IT Visionaries

Jeff Ton is honest and direct when he says nobody grows up wanting to be a CIO. If you ask Jeff, he’ll say he thought he’d be a rockstar, touring the backroads of the country in a van, playing gigs on weeknights. That was always the plan...until an impulse purchase of a Commodore 64 changed Jeff’s path forever. Jeff is now a multi-time CIO, currently serving as an IT Strategy Advisor at InterVision and the Founder of Ton Enterprises and he joined IT Visionaries to take us through his journey. On this episode, Jeff provides insights into the role of the CIO and divulges some of the key questions current CIOs are trying to find answers to, including those surrounding diversity.  Key Takeaways Embed Yourself in the Business: In order for IT professionals to advance their careers, they need to begin taking on a larger role within the organization. That includes having a better understanding of how the business operates and how technology is deployed across all departments. Go Where the Talent is: In order to diversify your teams, you need to go where diverse candidates are. It’s important to familiarize yourself with alternate avenues to pursue candidates that are outside the traditional recruiting grounds, and it’s even more important to know how to connect with those candidates. Once you find those team members, the next step is to make sure they feel empowered in their workspace. A Man with a Plan: If you’re a new CIO, you need to have a 60- to 90-day plan, but understand that plan will change. During those first few months, you are going to do a lot of learning on the job. Have honest conversations with your team members and stakeholders and understand how they can help you succeed in your new role. --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.

Ryan Graciano remembers the early days of Credit Karma like they just happened. Born in the midst of a financial crisis, Credit Karma’s rise to significance didn’t seem certain, and Ryan remembers thinking to himself numerous times, “Are we going to make it?” Today, Credit Karma serves more than 100 million users, and provides consumers with tools that empower them to take the biggest financial steps in their lives. On this episode of IT Visionaries, Ryan discusses the early turbulence the company endured, how he leads through trying times, and how Credit Karma is helping in more ways than just by providing credit scores. Key Takeaways Confidence Breeds Success: Be confident in your product. If you aren’t confident and passionate about the product you are bringing to market, the trying times will be much more difficult. Ryan details how Credit Karma, born in the midst of the financial crisis, overcame their trials and tribulations For the Long Haul: As a CTO and company leader, you have to constantly be thinking about what comes next. When obstacles arise, you need to have already discussed with your leadership team about possible alternatives. If you are not actively thinking about how things will fail, your company will fail. Teamwork Makes the Dream work: The most important thing for any co-founder is having a solid support system. When Credit Karma started, Ryan was a one-man crew. Once the company began to expand, he focused on people that could magnify his skills while also expanding the product. Invest in good people and listen to your team and have faith in your decisions --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.

Derek Weeks has spent his entire career teaching, educating, and fostering relationships. From his first job with Atari teaching people how to use its consoles, to his role today as a Vice President and DevOps advocate at Sonatype, Derek works to educate others. Derek joined IT Visionaries for a conversation centered on the growth of the DevOps industry and how he is helping to grow that community through All Day DevOps, an online 24-hour conference featuring more than 100 speakers. Key Takeaways   A Growing Industry: Five years ago if 1,000 people attended a developer’s conference it was considered a success. Now, more than 40,000 developers routinely attend All Day DevOps conferences. More Widely-Adopted, But Not Flawless: The use of open-source code continues to rise in popularity due to its velocity and efficiency, but it’s not without vulnerabilities, downloads that included encrypted code, or malware  Seeking Clarity: Many companies still fail to understand exactly what DevOps is, where DevOps can be used, and the benefits of the DevOps industry. Therefore, a lot of education still needs to happen internally as well as externally.  --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.

More than likely you have uttered the phrase, “Yeah, I’ll just Dropbox that to you.” The turn of phrase has become so popular thanks to the capabilities Dropbox has offered to the masses. People around the world can share and store documents, pictures and information simply by dragging a file into a folder. But how does that file get stored, and how do those precious items live in a space that seems almost endless? Andrew Fong is the Vice President of Infrastructure at Dropbox, and on this episode of IT Visionaries, Andrew dives into the nitty-gritty of how he helps keep those mementos accessible anywhere. Plus he describes how a small task force formed in 2013 shaped the future of Dropbox forever and the importance of scale. Key Takeaways Keep Your Data Close and Your Servers Closer: By building its own data servers, Dropbox was able to eliminate its reliance on third-party servers like AWS. When you control your servers, you’re able to manage the amount of data you intake and, in return, how you use that data.  Core Strength: Think about the items that are core to the foundation of your business and then invest in those things. For Dropbox, one of those core functions is the need for its system to be reliable and durable. If you don’t understand what the core principles of your business are you can’t invest in the right things Time to Reload: Once a project is up and running, you need to make sure your team remains invested and energized. Don’t wait too long to switch things up. If team members are excited about other opportunities, give them those chances. --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.

Alistair Fulton has always considered himself a mechanic. After all, his job as the Vice President and General Manager of Semtech’s Wireless and Sensing Business is to utilize the tools provided to him in his toolbox and give customers the appropriate solution. The only difference is his toolkit helps millions of people across the world stay connected through a variety of different technologies. Fulton joins IT Visionaries to provide a referendum on the state of the IoT, and he discusses why the biggest challenges facing his community are themselves, and why LoRa (or Long-Range wireless solutions) and 5G are no longer seen as competitors, but allies. Key Takeaways Handy Dandy Toolkit: One of the most common mistakes made collectively by the IoT community is that they don’t fully appreciate that each tool — or form of technology — is another part of the toolkit  Tough Choice: One major issue surrounding IoT is the number of vendors that offer end-to-end solutions that don’t operate under a single ecosystem. According to Fulton, the IoT space is littered with failed use cases where companies can’t work together because the systems are not compatible. Same Team: There is a misconception that LoRa and 5G can’t work together, but in reality the two systems commonly work together to achieve different goals. --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.

