CIO Mind, The Gartner CIO Podcast

“Guardian agents will be indispensable. … There are not enough humans to oversee everything that AI is doing.” — Daryl Plummer, Distinguished VP Analyst and Gartner Fellow By 2026, a staggering five billion machines will be making autonomous decisions that shape our world. But as we stand on the brink of this technological era, a critical question emerges: who — or what — will ensure these machines align with our human values and interests? Join us on this edition of CIO Mind as Distinguished VP Analyst and Gartner Fellow, Daryl Plummer, introduces us to the concept of “guardian agents” — AI systems that oversee other AI and ensure that human oversight and values are preserved and enhanced. Episode highlights: About the Guest Daryl Plummer is a distinguished VP analyst and Gartner fellow. His research focuses on the strategic issues of cloud computing, digital disruption and the unfolding of the future through predictions, trends and evolving digital business cycles. He is a chief of research in the technology and service providers organization, where he helps oversee research across the four roles of general manager, product managers, product marketers and tech CEOs. In this role, he is responsible for the advancement of research and the promotion of the same to solve the critical problems of, and answer the key questions for, tech providers from engineers all the way up to and including the CEO and board of directors. Daryl is also chief of research for cloud computing and a primary analyst covering multiple strategic cloud topics. He focuses his research on the broad cloud service market, including market trends, forecasts, the cloud vendor landscape and cloud sourcing scenarios. He tracks different cloud usage cases, including public cloud, private cloud and hybrid cloud scenarios and is the originator of the topic of distributed cloud computing. Covering cloud strategy and evolution requires one to see how end user scenarios are evolving in the context of technology and service provider strategies that are producing cloud innovations at an ever-increasing speed. Daryl Plummer provides a perspective on the key phenomena which will drive the largest segments of change.

According to our research, executive turnover is high across the C-Suite, which means that your role as CIO will transition one way or another. Whether you’re transitioning or you’re working with a leader in transition, you’ll need to be prepared to adapt to change quickly. In this episode of the CIO Mind Podcast, we interview Gartner Senior Executive Partner Tom Fuller to discuss how executives can successfully balance making quick impact while still learning the landscape. For non Gartner clients, see more with 4 Secrets to Success for Executives Starting a New Role. For Gartner clients, see our Executive FastStart Experience. About the Guest Tom Fuller is a senior executive partner at Gartner and specializes in CIO executive transitions, IT operating models, IT strategy and organizational effectiveness. He has worked in multiple sectors both in the U.K. and internationally, including retail, financial services, manufacturing and government. Prior to joining Gartner, he held senior leadership roles within the John Lewis Partnership’s IT organization and prior to that was a senior member of Deloitte’s IT Effectiveness team.

“The common feedback I get was always, ‘I didn't realize that there was so much I could do before I started.’ That surprised me.” — Tom Fuller, Senior Executive Partner, Gartner Gartner research shows that nearly one out of four executives is in transition at any given time. However, 39% are underperforming in their transitions. Join host and Gartner VP Analyst, Alicia Mullery, and guest Tom Fuller, Gartner Senior Executive Partner, as they explore best practices — and common missteps — from CIOs who have successfully transitioned to new companies, industries or first-time roles. Episode highlights: For non-Gartner clients, see more with 4 Secrets to Success for Executives Starting a New Role. For Gartner clients, see our CIO Orientation Guide. About the Guest Tom Fuller is a Senior Executive Partner at Gartner and specializes in CIO executive transitions, IT operating models, IT strategy and organizational effectiveness. Tom has worked in multiple sectors both in the U.K. and internationally, including retail, financial services, manufacturing and government. Before Gartner, he held senior leadership roles within the John Lewis Partnership’s IT organization and prior to that was a senior member of Deloitte’s IT Effectiveness team.

