptation for evolving needs. That is actually truly the biggest challenge...So, you have to adjust.”On how CIOs can become more innovative: “Find progressive CIOs that are active in the space. See if there are ways that you can get connected to them. See if there are ways that they will share their knowledge and their time.”On how to balance pre-existing best practices and innovation: “As humans, no matter who you are, you are a creature of habit. If you have developed a certain set of habits over a while, it takes a lot of effort to break those habits. And understanding how we can drive that change within that organization and understanding the appetite for change is critical to the success of all the work.”Recent book recommendation: Good Company by Arthur M Blank--Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts.Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at enterprisesoftware.blog.Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Josh Meer and Luke Reiser.

On the eighth episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Gary Reiner, former CIO of General Electric and a current operating partner at General Atlantic, a global growth equity firm with over $79 billion of assets under management. While at GE, Gary was an executive leader for almost 20 years, and an early advocate for implementing SaaS applications during his 14 year tenure as CIO. Today, he sits on the board of several GA portfolio companies including Atera, Devo, Evisort, JumpCloud, Pymetrics, ThreatLocker, Vast Data, and Zoomin. In this conversation, Gary shares why he believes the best business process wins, his perspective on packaged solutions, and the meaning behind “lean before digitize”.Quick hits from Gary:On how technology and business processes need to work together: “Technology is there to support processes. We used to have a saying at GE, ‘lean before digitize.’ What that means is you need to do a ton of work improving the process before you roll out technology. We had actually looked at a lot of successes and failures within the work that we had done in IT at GE. And it was pretty much binary where if we had leaned processes first and then attached technology to it, it was successful. And if we had tried to just take the technology that was there and support an unimproved process, it was a failure all the time.”On building software in-house or using a partner: “During my 20 years at GE, if you took the most proprietary thing that we did, it was developing the inside of an aircraft engine. It was the single most sophisticated thing requiring incredibly high IQ people doing very, very sophisticated things. And yet when you looked for software that they needed, in order to develop those engine parts, there were at least three different software solutions they could use. Someone who was more NIH would say, "We need to build this, because it's strategic to us." That's not the strategic part of it. The tool was not the strategic part. The strategic part was the knowledge of the engineers that were designing it, not the tool itself.”Gary’s advice to startup SaaS founders: “If you're a startup building software to support processes, whether it's a selling process, manufacturing process, service process, make sure you understand what the best practices are in that case that you're supporting, so that when good customers are leaning their processes, they default to your solution.” Recent book recommendation: The Order of Time by Carlo Rovelli--Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts.Enterprise Software Innovators is a show where top tech executives share how they innovate at scale. Each episode covers unique insights and stories that will help you succeed as a technology leader. Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at https://www.enterprisesoftware.blog/ Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Luke Reiser, Josh Meer and Emily Shaw. 

On the seventh episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Diana McKenzie, former CIO at Workday. Diana has been SVP and CIO of Workday in addition to CIO at Amgen. Today, she sits on the board of Vertex Pharmaceuticals, MetLife, Change Healthcare, and Paradox, among others. Evan and Saam speak with Diana about the importance of being a customer facing CIO, the technology-driven innovations she’s most excited about in the life sciences, and her experience being a board member after spending years on the other side of the table.Quick hits from Diana:On CIOs directionally oriented towards deploying new technology: “When we found a group of CIOs who were willing to embrace some of these newer concepts, you tend to cluster together and develop relationships. And then somebody in the group comes to the dinner and says, ‘oh my gosh, we're trying this, We're trying Snowflake, or we're trying that.’ And then everybody wants to jump on board because it's a cool thing to be engaged with, but never just for the technology, always because you're trying to derive an outcome that's better for the business.”On being customer focused as a CIO: “The entire time I was a CIO, I never ever called the people that I worked with inside the company my customers. My belief has always been that the person that we are selling our product or service to is the customer and that's the one we have to all be looking at in the same way. Inside the company, we all have to be working together to make sure we're achieving that end. And by keeping myself and my team focused on the end customer, I think we're better at sort of deciphering what we needed to do internally.”On technological breakthroughs in the life sciences space: “We are working in partnership with the CRISPR company to develop a product called CTX001 and right now it's showing enormous promise in clinical trials for patients suffering from sickle cell anemia. It is all about editing their DNA so that it will produce this fetal hemoglobin that ultimately becomes a mature adult hemoglobin in the amounts that are needed so that these patients no longer have sickle cell anemia. So we're talking about a cure [and] you simply don't get to that without the application of technology.” Recent book recommendation: Not a Good Day to Die: The Untold Story of Operation Anaconda by Sean Naylor--Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts.Enterprise Software Innovators is a show where top tech executives share how they innovate at scale. Each episode covers unique insights and stories that will help you succeed as a technology leader. Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at https://www.enterprisesoftware.blog/ Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Luke Reiser, Josh Meer and Emily Shaw. 

