Cxotalk: Leadership, Innovation, Disruption

Digital transformation is part of the core strategy for many companies. Today, however, transformation involves not just organizational change but platforms, ecosystems, and technologies that enable organizations to use data in new ways. This episode explores the transition to new business models -- simplifying without gaining complexity -- using machine learning and cognitive computing as a foundation.

Companies like Coursera are changing education dramatically. From higher education to vocational and skills training, online courses offer high quality instruction at lower cost than ever before. On this episode, we talk with an online education pioneer to learn about the impact of technology on modern education.Rick Levin is the Chief Executive Officer of Coursera. In 2013, he completed a twenty-year term as President of Yale University, during which time he played an integral role in growing the University’s programs, resources and reputation internationally.

With the Chief Information Officer role in transition, business expectations of the CIO have also changed. In this episode, we talk with a seasoned CIO, Christian Anschuetz, who left that position to become Chief Digital Officer of Underwriters Laboratories. The discussion explores the Chief Digital Officer role and offers advice to both CIOs and their organizations.

Artificial Intelligence is surrounded by marketing hype, making it difficult to assess what's real and useful. In this episode, we talk with a venture capital investor and two software entrepreneurs to learn what's involved with creating products that rely on artificial intelligence and machine learning. Join us as we cut through the hype of AI.

Marketing’s future is digital, personal, and social. Ragy Thomas founded Sprinklr, a startup unicorn and social media management system that spans from Facebook to Pinterest, and from marketing to customer care. Tune in for his insights on how to wrangle social into an effective marketing channel without creeping out your customers.

Software systems that learn are on the cutting edge of practical A.I. But what’s the market for these mysterious technologies, and how will they transform the business economy? James Cham, a partner in the investment firm Bloomberg Beta, explains the machine learning market and how these technologies will change our world.

Data and automation have the power to transform business and society. The impact of data on our lives will be profound as industry and the government make greater use of techniques such as artificial intelligence and machine learning. Explore this important topic with two world experts.

Artificial intelligence is primed to pervade everyday life, from autonomous vehicles to intelligent ads that anticipate your desires. How will these shifts vary globally, and what do they mean for the future of work, life, and commerce? Two big thinkers share their views: Darrell West, editor in chief of TechTank at the Brookings Institution, and Stephanie Wander, who designs prizes for XPRIZE. Longtime CXOTALK guest, David Bray, joins the conversation.

Salesforce is one of the most important SaaS leaders in the digital economy. What makes this company significant and can it sustain that leadership position? We talk with three top industry analysts to get the inside story on Salesforce.com.In addition to being the author of the best-selling CRM at the Speed of Light: Essential Customer Strategies for the 21st Century, Paul Greenberg is President of The 56 Group, LLC, an enterprise applications consulting services firm, focused on CRM strategic services and a founding partner of the CRM training company, BPT Partners, LLC, a training venture composed of a number of CRM luminaries. Liz Herbert is Vice President and Principal Analyst at Forrester Research. Research Director at the 451 Group, Sheryl Kingstone focuses on improving the customer experience across all interaction channels for customer acquisition and loyalty.

Will A.I. make our government smarter and more responsive – or is that the last step towards the end of privacy? As chief scientist of U.S. Government Accountability Office, Tim Persons conceives its vision for advanced data analytics. Learn about the promise and challenges around government A.I. and what those portend for private sector companies.

The future of retail is omni-channel: identifying and serving the customer from mobile to Web to the sales floor. Eli Rosner, NCR’s SVP and CTO, helped build a $3.7 billion business supplying technology, software, and services to this fast-changing industry. Learn what it takes to continually reinvent a 130-old-company in the face of relentless technology change.Eli Rosner is Senior Vice President & Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Software Solutions for NCR Corporation. In this role, he is accountable for the company's strategy, formulation, development and cross-functional delivery of NCR's software portfolio.

