888: The rapid pace of technological change, particularly with the advent of AI tools, has drastically decreased the average half-life of skills to less than five years, necessitating a focus on continuous learning at every level. In this episode of Technovation, we feature a panel from our May 2024 Metis Strategy Digital Symposium, where Liberty Mutual Global CIO Monica Caldas and WestRock CIDO Amir Kazmi speak with Metis Strategy Partner and East Coast Lead Alex Kraus about future-oriented storytelling, talent upskilling, and innovation processes. Discover how Liberty Mutual leverages its ecosystem of partners to develop the ‘Skills to Fuel our Future’ strategy, maturing employee skills in data, software, and AI, and how Amir at WestRock emphasizes purpose-driven innovation and a growth mindset. Both executives also share their thoughts on executive storytelling, cultural nuances in approaching different personas, and the importance of metrics for evaluating performance and progress.
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856: With a wide range of levers at their disposal, technology and operational executives are strategically positioned to be masters of speed within their respective organizations. In this episode, we feature a panel from our February 2024 Metis Strategy Digital Symposium where Jen Felch, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Information Officer of Dell, and Mojgan Lefebvre, Chief Technology and Operations Officer of Travelers speak with Peter High about how they drive speed and agility at their companies. Both executives discuss cultivating a culture of speed and innovation on their team, leading the change management associated with the mindset shift toward agility, and the methods they use to accelerate and automate processes within the organization. Jen and Mojgan also dive deeper into the types of technology they are using today and the emerging technologies like advancements in artificial intelligence that are on their radar for the future.
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855: As digital capabilities become more important to competitive positioning, companies have begun to rethink the composition of their digital and IT workforces. In a panel from our February 2024 Metis Strategy Digital Symposium, Brink’s Global CIO Neelu Sethi and Zurich North America COO Barry Perkins join Metis Strategy Partner and Central Office Lead Michael Bertha in a conversation about optimizing workforce composition for digital maturity. Tune in to the discussion to hear these executives speak about shifting workforce compositions within their organizations, focusing on storytelling when driving the mindset shift, and the cultural implications of the new composition.
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801: Srini talks about the transformation he is leading within the company and the art of change management behind the transformation. He discusses his unique title and why it made sense to blend strategy with the CIO’s responsibilities and sheds light on the strategic planning that takes place within the large-scale insurance organization. Srini delves into the innovative use of digital and data in assessing property risks coming from climate as well as other areas and expands on that use of data with a background on the company’s experimentation with generative AI. Additionally, Srini elaborates on the importance of developing his team’s skill set to prepare for the future, being a force for change management, and using the lessons from his experience in human resources to drive this talent strategy. Finally, he reflects on the secrets to his success and looks ahead at trends in InsureTech, AI, and more.
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784: Greg speaks about being a customer-focused organization and leveraging technology to drive a proactive, predictive, and personalized customer experience. He emphasizes the value of a positive attitude, positive habits, and continuous improvement in achieving success in customer service and why he looks for humility, emotional intelligence, accountability, and learning agility when recruiting talent for his team. Finally, Greg talks about the trends in technology that are on his radar, how those trends aim to impact the customer experience, and the keys to success that have helped him throughout his career.
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782: Mojgan covers the intersection of technology and operations within her purview and the alignment she drives between her team and the broader business. She emphasizes the importance of understanding the business and customer needs in order to drive technology strategy and highlights the company’s focus on creating great experiences for customers, modernizing technology infrastructure, leveraging data and analytics, and protecting the organization from cyber threats. Mojgan shares examples of how machine learning and AI are being used to enhance employee and customer experiences, the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion in driving innovation and success within the organization, and creating a culture of digital fluency through employee training programs. Finally, Mojgan looks ahead at trends in technology that are on her radar and reflects on the keys to her career success.
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776: Monica joins Peter for a conversation focused on the digital transformation journey of this century-old firm and developing it into a tech-forward insurance company. Monica describes how her team is driving the modernization program focused on creating a sound data strategy and improving data literacy across the organization. She dives into the process of digitization, collaboration with internal and external constituent groups, and the optimization of the individual experience. Monica provides insights into maintaining technological literacy through training programs and balancing IT resource allocation for operational efficiency and differentiation. Additionally, she covers topics such as cloud migration, the development of an architecture community, and the exploration of generative artificial intelligence and its diverse use cases. Lastly, Monica explores the emerging technology trends in quantum computing and reflects on the keys to her career success.
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710: Neal Sample, former CIO of Northwestern Mutual, discusses his seasoned career as a technology executive across a variety of companies and how the role has evolved over the years. He explains both the enticing and challenging aspects of the CIO role and how it can translate into a broader set of responsibilities at a company. Neal also talks about his board-level experience and why companies, regardless of industry, should look to have a technologist on the board of directors. He looks ahead at his future career prospects, reflects on his pursuit of his Ph.D., provides advice for aspiring CIOs, and speaks to the trends in artificial intelligence and automation that he believes will become prominent in the years to come.
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678: Anil discusses the remarkable work he has done over his tenure and the ascent of technology at the company. Anil covers the work he and his team are doing to humanize the solutions Elevance Health provides and make technology more empathetic as the pandemic has accelerated people’s willingness to engage with technology. He also talks about the way Elevance Health is leveraging artificial intelligence and how it is helping to bring about experience personalization across a variety of different constituents. Finally, Anil touches on how he structures and facilitates collaboration across the large team he leads, what trends in technology are on his radar for Elevance Health’s future, and what he sees were the keys to his career success.
This episode was recorded before Anthem, Inc. rebranded to Elevance Health on June 28, 2022.
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670: In this interview, Willard discusses the topic of continuous modernization and innovation through co-creation. Will begins with an overview of The Hanover Insurance Group’s business model and the two sides of his purview. He shares his career journey through various roles in IT, operations, and other business lines; how they culminated in his current role in both IT and innovation; and how they have positioned him to better seize opportunities in innovation. Will also covers how his team is set up, its intersections across the rest of the business, and the role of IT in the agent, customer, and employee journeys. Finally, Will touches on the role of data and analytics at the company, his perspective on rising InsurTech players, future trends, and the keys to his career success.
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