On the sixth episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Ravi Malick, Global CIO at Box. Ravi’s career has taken him from investment banking and consulting to the energy industry, where he spent nearly 4 years as the SVP and CIO of Vistra Energy before landing at Box. Evan and Saam speak with Ravi about the most defining moments of his career, the operational differences of startups vs. Fortune 500 companies and how they can work together, the best ways larger companies can leverage startup-driven technology, and the roles of CIOs within executive teams. Quick hits from Ravi:On finding the balance of innovating while maintaining a solid foundation: “Your ability to change is determined by the business’s ability to absorb it and how much can you push the envelope a little bit without breaking things”On recognizing the correlation of company size and operational speed: “I went from being in a speed boat to a tanker”On prioritizing the importance of experimentation within organizations: "You have to constantly experiment. If every day you’re worrying about the current project, and the current issues, you're going to miss the opportunity...I always felt that if you use technology effectively, [the company could] jump four or five steps ahead."Recent book recommendation: Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt by Michael Lewis---Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts.Enterprise Software Innovators is a show where top tech executives share how they innovate at scale. Each episode covers unique insights and stories that will help you succeed as a technology leader. Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at https://www.enterprisesoftware.blog/ Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Luke Reiser, Josh Meer and Emily Shaw. 

On the fifth episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Anuj Dhanda, CIO of Albertsons Companies. As the second largest supermarket chain in the United States, Albertsons is responsible for helping feed much of the country. Anuj discusses the challenges Albertsons faced in the wake of the pandemic, the various next-generation technologies being used to drive the future of grocery, and the thought process behind when Albertsons partners with startups. Quick hits from Anuj:On Albertsons deploying machine learning: “Every aspect of how we run our business has an implication [that] machine learning could improve. [Beyond] demand forecasting and replenishment, [how about] when we think about how we staff our stores, the slot management for e-commerce…How do we fulfill those slots? How do we better predict the specific needs of the customer and to be able to match the offers to them? We think there is a big opportunity as we mature both the machine learning as well as a higher level of base automation in the system.”On being more customer centric and agile: “From an e-commerce perspective, pre-COVID grocery was lagging other industries. And that has certainly increased at a very fast clip…Our view is that customers will decide what works best for them. Some people like to buy their produce in the store and love the theater of looking at the produce…Some people say, ‘hey, if someone can deliver it, that's great for me.’ Some will do different combinations. Our intent through all this is to be able to meet the customer when she's ready and in a way that she wants to shop…And what we find is that even customers who shop online, many of them go to the store, too. If you give the optionality to the customer, we can personalize this experience in a way that works for her, that would be the winning strategy for the customer and us.”On working with startups: “If you talked to me five years ago, I would have said we generally tend to work with industrial strength companies because we have big [scaling needs. And I have fundamentally changed that [perspective]...because with the cloud, scalability for a small company is not an issue…That has democratized how we access [and partner with] startups.”Recent book recommendation: Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson---Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts.Enterprise Software Innovators is a show where top tech executives share how they innovate at scale. Each episode covers unique insights and stories that will help you succeed as a technology leader. Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at https://www.enterprisesoftware.blog/ Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Luke Reiser, Josh Meer and Emily Shaw. 

On the fourth episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Sreelakshmi Kolli, CDO of Align Technologies. Align Technologies’ most popular product, Invisalign is the product of 3D printing, a breakthrough technology that is completely upending manufacturing processes. In fact, Align Technologies is one of the biggest 3D printers in the world. In this episode, Sreelakshmi breaks down Align’s decentralized approach to data access and how it’s improved innovative capacity, the link between culture and technology evolution, and the factors that define Align’s successful partnerships with startups.Quick hits from Sree:On Align’s goals for data access within the organization: “Our goal is to make data so pervasive inside Align, so that it's not just for a data scientist or a small technology team to unlock the potential of it. It's been a cultural transformation as much as it's been a technology transformation.”On using AI to transform medical processes: “The selfie app that we use, we call it the smile view. That's an AI model that takes your selfie [in] real time and shows you what your smile could look like. That's a very individualized experience. We are using it in our treatment planning, you know, we understand what the doctor's treatment preferences are, how they would like to treat the patient. And so we are codifying that using AI to generate treatment plans that the doctors can then modify in real time.”On how Align benefits from startup philosophies: “For us, technology’s like the central nervous system of the company. And so, as a technology team, we stay on top of current technology trends and actively engage with the startup community…Experimentation is very much part of our culture, when we fail an experiment, we treat it more like learning experiences so that we can continuously iterate on the idea or, you know, we just decide to abandon it. The entrepreneurial culture is very much alive at Align.”Recent book recommendation: Ask Your Developer by Jeff Lawson---Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts.Enterprise Software Innovators is a show where top tech executives share how they innovate at scale. Each episode covers unique insights and stories that will help you succeed as a technology leader. Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at https://www.enterprisesoftware.blog/ Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Luke Reiser, Josh Meer and Emily Shaw. 