Venture capital funding for clean energy technology companies has declined in recent years, but one new fund is looking to buck that trend. Dan Goldman is the Co-Founder & Managing Director of Clean Energy Ventures, and he is trying to be a catalyst, and change the narrative by providing those companies with the resources they need to make long-lasting positive impacts. Dan joined IT Visionaries to discuss the process Clean Energy Ventures goes through when selecting new companies. And he explains what differentiates Clean Energy Ventures from other VCs and looks into his crystal ball at the future of the clean energy industry. Key Takeaways Lack of Funding: There are not enough companies funding clean energy technologies. If you want to advance climate change solutions, successful and profitable companies need to begin investing in the space. Dan dives into the strategies his company is utilizing to fund these ventures A Proven Formula: There is less risk to investing in clean energy than people think. In the past it has been proven that clean energy technology companies that are well-supported perform better and actually produce highly-scalable technologies. Demystify the ROI: If an investor does not understand how he or she will see a return on investment, there is no chance that they will put money into a venture. To secure funding, especially in the clean energy space, it’s critical to explain clearly how those funds will be turned into goods, service, or impact that will lead to a return. --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.

Business incubators or accelerators have helped launch some of the greatest companies of our time and one is hoping to fund the next unicorn looking to save our world. Dawn Lippert is the CEO of Elemental Excelerator, a company investing big money in the hopes of a better tomorrow. Dawn joined IT Visionaries to discuss the work her company is doing in places like Hawaii, California and Asia.And she underscores the importance of investing in communities and why we cannot afford to stop funding a solution for climate change. Key Takeaways Move the needle: In order to push the needle forward with climate change, you have to work across three key areas — technology, policy and communities where you can succeed and grow  All in the Community: Focus on the communities you are investing in. In order to have a full understanding of what technologies are needed and how they can best be utilized and scaled, you have to build relationships with those communities Keep the Momentum Going: The climate change industry cannot afford to take a year off when it comes to funding. There is a strong need to continue to invest in these companies in order to prevent the stunting of technology growth --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.

Dan Blum is an internationally recognized expert in security and privacy, he is also the author of the book Rational Cybersecurity for Business. On this episode of IT Visionaries, Dan has an honest and thoughtful conversation on why the role of the Chief Information Security Officer is often buried within IT departments, the importance of buy-in among leadership and why zero-trust is often not the best answer in every use case. Key Takeaways The role of the Chief Information Security Officer is often buried within IT departments and therefore isn’t receiving the resources that they may need. Dan explains how the role can be elevated It’s common for zero-trust philosophies to be implemented, but they are often not the best path to take in every scenario There is no streamlined one-size-fits-all approach to risk management — you need to understand your technology, company and the risks associated with each and make the best decision possible --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.

For many, the idea of walking into a store and finding new clothes that actually fit is non-existent. The designs are either too bulky, or the lengths of the sleeves and pants are too long. Frustrated, many leave and do their shopping online instead. Except the experience isn’t much better there. Savitude co-founders Nick Clayton and Camilla Olson are on a mission to help turn the situation around. The idea behind the company is a radical one: to recreate a designer’s brain by using code. Nick and Camilla joined IT Visionaries to discuss what that means and how they are using A.I. and machine learning to find clothes for everybody. 3 Key Takeaways Too many clothes are made for body types that aren’t realistic because designers typically only design for one or two body types Thanks to a backlog of data and through the use of A.I., Savitude utilizes nine different body types, and predicts how clothes will fit for customers One-in-six online clothing purchasing ends up being returned due to fit, which means there is a huge opportunity to offer a better, more frictionless experience using technology --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.

For years, customers have been frustrated with the sales process due to the breakdown in communication that happens when multiple people are involved. But what if that process was streamlined? Imagine a world where a sales representative, regardless of experience with an account, could pick-up where the previous person left off? That’s the world Jim Benton and Chorus.ai are working to create. Jim joined IT Visionaries to discuss the problem, the solution and why technology-empowered reps are the future of the sales industry. 3 Key Takeaways Sales should not be technology-enabled, technology needs to enable the representative Conversational intelligence is closing the gaps in the sales process to prevent breakdowns in the conversation, while also enabling best practices Due to the pandemic, more coaching and teaching is happening than ever before --- IT Visionaries is brought to you by the Salesforce Customer 360 Platform - the #1 cloud platform for digital transformation of every experience. Build connected experiences, empower every employee, and deliver continuous innovation - with the customer at the center of everything you do. Learn more at salesforce.com/platform -- Brightspot is the leading content management platform built for modern teams. Your content lifecycle - from ideation to archival - moves faster, handling any volume, variety, or velocity with ease. Unlike legacy platforms that demand heavy dev work and struggle with scale, Brightspot is user-friendly, endlessly customizable, and enterprise-ready. Think dynamic, modern experiences, shipped in minutes—not months. Trusted by some of the world’s leading tech organizations, Brightspot reduces total cost of ownership, boosts productivity, and gives you the governance, security, and performance your teams need. Visit brightspot.com/ITVisionaries to learn more.---This episode was produced by the team at Mission.org and brought to you by Brightspot.