“You can do all the training you want — it's not going to lead to behavior change.” — Alicia Mullery, Gartner VP Analyst If employees are already largely overwhelmed with new initiatives, how can CIOs create a culture of continuous AI learning? The answers lie with senior leadership, management and some clever incentives. Join Gartner VP Analyst Alicia Mullery as she explains how CIOs can help staff use AI in their daily work and improve ROI. About the Guest Alicia Mullery is a vice president analyst supporting CIOs and other senior executives. Alicia’s research collaboration works to distill practical lessons from company accomplishments and missteps. She works to identify, build and then present best practice case studies that inspire executive action and decision making. Her recent areas of focus include the shift from projects to products, building fusion teams and safely democratizing digital delivery, transforming IT talent, building effective CIO/CxO partnerships and increasing the number of women in IT leadership. Alicia frequently facilitates executive-level discussions, including executive committee meetings, IT leadership team retreats and roundtables with CIOs and other senior executives. She is a keynote speaker at Gartner events and externally. Alicia is an American based in London, U.K. She brings a global perspective from her 15 years with Gartner, advising in North America, Europe and South Africa.

Being a good CIO doesn’t have to come at the price of being good to yourself. In fact, these two elements can work together to help CIOs achieve their new year’s resolutions, from managing cyber attacks to finding moments for peace and quiet. Join Gartner analysts Mary Mesaglio, Shanna Grafeld and Brandon Germer as they discuss how CIOs can meet their objectives this year with our research, 2025 CIO New Year’s Resolutions — How to Be Good (Enough). Episode highlights: “One of the perennial pieces of advice we give to anyone who's reading the research is: Don't do all the resolutions.” — Mary Mesaglio, Gartner Distinguished VP Analyst (3:14 in this podcast) About the Guests Mary Mesaglio is a distinguished vice president analyst at Gartner. Her research focuses on how to help global enterprises execute transformations in the real world, with all the human behavioural messiness that real-world change implies. Mary works with enterprises on how to create clear principles, how to scale change messages, how to be rigorous about the behavioural side of transformation and how to make change real. Shanna Grafeld is a senior principal analyst in Gartner’s global enterprise executive research practice and focuses on leadership and sustainability. Her leadership coverage includes psychological safety, multigenerational and multicultural leadership, conflict and change management. Her sustainability expertise includes setting and communicating sustainability strategy, organizational structures for sustainability and sustainable technology. Brandon Germer is a senior director analyst in Gartner’s Office of the CIO Research. Brandon advises senior and executive business leaders on strategy, execution, product management and operating models through written research, conferences, workshops and one-to-one interaction.

“Pacing Yourself in the AI Races,” the 2024 IT Symposium/Xpo keynote, provided an inspiring vision for CIOs on delivering AI outcomes safely and at scale. In this episode of CIO Mind podcast, keynote presenters Alicia Mullery, Gartner VP Research, and Daryl Plummer, Gartner Distinguished VP Analyst, Chief of Research and Gartner Fellow, join host ck Andrade, Gartner Sr. Director Analyst, to deep dive into the keynote’s concepts and identify how to move from inspiration to action. Join them to explore the differences between the AI steady and AI accelerated paces and the bumps in the road and the facilitators as CIOs take first steps in the CIO AI outcomes race. To learn more about the keynote, see Pacing Yourself in the AI Races: 2024 IT Symposium/Xpo Keynote Insights. Episode Highlights Daryl Plummer is a Gartner Fellow, VP, and Distinguished Analyst. His research focuses on the strategic issues of cloud computing, digital disruption, and the unfolding of the future through predictions, trends and evolving digital business cycles. Daryl is a Chief of Research in the technology and service providers organization, where he helps oversee research across the four roles of general manager, product managers,product marketers, and tech CEOs. Alicia Mullery is a Gartner Vice President, Research, supporting CIOs and other senior executives. Alicia’s research collaboration works to distill practical lessons from company accomplishments and missteps. She works to identify, build and then present best practice case studies that inspire executive action and decision making. Her recent areas of focus include the shift from projects to products, building fusion teams and safely democratizing digital delivery, transforming IT talent, building effective CIO/CxO partnerships, and increasing the number of women in IT leadership.