On the third episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Jay Dominick, CIO at Princeton University. Princeton University is a unique organization with 8000 students, over 7000 employees, its own power plant and own police force; in short, ample opportunities for deploying impactful technological innovations at scale. Evan and Saam speak with Jay about balancing risk and reward, the benefits Princeton attains from collaborating with startups, navigating COVID-19, and the best practices for balancing various stakeholders’ technology needs at universities.Quick hits from Jay:On managing risk during COVID-19: “What we were facing was an existential crisis... the risk mitigation switched into failure mitigation. We had to take risks to avoid failure…. People tend to be risk averse, but really they should focus on being failure adverse…We had to change a lot of rules…around work at home or around what students could be considered to do with respect to technology in their studies.”On the benefits of working with startups: “One of the reasons we work with startups is to give our organization the opportunity to see when people are just thinking differently…engagement with the innovator's mind keeps us healthy.”On how to nurture innovation: “...for CIOs, if you're encouraging innovation from within, you have to figure out how to align your own success and interests with the innovator's success and interests.”Recent book recommendation: Caste by Isabel Wickerson---Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Enterprise Software Innovators is a show where top tech executives share how they innovate at scale. Each episode covers unique insights and stories that will help you succeed as a technology leader. Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at https://www.enterprisesoftware.blog/ Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Luke Reiser, Josh Meer and Emily Shaw. 

On the second episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Shamim Mohammad, Executive Vice President, Chief Information & Technology Officer of CarMax. CarMax has been at the forefront of the used car business for decades and has consistently stayed at the frontier by being unafraid to adopt new technologies alongside their core business. Shamim walks through the differences of what he calls “start-up” vs “end-up” companies, and the multiple ways CarMax has deployed exciting new technological innovations to keep their business thriving. From AI models to an omni-channel customer experience, CarMax is a worthy example of a previously exclusively brick and mortar business that has successfully transformed themselves into a digital platform.Quick hits from Shamim:On CarMax disrupting itself in their transformation to being a digital business: “…fortunately for CarMax, we were not afraid to disrupt ourselves because we knew that if we didn't guess what's gonna happen, you know, maybe not immediately 3, 4, 5 years, 10 years down the road, we would be disrupted. So we wanted to disrupt ourselves before somebody else did.”On the omni-channel approach CarMax offers its customers: “If somebody is not as comfortable with all the digital experiences and they want to go talk to a human being in a store, they could do that. So what I found is in our omni-channel approach, most of the customers are taking advantage of the digital tools and capabilities we have built, but then also a lot of them are going to the store and finishing their transaction."On the importance of a startup ethos: “I've seen what a startup kind of mindset can do. And the energy and the passion a startup company has is invaluable. And when the company gets too big and gets away from that startup mindset is when trouble begins.”Recent book recommendation: Getting To Nimble by Peter High---Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Enterprise Software Innovators is a show where top tech executives share how they innovate at scale. Each episode covers unique insights and stories that will help you succeed as a technology leader. Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at https://www.enterprisesoftware.blog/ Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Luke Reiser, Josh Meer and Emily Shaw. 

On the first episode of Enterprise Software Innovators, hosts Evan Reiser (Abnormal Security) and Saam Motamedi (Greylock Partners) talk with Michael Keithley, CIO of United Talent Agency. UTA is one of the world’s top talent companies, working across music, sports, film, and other high impact areas of entertainment. Previously, Michael was CIO and CTO of Creative Arts Agency, another large talent organization, where he worked for 24 years. In this conversation, Michael shares stories on how CIOs in entertainment can best leverage data, the benefits of partnering with startups, his take on the most exciting next frontiers in technology, and moments in his career where disruptive technology implementations were met with pushback from the old guard.Quick hits from Michael:On how UTA benefits from exposure to startups: “...[We] learn from startups themselves on how they work and what their philosophy is…and infuse that in our culture.”On colleagues recognizing startup-inspired workflow methodologies: “And I remember vividly, we had these crisis things early on in the pandemic where every morning we'd get on the Zoom and talk about stuff. And I said, ‘Do you guys realize that we have been practicing agile the last two months?’ “On the old guard being resistant to new technology: “When I came to the realization that the Internet was going to be a thing, I ended up getting a short .com domain. And I bought it for $5,000 and the CFO was furious because ‘what possible use would there ever be for the Internet.’ There's just a lot of stories like that, where people aren't ready to get on board with the new technologies” Recent book recommendation: The Code Breaker by Walter Isaacson---Like what you hear? Leave us a review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Google, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Enterprise Software Innovators is a show where top tech executives share how they innovate at scale. Each episode covers unique insights and stories that will help you succeed as a technology leader. Find more great lessons from tech leaders and enterprise software experts at https://www.enterprisesoftware.blog/ Enterprise Software Innovators is produced by Luke Reiser, Josh Meer and Emily Shaw.