From Bottleneck to Accelerator: How NiSource’s CIO Repositioned IT as a Growth Engine
What does it take to transform IT from a bottleneck into a business accelerator?
In this episode, Waco Bankston, Chief Information Officer at NiSource, shares how he’s repositioning the IT organization to support growth, enable speed, and shift decades of technical and cultural inertia. Leading a 6.5-year enterprise transformation effort, Waco discusses the discipline required to modernize legacy systems while instilling a new execution culture.
Key insights from the episode include:
Building a modern tech foundation to support future acquisitions
Restructuring outsourced/insourced IT mix through platform consolidation
Shaping team behavior through leadership-by-experience
Establishing unified governance across AI, cybersecurity, and innovation
Leading with operational safety and customer-back design
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27:03
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27:03
How Unum’s CTO Reimagined the Enterprise with a Digital-First Architecture
What does it take to reimagine a 10,000-employee enterprise for a digital-first future?
In this episode, Unum CTO Gautam Roy breaks down how he transformed the company’s operating model, culture, and technology foundation by reshaping experiences from the customer backward.
Gautam shares how Unum evolved from applications to journeys to value streams; how AI, data, and automation have become levers for acceleration; and how innovation culture and continuous learning drive enterprise adaptability.
Highlights:
Unum’s shift to digital-first architecture and “moments that matter”
How AI, data, and automation remove friction across operations
Building predictive, proactive technology employee experience
Creating safe spaces and recognition models for innovation
Developing a future-focused, cross-functional learning culture
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24:54
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24:54
Mission-Driven Startups Win: Mike Hayes on Building Companies That Last
What if your company’s greatest advantage isn’t the product—but the purpose behind it?
Mike Hayes, Managing Director at Insight Partners and former COO of VMware, believes mission clarity is more than culture—it’s a strategic asset. Drawing on 20 years as a Navy SEAL and senior tech executive, Mike shares why knowing “who you want to be” is a superpower for founders and boards.
In this episode, Mike and Peter High discuss:
How purpose-led companies outperform in high-growth markets
Mike’s “Three Circles” framework for aligning talent to mission
What Insight Partners looks for in founder-VC alignment
How to say no (with clarity) when everything seems urgent
Why values-based leadership scales in unpredictable markets
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42:30
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42:30
Why Snowflake’s CIO Rebranded IT for the AI Era
What does it take to evolve IT into a forward-looking innovation engine?
Mike Blandina, CIO of Snowflake, shares how he’s reimagined IT as “Enterprise Technology” as a way to describe what ‘IT’ really does: lead a solutions-first mindset at Snowflake designed for the AI era. In this conversation, Mike reflects on his first eight months leading tech at one of the world’s most AI-forward data cloud companies.
Key highlights include:
The philosophy behind the Enterprise Technology rebrand
Building Raven and RevOps—AI agents replacing 250+ dashboards
The Customer Zero model for product influence
Governance and localization strategies for responsible AI
Redefining staff models to include digital agents
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30:35
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30:35
Chandra Dhandapani on Balancing Talent Strategy with Data, Flexibility, and ROI
What if your hiring strategy were fueled by the largest contingent workforce dataset in the world?
Magnit CEO Chandra Dhandapani joins Technovation to explore how data is reshaping how companies think about talent—from role design to sourcing strategy to real-time labor cost insights. Chandra also shares lessons from her journey from CIO to CEO and offers perspective on why automation—not AI—is the skill trend to watch.
Key topics covered include:
12% YoY surge in automation roles vs. 2% in AI
Data-driven frameworks for balancing contingent and permanent talent
How Magnit uses GenAI internally via its “Maggi” platform
Strategic applications of workforce analytics
Leadership shifts from digital to enterprise-wide responsibility
About Technovation with Peter High (CIO, CTO, CDO, CXO Interviews)
Twice-weekly conversations with top executives and thought leaders at the intersection of business, technology, and innovation. Each episode of Technovation explores the technology trends that are transforming business, and the leaders driving digital change inside their organizations. Produced by Metis Strategy and hosted by firm President Peter High, Technovation is the premier podcast for IT and technology professionals with the largest collection of interviews with elite CIOs, CTOs, and CDOs.
Listen to Technovation with Peter High (CIO, CTO, CDO, CXO Interviews), Shared Lunch and many other podcasts from around the world with the radio.net app
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