Episode highlights: About the Guest: Gene Alvarez is a Gartner Distinguished VP Analyst, who helps clients with technology innovation and strategy topics such as CRM, Customer Experience, Composable Applications, Modernization, Digital Commerce Technologies, and trends and disruptions. He is the key initiative leader for Gartner's Technology Innovation and Strategy research agenda. Mr. Alvarez leads Gartner's Top Strategic Technology Trends research and is a member of Gartner's Top Strategic Predictions Team. Mr. Alvarez has over 40 years of business and IT experience leading business impact assessments, vendor management, project management, software development and delivery of complex business applications. He has spoken at many international events and industry-related conferences worldwide and has been published in various media and trade publications.

Episode highlights: AI and digitalization are revolutionizing work, yet the anticipated boost in efficiency and cost reduction remains elusive for many. Moreover, less than 14% of organizations can support new ways of working offered by emerging technologies. This means that even in the age of AI, productivity rates continue to stagnate across industries. Gartner VP analyst Tori Paulman joins host, Gabriela Vogel, to discuss this challenge’s causes and myths as well as the recent trend of employee-built technologies that may offer a solution. About the Guest Tori Paulman is a Gartner vice president analyst who advises clients on the leadership of digital employee experience and digital workplace strategies, the workplace experience application market, employee experience journey mapping, and strategies for successful hybrid teams. They focus on helping executives and their teams with the leadership, talent and cultural shifts needed to succeed today and in the future of work. Tori co-leads Gartner's cross functional team researching the future of work for executive leaders. In addition, Tori leads the biannual digital worker survey. Now in its sixth iteration, this survey is Gartner's signature view on workers’ experiences and sentiment on technology used for work.

The worldwide disruptions caused by a faulty CrowdStrike update in July 2024 highlighted the unpredictable nature of today’s digital threats, and reminded CIOs that such crises could affect any vendor. In this episode of CIO Mind, host Ed Gabrys is joined by Leigh McMullen to discuss the critical importance of proactive resilience strategies and the evolving relationship between CIOs and CISOs. Leigh offers invaluable insights on avoiding self-inflicted-harm during these incidents, the need for better basics like timely patching, and effective communication with the board about cybersecurity. Leigh C. McMullen is a Distinguished Vice President, Analyst, and Gartner Fellow in security and risk management at Gartner. Leigh provides CISOs with insights on navigating the C-suite and making impactful decisions. He specializes in future operating models, cybersecurity strategy, business engagement, and leadership development.

“The competition in the market is so fierce, we can’t hire ourselves out of those talent shortage problems. We have to look inside and re-skill and upskill our talent faster.” — Lily Mok, VP, Gartner IT Strategy, Execution and Organization team Despite waves of layoffs, hiring skilled IT talent remains a critical challenge — especially as 79% of organizations plan to increase IT staff levels in 2024. Listen now as Gartner IT Strategy expert Lily Mok explains how to effectively respond to the talent shortage and other key trends impacting CIOs’ strategies. Episode Highlights: Lily Mok is a Gartner Vice President, Team Manager, working on the IT Strategy, Execution and Organization team. Lily focuses her research on helping CIOs and HR leaders develop strategies and programs to build a future-ready workforce. Lily has extensive experience in global HR and compensation consulting, and is a Certified Compensation Professional specialized in designing and developing employee reward strategy and programs.

Episode highlights: This episode of the CIO Mind Podcast follows the money in sustainability. Host ck Andrade and Kristin Moyer, Gartner Distinguished VP Analyst, explore whether CIOs are at risk of being left behind in the climate economy, where CEOs’ sustainability initiatives are transforming CIOs’ obligations. Join us as we reveal key responsibilities and actions for CIOs to support CEOs’ green investments and business models. To discover how other CIOs view sustainability, see Gartner’s Peer Community. Kristin Moyer is a Distinguished VP, Analyst in Gartner's Global Enterprise Executive Research, which is part of Gartner's CIO & Industries practice. Kristin helps CEOs, boards, sustainability leaders and digital leaders find new technology-enabled paradigms. She brings practical ideas and advice to help enterprises improve their transformation programs, create emerging business models and pursue new missions. Her enthusiasm, encouragement and research acumen help executives persuade others, execute plans and achieve impact. Kristin's research focuses on sustainability, CEOs, augmented (AI) executive, digital business, platform business and non-executive board of directors. She is invited to speak around the world as part of both client and Gartner conferences. Kristin loves the thrill of the stage. But she also runs engaging executive roundtables and workshops. Her most recent keynotes have included CEO Concerns, The AI Powered Digital Gold Rush and Embed Sustainability into IT Strategy.

