CIO Academy

Dave Aron
Role/Responsibility

Dave Aron is a vice president and research director in Gartner Executive Programs, focusing on CIO issues. Topics he has researched and presented include enterprise agility, CEO-CIO interaction, IT strategy, risk management and security and business intelligence. He also teaches IT topics periodically at London Business School and Templeton College, Oxford. He has co-written a book, published by FT Prentice Hall, explaining IT concepts for business managers.

Bio
Prior to joining Gartner, Mr. Aron had 10 years of experience as a technologist and five years as a business strategy consultant. As a technologist, Mr. Aron ran IT systems at banks and in the utilities industry. He also held a CTO position at a wireless Internet startup. Mr. Aron's strategy work has included supporting merger and acquisition deals, establishing corporate venturing processes, facilitating corporate strategy processes and evaluating market opportunities. Mr. Aron has worked for McKinsey and has consulted independently. He also teaches at London Business School and has co-written a book, published by FT Prentice Hall, explaining IT concepts for business managers.

"I enjoy engaging with CIOs, business executives and IS leaders on ways to generate genuine value from IT. I am particularly interested in the interaction of business strategy and IT strategy to create significant changes in business value and business models."

Years of Experience
3 years with Gartner
13 years in IT industry

Professional Background
McKinsey, Associate, 2 years
Baring Securities, Systems and Security Manager, 4 years
Xtempus, CTO, 2 years

Industry Awards/Accolades
Member of British Computer Society
Member of Information Systems Security Association

Education
B.Sc. (I), Queen Mary College
M.B.A., London Business School

Heather Colella
Role/Responsibility

Heather Colella is a research director for Gartner's Office of the CIO, where she is responsible for conducting research and developing publications aimed at helping CIOs and their organizations improve their performance and contribution.

Bio
Ms. Colella's 25 years of experience have been invested as a management consultant, developing information technology strategies, architectures and plans for major corporations. She was president of her own management consulting firm and has also been a managing director with KPMG/BearingPoint, a senior manager with KPMG/Nolan, Norton & Co., and a consultant with Gemini Consulting. She also held a variety of implementation, project management, and management consulting roles within IBM. Prior to joining Gartner, she was a director at Fossil Partners and was responsible for three global organizations: their PMO, service desk, and relationship managers who served as liaisons between the business areas within Fossil and IT.

Years of Experience
2 years with Gartner
28 years in IT industry

Education
B.A., Psychology, University of Connecticut
M.B.A., University of Dallas

Michael Earl
Role/Responsibility

Professor of Information Management, Chairman of Executive Education, Dean of Templeton College, Oxford

Bio
Michael Earl was previously Professor of Information Management at London Business School for eleven years, during which time he held the roles of Deputy Dean and Acting Dean. Prior to that he was a Fellow of Templeton College and a lecturer at Manchester Business School. He works at the intersection of business strategy and IT and has published widely, including in Harvard Business Review, Sloan Management Review, MIS Quarterly, and the Journal of Management Information Systems. His book Management Strategies for Information Technology became a best-seller. Earl was a member of the UK government's task force on e-commerce and consults for several multinationals.

Richard Hunter
Role/Responsibility

Richard Hunter is vice president and research director in Gartner Executive Programs (EXP), where his recent work has focused on information security, managing external business relationships and risk management. Mr. Hunter is the author of the acclaimed book "World Without Secrets," published in 2002, and he is in much demand as a speaker and advisor on issues of security and privacy.

Bio
Mr. Hunter was appointed vice president and director of research for Applications Development in 1998 and was also a research director in GartnerG2. He joined Gartner as a research director in the Applications Development and Management service. Mr. Hunter is co-author, with James Kerr, of "Inside RAD" (McGraw-Hill, 1994).

"I work with smart, talented colleagues and clients who are informed, dedicated and passionate about their work, every day, all day long. Further, as a Gartner analyst I am paid to tell my clients and colleagues exactly what I really think about the issues that matter both to me and to my clients. This is a great way to live, let alone a great job."

Years of Experience
12 years with Gartner
26 years in IT industry

Professional Background
National Life of Vermont, Vice President, Information Resource Management, 3 years
John Hancock Financial Services, Manager, Data Administration, 10 years

Industry Awards/Accolades
Gartner Fellow

Education
B.A., Music, Harvard University
He continues to compose and perform and is a world-class harmonica player

Mark McDonald
Role/Responsibility

Mark McDonald is a group vice president and head of research in Gartner Executive Programs. He is responsible for the research agenda focused exclusively on CIOs and the business of information technology. Mr. McDonald is the lead author of research in the areas of CIO credibility, the business use of advanced technologies, enterprise architecture and business process transformation. He is the co-author with Peter Keen of "The eProcess Edge" and the author of "Architecting Enterprises - Achieving Performance and Flexibility."