Access to the right information at the right moment can make – or destroy – the effectiveness of a financial services workforce. As CIO for Information at reinsurance giant Swiss Re, Rainer Baumann turns buzzwords like smart analytics and big data into actionable tools for workers. On this episode, he gives us a peek into the future of the digital workplace and what it will take to get there.Rainer Baumann was appointed head of Swiss Re's newly created Shared Information Service (SIS) unit in 2014. The mission of SIS is to drive digital and information innovation and to enable Swiss Re to perform better through a more efficient and effective use of information.

Artificial intelligence is disrupting healthcare, from the largest institutions to the most intimate doctor-patient interactions. What’s driving digital medicine, and what challenges might get in the way? Hear insights from our panel including Shari Langmak, editorial director of the physician network Medscape in Germany, Singularity University’s faculty chair Daniel Kraft, a scientist and inventor and David Bray, Chief Information Officer of the Federal Communications Commission.

Wondering how to make your company more digital -- and why it's worth it? Learn the inside story from Accenture Digital chief Mike Sutcliff. His 36,000 employees -- and 1,300 data scientists -- are on the front lines of digital transformation in companies worldwide. Gain practical insights from an expert's perspective on disruption, business models, and competing in a digital world.Mike Sutcliff is group chief executive of Accenture Digital, which integrates digital assets, software and services across digital marketing, analytics and mobility to help clients drive growth and create new sources of value.

Although insurance has long been protected from digital disruption, the industry faces serious challenges in its current form. This episode will explore the digital transformation of insurance with a leading industry CIO.Tim Baum is the Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Harford Mutual Insurance. Baum leads the IT department as it continues to convert the company’s legacy systems to the Guidewire Insurance Suite. Baum’s extensive technology project management experience allows him to seamlessly take the helm of the Project Team and assist them in the successful implementation in 2017.

Innovation and digital transformation in higher education means using technology to address core strategic goals of the institution. On this episode, we talk with the CIO of Oral Roberts University about their multi-million program to use virtual, augmented, and mixed reality to create a global educational community and foster the educational agenda.Michael L. Mathews has over 24-years of experience as a senior-level IT executive bringing creative solutions that value the end-users of technology and business process management. These solutions have benefited the end-users of higher education, manufacturing, and high technology company products.

Marketing technology is undergoing dramatic transformation as companies seek greater personalization to engage buyers across the customer lifecycle. This episode examines how AI is changing marketing. Our guest are Sameer Patel, CEO, and Andrew Eichenbaum, Lead Data Scientist, at Kahuna software. Sameer joined Kahuna in August, 2016 as CEO and board member. Dr. Andrew Eichenbaum is a leading Data Scientist specializing in artificial intelligence and machine learning. Andrew has been analyzing large scale data sets for over 15 years and leading data-centric projects and teams for more than 8 years.

Digital transformation involves all parts of a company, from sales and marketing to operations, supply chain, and talent. On this episode, a seasoned leader and author shares practical advice for undertaking a program of digital transformation. Our guest is Anurag Harsh, Senior Vice President and Founding Executive at Ziff Davis.Anurag Harsh is an entrepreneur, a company executive, a digital and management guru, a blogger, published author of several books, business columnist for leading US publications, an investor, and a classical musician who has performed two sold out solo concerts at New York’s Carnegie Hall.

The financial services industry, including insurance, is undergoing rapid change in response to new technology, FinTech startups, and shifting customer expectations. On this episode, we talk with the CIO and Chief Digital Officer at a large insurance company to understand digital transformation in this important industry.Dr. Alexander Bockelmann is the CEO of the UNIQA IT Service GmbH and responsible for the IT at the UNIQA Insurance Group AG Together with his team, Alexander is building a new international IT shared service provider for the UNIQA Group, rolling out innovative new IT services across 19 countries.

The relationship between digital transformation and investment in technology is critical yet frequently misunderstood. On the episode, we speak with a world-leading expert on this subject.Bill Briggs is the Chief Technology Officer for Deloitte Consulting, former global lead of Deloitte Digital, and a Director in the US technology practice. Bill is a strategist with deep implementation experience – helping clients anticipate the impact that new and emerging technologies may have on their business in the future, and getting there from the realities of today.