leadership

Watch Your Words: Tim Brown’s Advice for CISOs

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Tim Brown, former CISO of SolarWinds, shared insights at RSAC 2026 about the 2020 SolarWinds supply chain attack and his personal experience as the first CISO indicted in a civil lawsuit by the SEC for alleged fraud related to cybersecurity disclosures. Brown highlighted how excessive communication and misunderstood internal language during the ensuing SEC investigation led to legal challenges, emphasizing the critical need for clear communication policies and cautious internal messaging to prevent misinterpretation and legal risks in cybersecurity incident management.

https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/feature/Watch-your-words-Tim-Browns-advice-for-CISOs

Transforming Diverse Experiences Into a Storied CIO Career

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Denise Russell Fleming, CIO and EVP of technology and global services at BD, shares insights from her diverse career spanning business, marketing, customer support, and IT that uniquely positioned her to lead large-scale transformations. Highlighting the importance of trust, collaboration, and a growth mindset, Fleming discusses her journey to the CIO role, experiences with complex initiatives, and advice for CIOs aspiring to board service, emphasizing that effective leadership in technology is deeply rooted in understanding both people and business.

https://www.cio.com/article/4148293/transforming-diverse-experiences-into-a-storied-cio-career.html

From Cyber Risk to Business Risk: How CISOs Should Engage the Board in 2026

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IDC's 2026 insights highlight that cyber risk has evolved into a critical business concern at the board level, requiring CISOs to translate technical cyber threats into measurable business impacts and align security strategies with regulatory and operational priorities. Amid rising regulatory pressures like NIS2 and the EU AI Act, CISOs are advised to adopt financial risk metrics, implement robust risk management frameworks, and engage regularly with boards through clear, business-focused communication to enhance organizational resilience and informed decision-making.

https://www.idc.com/resource-center/blog/from-cyber-risk-to-business-risk-how-cisos-should-engage-the-board-in-2026/

The Inside Track on How Boards Evaluate Their CIOs

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Corporate boards increasingly expect CIOs to translate complex technology initiatives into clear strategic opportunities by demonstrating strong business acumen, especially around investment, growth, and risk. Effective CIOs communicate technology’s impact on business outcomes concisely and align their presentations to board members’ perspectives, balancing operational improvements with innovation to support both running and transforming the business.

https://www.cio.com/article/4149185/the-inside-track-on-how-boards-evaluate-their-cios.html

Why AI Scaling Is so Hard – and What CIOs Say Works

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The article explains that many organizations struggle to scale AI beyond pilot projects due to high costs, poor data quality, unclear business value, and difficulty integrating it into everyday workflows. CIOs say successful scaling starts with solving real operational problems, involving end users early, improving data foundations, and measuring outcomes instead of experimenting without goals. The article concludes that AI delivers results only when treated as a business transformation effort with governance, user adoption, and clear return on investment, rather than as a standalone technology project.

https://www.informationweek.com/machine-learning-ai/why-ai-scaling-is-so-hard-and-what-cios-say-works

Where Your Data Team Sits Matters More Than the Code They Write

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Naveen Mylarappa argues that the organizational placement of a data team significantly impacts the return on investment (ROI) of data engineering, beyond just the technical work they perform. The article highlights how data teams aligned under different departments—finance, marketing, engineering, or as standalone units—face distinct incentives and priorities, shaping how their value is perceived and how effectively they drive business outcomes. Ultimately, the key to demonstrating data's impact lies in aligning data efforts with the business goals and incentives of the department sponsoring the work.

https://www.cio.com/article/4148162/where-your-data-team-sits-matters-more-than-the-code-they-write.html

10 Things Keeping IT Leaders up at Night

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The article outlines the top ten concerns keeping IT leaders, especially CIOs, awake at night in 2026, highlighting cybersecurity threats, responsible AI deployment, and governance challenges as foremost. It emphasizes the pressure on CIOs to align technology initiatives with business outcomes, continuously drive impactful transformation, and ensure their teams rapidly upskill amid rapid tech evolution, all while maintaining flawless IT operations.

https://www.cio.com/article/4148311/10-things-keeping-it-leaders-up-at-night-2.html

CIO 100 Leadership Live Atlanta: AI Spending Enters a Reckoning Phase

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At the CIO 100 Leadership Live conference in Atlanta, technology leaders discussed a shift in enterprise AI from rapid growth to a phase emphasizing governance, data accountability, and business justification. Key themes included the need for evolved leadership skills beyond technical expertise, challenges in moving AI initiatives beyond proof of concept, the critical role of knowledge management and data governance, and the importance of integrating AI as a strategic, multidisciplinary leadership priority.

https://www.cio.com/article/4148267/cio-100-leadership-live-atlanta-ai-spending-enters-a-reckoning-phase.html

What It Takes to Level up Your Org’s AI Maturity

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In an interview with AI transformation practitioners Afshean Talasaz and Zar Toolan, key insights are shared on how organizations can advance their AI maturity from initial adoption to driving significant business impact. They emphasize the importance of a combined innovator-operator leadership mindset, detailed preparation, and aligning AI investments with long-term business strategies, supported by strong C-suite and CEO commitment. This approach helps companies move beyond treating AI as an operational tool to embedding it as a strategic asset that delivers measurable value and competitive advantage.

https://www.cio.com/article/4146645/what-it-takes-to-level-up-your-orgs-ai-maturity.html

AI Without Sovereignty Is Just Outsourced Intelligence

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In his opinion piece, Floyd DCosta argues that enterprises adopting AI often gain capability but lack sovereignty—control over how AI models and data are used—creating long-term risks and dependencies on third-party vendors. He emphasizes AI sovereignty as essential, encompassing governance, transparency, data and model control, operational autonomy, and strategic independence, warning that without it, organizations may inadvertently cede their competitive intelligence and face regulatory and operational challenges.

https://www.cio.com/article/4147102/ai-without-sovereignty-is-just-outsourced-intelligence.html

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