Read in 90 seconds:
- Notable C-Suite Moves
- What's new in tech
- Tech Trends For Leaders
- From the Podcast
Notable C-Suite Moves (August)
- Scott Cenci appointed as Chief Information and Data Officer (CIDO) at Acadia Pharmaceuticals Most recently, he served as SVP of Global Information Technology and Digital at Genmab, where he transformed the IT function into a full-scale digital organization, supporting the company’s growth from 500 to 2,700 employees and from $750 million to over $3 billion in revenue.
- Jodie Brinkerhoff appointed as Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) at SOTEREON.AI Most recently, she served as VP of Innovation at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), where she helped build one of the industry’s most lauded innovation teams. Under her leadership, the award-winning team launched over 100 programs ranging from AI-enabled operations to next-generation passenger experiences and sustainability programs.
- Jim Desmond (CISSP, CISM, CFE) was appointed as Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at HireRight. Most recently, he served as Chief Security Officer at Asurion, where he played a pivotal role in managing multiple aspects of security and risk for a large global organization. He has also held executive security leadership roles at Vantiv (now WorldPay), Elevate, and Intuit.
- Ryan Davis appointed as Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at New Charter Technologies. Most recently, he served as a business unit CISO at IBM, overseeing security across a suite of more than a dozen products following IBM's acquisition of DNS software company NS1.
- Jason Day appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at StarRez, Inc. He brings more than 20 years of industry expertise, having held leadership roles at Zego, Accruent, and Nokia, where he was lauded for his ability to grow global business operations, customer-centric leadership, and a penchant for creating high-performing teams.
Leadership Insights
High-Impact Habits for New C-Suite Leaders (Gartner)
The pressure to perform is higher than ever for new C-suite leaders. Based on Gartner research, newly minted executives can fast-track their influence and credibility by building these 5 habits:
- Think, act, and communicate like a CFO
Become fluent in finance. Learn to speak the board’s language: ROI, cost savings, and revenue growth. Telling a compelling numbers story through balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow builds fast credibility with the board and sets you apart from peers.
- Augment yourself with GenAI
Brainstorm, pilot, and review AI-driven tasks together to build comfort and collaboration. Pilot projects such as forecasting financials, setting KPIs, and conducting a market analysis. Then meet monthly or biweekly to maintain momentum. This cross-functional collaboration boosts both your relationships and productivity.
- Cultivate social savviness
Adjust your language style based on your peers and use hedged phrasing (e.g., “Perhaps we should…”) for analytical leaders, and assertive “We will…” for action‑oriented ones.
- Foster a culture of healthy competition
Demonstrate your openness to candid, constructive feedback by initiating 10-minute “truth sessions.” Choose a few colleagues and seek their impressions of you so far. Listen actively to the answers, then review and analyze the feedback to identify any blind spots and come up with a strategy for improvement.
- Master your time, mindfully
Like athletes, executives need a balanced schedule that includes time for rest and recovery. Yet many executives express discomfort with the idea of downtime. Block out intentional downtime, review recurring meetings for purpose, and eliminate those that no longer deliver.
Leadership takeaway:
Executive presence isn’t just about status; it’s a strategic blend of communication style, cross-functional engagement, credibility-building, and boundary-setting right from day one.
Check out our additional readings if you wish to explore this topic further:
- How to target quick wins in a new executive role
- Build executive presence in a new C-suite role with these 5 habits
What’s New in Tech
What C-Suite leaders should know about the latest version of ChatGPT.
GPT-5 is refined, but not revolutionary:
Tech leaders position GPT‑5 as an evolutionary leap rather than a transformative one. It may be OpenAI’s most capable model yet, but it doesn’t fundamentally change the trajectory of enterprise AI. Here are some practical things to know as a user:
- It’s not AGI
Despite its strengths, GPT-5 doesn’t deliver artificial general intelligence. It doesn’t autonomously learn, lacks architectural vision, and still requires human oversight for mission-critical decisions. It’s a system of cooperating models; not a single, self-improving entity.
- Not seamlessly compatible with GPT-4 APIs
GPT‑5 isn’t fully compatible with GPT‑4 APIs. Code paths may need revision, and prompt templates must be audited to avoid integration friction.
- Governance still matters
GPT-5 enhances safety with features such as “safe completions” and reduced hallucination rates, but it’s not immune to adversarial misuse or regulatory scrutiny. Organizations must maintain robust oversight, especially when GPT-5 interacts with internal systems or sensitive data.
Next step for enterprise users on GPT-5:
Experiment with model sizing, reasoning parameters, and caching strategies to optimize cost-performance. For enterprise leaders, this translates to effectively developing a strategy that leverages reasoning parameters while directly addressing model APIs.
Check out our additional reading if you wish to explore this topic further:
From The Podcast
Our co-founder Chirag Khanijau sat down with Suchi Agrawal, Chief Data Officer at Citibank, for a raw, no-BS conversation about how AI is rewriting the rules of leadership in banking. From why every CXO now needs to be AI-fluent, to how governance is turning into a CEO-level priority, Suchi shares the kind of insights you normally only hear behind closed doors.
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