Finalists

Meet the Finalists and Winners of the 2024 National ORBIE Awards!

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Congratulations to our 2024 National ORBIE Winners!

Archana "Archie" Deskus

Super Global
Houston
PayPal Inc

Donagh Herlihy

Global
New York
Subway

Umar Farooq

Large Enterprise
Houston
NexTier

Tatjana Lalkovic

Enterprise
Toronto
Definity

Brian Kirkland

Large Corporate
Arizona
Choice Hotels International

Sriram Thiagarajan

Corporate
Bay Area
Ancestry.com

Judith Apshago

Nonprofit/Public Sector
Capital
Amtrak

Bradd Busick

Healthcare
Seattle
Multicare Health System

Super Global Finalists

Marc Berson

Carolina
Gilead Sciences

Anil Bhatt

Ohio
Elevance Health

Archana "Archie" Deskus

Houston
PayPal Inc

William Orange

Tennessee
Nissan Americas

Gabriele Ricci

Boston
Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited

Global Finalists

Teddy Bekele

Minnesota
Land O' Lakes

Dani Brown

Michigan
Whirlpool Corporation

Donagh Herlihy

New York
Subway

Simon Nazarian

SoCal
Optum

Taren Rodabaugh

Tennessee
Bridgestone Americas

Chad Steighner

Wisconsin
Clarios

Large Enterprise Finalists

Carrie Busbee

Florida
Core & Main

Umar Farooq

Houston
NexTier

Greg Gates

Carolina
LPL Financial

Rex Lee

Toronto
Canadian Tire Corporation

Michael Ruttledge

Boston
Citizens Financial Group

Brian Tilzer

Minnesota
Best Buy

Enterprise Finalists

Todd Finders

St. Louis
Clayco

Shannon Gath

Boston
Teradyne, Inc.

Srini Koushik

Ohio
Rackspace

Rohit Lal

Georgia
Saia, Inc.

Tatjana Lalkovic

Toronto
Definity

Sharon Mandell

Bay Area
Juniper Networks

Large Corporate Finalists

Jim Chilton

Boston
Cengage Group

Steve Hitchings

Tennessee
Kenco Logistics

Brian Kirkland

Arizona
Choice Hotels International

Brett Lansing

Dallas
Accentcare

Matt Mehlbrech

Colorado
CoorsTek, Inc.

Nik Umrani

Philadelphia
NSM Insurance

Corporate Finalists

Lisa Cochran

Florida
VyStar Credit Union

Andrea Markstrom

New York
Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP

Arvind Rao

Central Texas
Texas Capital Bank

Madhu Reddy

Chicago
Republic Bank of Chicago

Art Silva

Kansas City
Helzberg Diamond Shops

Sriram Thiagarajan

Bay Area
Ancestry.com

Nonprofit/Public Sector Finalists

Judith Apshago

Capital
Amtrak

Lookman Fazal

New York
NJ Transit

Steven Ferguson

Georgia
Technical College System of Georgia

Gary Flowers

Florida
Year Up

Helen Norris

SoCal
Chapman University

Charles Thompson

Houston
Port of Houston Authority

Healthcare Finalists

Bradd Busick

Seattle
Multicare Health System

Patrick Hale

South Florida
VITAS Healthcare

Jason Joseph

Michigan
Corewell Health

Mike Pfeffer

Bay Area
Stanford Medicine

Michael Reagin

SoCal
Sharp HealthCare

Joshua Wilda

Michigan
University of Michigan Health-West

At Converge, I had the opportunity to learn from others who face the same challenges and issues I encounter daily.

Ken Somogyi

Ken Somogyi

VP Information Technology
MERS/Goodwill
MERS/Goodwill

Phenomenal planning, preparation, arrangement and execution. This mirrored 'Hollywood Oscars'.

Nagarajan Muthusamy

Nagarajan Muthusamy

CIO, CTO & CISO
Reliable Parts
Reliable Parts

Engaging, inspiring, thought-provoking…awesome!

Judith Apshago

Judith Apshago

VP of Information Technology
Amtrak
Amtrak

Valuable content and relationship building with numerous moments of surprise and delight.

Rachel Lockett

Rachel Lockett

CIO
Pohlad Companies
Pohlad Companies

Very impressed with the conference - certainly exceeded my expectations. Well done! The speakers and topics were excellent but everything still had a light, fun, and engaging mood.

Justin McFarland

Justin McFarland

EVP of Information Technology
McCarthy Holdings, Inc.
McCarthy Holdings, Inc.

It's all about building relationships at Converge... and then continuing to nurture them after you leave.

Brett Lansing

Brett Lansing

CIO
AccentCare
AccentCare

Probably one of the best CIO oriented conferences I've attended. Good combination of networking, learning, and motivational.

Jim Cavellier

Jim Cavellier

EVP & CIO
Cass Information Systems
Cass Information Systems

I will tell you it is hands down the best conference that I’ve ever been to as a CIO leader.

Andrea Markstrom

Andrea Markstrom

CIO
Schulte Roth & Zabel
Schulte Roth & Zabel

Great networking event and one of the best collection of conversations about the challenges facing CIOs now and in the future.

Randy Volkin

Randy Volkin

CIO
Perry Homes
Perry Homes

An amazing and exceptional platform in a super private setting to connect, learn, teach and build relationships with likeminded senior business and technology leaders.

Ganesh Iyer

Ganesh Iyer

CEO
NIO
NIO

The relationships developed, insights into growing our amazing leadership teams, approaches to fostering a people-first culture, leading by influence, and so much more were priceless.

Bryce Carter

Bryce Carter

CIO
City of Arlington
City of Arlington

The caliber and quality of the presenters are outstanding—it's like attending a masterclass.

Todd Kackley

Todd Kackley

VP & CIO
Textron
Textron

Outstanding gathering of best of the best global business and technology leaders. A forum to connect, share best practices, and celebrate with the best CIO's in the world.

Mike Schmidt

Mike Schmidt

CIO
Deloitte
Deloitte

The best and most collaborative event for technology business leaders that you'll attend this year.

Jamey Taylor

Jamey Taylor

CTO & CISO
StateServ
StateServ

Expect the unexpected. Expect to be delighted. Be ready to pause, think deeply about something you just heard, and to take action.

Curt Carver

Curt Carver

VP & CIO
UAB
UAB

Converge provided me very valuable exposure to the needs that CEOs and board members have of their CISO. By hearing first hand their perspective, I’m much better positioned to be an even better enterprise leader in my organization.

Ian Schneller

Ian Schneller

CISO and DSVP
Health Care Service Corporation
Health Care Service Corporation

This CIO conference is unlike any I've ever attended. I've learned so much, made new friends, and built lasting bonds. The sense of belonging and care is second to none.

Darlene Williams

Darlene Williams

SVP & CIO
Rocket Software
Rocket Software

Join us & be inspired.

August 12–14, 2025 | New York City