Bio
Prior to joining Gartner, Mr. McDonald was a partner at Accenture, where he was responsible for the Centre for Process Excellence and methodology.

"CIOs and executives face a challenging marketplace and rising expectations. Working with CIOs and IT leaders to find approaches and techniques to resolve their issues is the high point of my job."

Years of Experience
4 years with Gartner
17 years in IT industry

Professional Background
Accenture, Partner, 14 years
Connecticut National Bank (Now Bank of America), Vice President, 5 years

Industry Awards/Accolades
Co-author, with Peter Keen, of “The E-Process Edge” (McGraw-Hill 2000), and numerous other publications.

Education
Ph.D., technology policy management, TU Delft, Netherlands
Master's degree (honors), economics and international finance, Trinity College, Hartford, Connecticut
B.A. (honors), economics and political science, Colgate University

Patrick Meehan
Role/Responsibility

Patrick Meehan is a vice president and research director in Gartner Research, where he is responsible for knowledge assets within Gartner's Global EXP Research team. In this role, he is responsible for extending EXP research content to the EXP membership via interactive workshops, briefings and flagship events. In addition, Mr. Meehan collaborates with other Gartner lines of business, and using EXP research content as the basis, creates new means of reaching CIOs and other member organization executive management team members.

Bio
Prior to joining Gartner, Mr. Meehan was CIO for Phillips, dePury & Luxembourg, the fine arts, jewelry and watch division of French luxury goods holding company LVMH. In that capacity, he was actively involved in the transformation of a 320-year-old British brand (Phillips) from a literal pen-and-paper organization into a global market player, functioning seamlessly via completely revamped international finance systems, a global VPN and custom applications supporting all business processes, including trading environments."

"I love playing chess in three dimensions...and that's what it takes to be a CIO today! Most of all, I love to help my clients win."

Years of Experience
3 years with Gartner
21 years in IT industry

Professional Background
Christie's, Vice President, 6 years
Philips/LVMH, CIO, 4 years

Education
B.A., Architecture and Art History, Dartmouth College
M.A., Interactive Telecommunications, New York University

Tina Nunno
Role/Responsibility

Tina Nunno is a research director in Gartner Executive Programs (EXP), where she is part of Worldwide Research, based in Stamford, Connecticut. She is responsible for conducting research and developing publications aimed at helping CIOs and their organizations around the world improve their performance and contribution. Ms. Nunno specializes in CIO-related management issues including change leadership, communication strategies and enterprise governance. She also focuses on issues specific to public sector CIOs and women in technology.

Bio
Prior to joining Gartner in 1997, Ms. Nunno worked for the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress. As part of her work for the Congressional Research Service, she aided the legislatures of Eastern European countries in the development of their information technology infrastructures and legislative research capabilities. Ms. Nunno’s work has taken her to Russia, Romania and the Ukraine, working directly with their legislatures to develop specialized technical assistance programs. She has also conducted research on a variety of issues related to international affairs, national defense, and United Nations-related issues.

"I enjoy working with all of our Executive Programs CIOs. The research role gives me the opportunity to highlight and share their many accomplishments with others who can learn from their exemplary work. CIOs' energy, enthusiasm, and ability to innovate never cease to amaze me."

Years of Experience
9 years with Gartner
11 years in IT industry

Professional Background
US Library of Congress, Congressional Research, Parliamentary Task Force Program Director, 2 years

Industry Awards/Accolades
Presidential Management Internship Finalist

Education
B.A., honors, History, Yale University
M.P.A., Public Administration and International Program Management, American University

Jeff Sampler
Role/Responsibility

Fellow in Strategy and Technology
University of Oxford, UK

Bio
His research interests include electronic commerce, the management of information as a strategic resource, and developing information-based strategies. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in such journals as Accounting, Management, and Information Technology, Fortune, Journal of Management Studies, Journal of Management Information Systems, MIS Quarterly, Sloan Management Review, and Strategic Management Journal. His paper with John Cross and Michael Earl on the "Transformation of IT at British Petroleum Exploration" won first prize in the Society of Information Manager's paper competition. Dr. Sampler is currently researching digital technologies as a driving force in the transformation of many industries. In particular, he studies the development of information-based strategies as a source of innovation, and the management strategies necessary to manage such firms. He is also a frequent speaker at conferences and corporate management retreats, and has been featured in Newsweek, BBC Radio, and CNBC.

With more than 3,100 members worldwide, Gartner Executive Programs is the world's largest membership organization specifically for CIOs and senior IT executives. Designed to enhance senior-executive productivity and professional development, Gartner Executive Programs provide a single source of research expertise, one-to-one counsel and the shared intelligence of thousands of senior IT executives.