Execs in Tech

Episode 6 - Robert Irby -- Discusses the successes he has had leading teams through projects with the Agile methodology.   Robert is an Experienced leader with a track record of growing successful engineering teams and delivering high quality products. Effective communication, careful listening, transparency, and a desire to push beyond the edge of perceived possibilities are the cornerstones of my management style. As a passionate engineer and leader, I am continuously improving my personal, professional, and technical skills. My career has provided experience in several different business domains and I have repeatedly shown that I excel at interfacing with internal as well as external customers, stakeholders, and partners.

Episode 5 - Ethan is a talented technologist that brings insights in how to accelerate your career in the digital age by taking a people first approach to technology solutions. He takes into account navigating the political waters of a corporate organization while exploring modern concepts like crowd sourcing and "citizen developers" Ethan learned early in his career to seize the day after a near fatal car accident. He has never stoped sharpening his skills and encourages us to never stop learning, be a student of the industry you are in, and take advantage of the vast resources available in modern education.  Ethan Pack is the Director of Enterprise Architecture and Solutions Delivery at TDECU and has over two decades of experience as an information technology leader.  In March 1998, while approaching the finish line of his high school experience, he began his career as a software developer at a small corporate performance management start-up in the Nashville, TN area.  In July 2003, a near-fatal car wreck put his career on pause as he was faced with the prospect of potentially not walking again.  Ethan embarked on a nearly two-year long recovery from wheelchair, to walker, to cane, to walking unaided again.  Toward the end of this healing process, Ethan and his family moved to the Houston area. Ethan is now a technology executive who leads cross-functional teams and enterprise-wide change initiatives.  As the Director of Enterprise Architecture and Solutions Delivery at TDECU, the largest credit union in the greater Houston metropolitan area, Ethan heads enterprise architecture, project management, and software development.  The majority of Ethan’s career has been in the financial services industry working with firms such as Bisys and Stewart Title before joining TDECU in 2017.  Ethan previously served on the Residential Governance Committee for the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO), the volunteer standards development body for the mortgage industry. He has written for various print and online publications and is well regarded as a leading voice in enterprise architecture, digitalization, and the importance of culture, people, and fearlessness for success in digital transformation.  His blog, Enterprise Architecture in the Digital Age, launched in February 2018 on CIO.com.  A frequent speaker at Houston-area technology events, Ethan believes in transformational servant leadership, bringing passion and an inspirational vision of the future while seeking to help, serve, and develop others to bring out the best in individuals, teams, and organizations.  He currently lives in the northwest Houston area with his wife and son.

We discuss strategies to move up in your organization. We start with the first job in IT. It's important to get good at your job while working on the skills needed to take on the next role. Jeff addresses the following questions and more: What are those skills and what are some resources you can use to work on them? How do you seek out mentors? What is the appropriate way to let it be known you are interested in taking on more responsibility?  Jeff Roberts has more than 20 years of experience leading Information Technology for top financial services and real estate firms.  Since 2015 he has served as the first-ever Chief Information Officer of HFF (NYSE: HF), a commercial real estate capital intermediary, where he is leading a digital transformation and technology platform upgrade.  Prior to joining HFF, he served as CIO for four other companies: Carriage Services (NYSE: CSV), Situs, a private global commercial real estate firm, Saxon Mortgage, a Morgan Stanley company, and Litton Loan Servicing, a division of Goldman Sachs.     In these roles, Mr. Roberts has gained significant experience integrating strategic custom software and analytics with leading 3rd party platforms; he focuses on enabling IT as a competitive advantage, going beyond margin efficiencies to make IT a driver of revenue.  Jeff is a graduate of the University of Tulsa, and did post-graduate business and leadership studies at the University of Houston and Rice University.  

Season1, Episode 03 - Brian is joined by George Crawford and we discuss why it is important to learn the language of the business and the industry that you serve in as an IT leader. Only then can you effectively communicate IT projects, drive IT budgets, and impact the business with meaningful results.  Talking technology, bits, bytes, and databases will only result in what George refers to as the "three second glaze" when you loose your audience. Once you begin to talk about overcoming business challenges with solutions (not about technology) then you get the invite to the discussion, you establish a seat at the strategic table for IT.   

Season 1, Episode 2 - Brian and Sada discuss the need to constantly reinvent yourself when working in technology to stay relevant in the digital era. This includes how to understand the business problems and come up with data solutions to achieve business outcomes.    About Sada: Sada Krishnan is a passionate IT Executive, a tech entrepreneur and a member of John Maxwell team. As an Assistant Vice President of IT, he is responsible for strategy, governance and for successful delivery of Robotic Process Automation and Artificial Intelligence programs. When he isn’t working, you’ll find Sada playing with his 2 boys, reading books and volunteering.  

Your growth as an IT leader starts with focusing on yourself. Personal Development is a critical component to being able to lead others. We are joined by guest Russ Stalters, CEO of Clarified Marketing, a StoryBrand Certified Guide, and member of the John C Maxwell Team. Russ is a former IT Executive at BP, and retired Navy CIO. Topics we cover: The importance of reflecting back on each project to identify what you enjoyed about the experience. The impact of starting a mastermind group with your team or with peers. The use of outside resources and tools such as the John C Maxwell Team and Strengthfinders to sharpen your leadership skills.  You can find Russ: https://clarifiedmarketing.com Books Discussed on the show: The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You  by John C. Maxwell Good Leaders Ask Great Questions: Your Foundation for Successful Leadership by John C. Maxwell The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth: Live Them and Reach Your Potential by John C. Maxwell  Boundaries For Leaders by Dr. Henry Cloud  Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don't by Simon Sinek Lead with a Story: A Guide to Crafting Business Narratives That Captivate, Convince, and Inspire by Paul Smith Steal the Show: From Speeches to Job Interviews to Deal-Closing Pitches, How to Guarantee a Standing Ovation for All the Performances in Your Life by Michael Port Podcasts: The John Maxwell Leadership Podcast Building a StoryBrand with Donald Miller Lead with a Story Podcast | Lessons in leadership, one story at a time with Paul Smith

Season 1, Episode 1: Show Announcement- We interview the brightest leaders in IT including CIOs, CTOs, CISO, and other thought leadership to have discussions related to career development. We aim to provide guidance and inspiration for IT professionals to reach their fullest potential and to land their dream jobs. The Execs in Tech show is hosted by Brian Gendron, business consultant and founder of the Execs in Tech organization dedicated to developing the careers of the next generation of IT leadership.