“Trust is going to be one of the biggest differentiators in the AI and Gen AI landscape.” — Frances Karamouzis, Gartner Distinguished VP Analyst Episode highlights: Fran Karamouzis is a Distinguished VP Analyst in Gartner's Research and Advisory Group, focusing on AI, hyperautomation and intelligent automation. Fran is focused on research that addresses strategy, value creation, use cases, business cases and disruptive trends. Fran has appeared and/or contributed to reports showcased on 60 Minutes, CNN, CNBC, PBS, Business Week, Forbes and the Council for Foreign Relations. Fran earned a bachelor's degree in International Business and Accounting from New York University. She also completed her M.B.A. in Finance at New York University.

“When we just look at immediate financial returns, oftentimes we miss the full picture of the value that gets created.” - Rita Sallam, Gartner Distinguished VP Analyst, Data and Analytics By 2025, nearly a third of GenAI projects will be abandoned due largely to unclear business value. To prove GenAI’s transformative value to executives and CFOs, this episode’s guest offers an insider’s perspective. Rita Sallam is a Distinguished VP Analyst for data and analytics and a former CFO. Her experience and expertise provide critical insights for:

“The moral of the story is: The closer CIOs stick to the CEO, the easier it’s going to be to help guide the rest of the C-suite through technology uncertainty.” (6:26) This year, the vast majority of CEOs are shifting strategies. At the core of these changes lie digitalization and technology, which introduce unprecedented responsibilities — and opportunities — in the CIO-CEO relationship. Listen now as Gartner Senior Principal Analyst Jennifer Carter shares exclusive best practices and insights on: Jennifer Carter is a senior principal analyst in the Executive Leadership of Digital Business (ELDB) practice. She advises executives on how to navigate C-suite dynamics — in particular building effective engagement with CEOs, creating high-performing, collaborative teams, and influencing stakeholders. Jennifer also covers changing culture through the art of culture hacking and taking a people-first approach to enterprise change communications. Furthermore, Jennifer discusses key topics regarding the future of work, such as leadership in remote and hybrid environments and implementing a human-centric work design. Prior to Gartner, Jennifer studied power dynamics within Chinese imperial courts at the University of Florida and spent years in Gartner’s Executive Programs organization. She has a passion for evaluating complex organizational and leadership challenges and uses her diverse background to inspire executives to think outside of the box.

CIOs are largely determining the organization’s future. Their technology investments can drive — or derail — critical business outcomes. However, organizations must first address a range of challenges to ensure ROI: This podcast addresses each of these challenges, as well as the three key actions CIOs need to take when introducing new technology into their organization. Podcast highlights:

Episode highlights: AI experimentation is rapidly scaling to implementation across the enterprise. For CIOs, developing a comprehensive AI literacy initiative throughout the organization is now a tactical and strategic imperative. Erick Brethenoux is Gartner’s Artificial Intelligence Chief of Research. He specializes in AI techniques, decision intelligence and applied cognitive computing. Erick guides organizations on the strategic, organizational and technology aspects of using AI as a driving force for growth. In particular, his research focuses on the operationalization of AI techniques and practices, AI engineering, and next-generation decision intelligence systems.

This episode explores: In this podcast episode, we delve into the evolving landscape of technology leadership and its impact on business dynamics as seen through the lens of franchised digital delivery, which is about technology management as well as business innovation and strategy. We explore the changing expectations that CEOs and other CxOs have for their CIOs, as well as the CIOs’ vision for their own leadership and the direction of their IT teams. Join us as we unravel these complex changes and provide insights into the future of technology leadership.

This episode explores: Mary Mesaglio is a Distinguished Vice President Analyst in Gartner’s Executive Leadership of Digital Business team. Mary’s work focuses on digital-era culture transformation, emphasizing executive teams’ roles in driving change, innovation and digital transformation. With a keen interest in the intersection of psychology, neuroscience and behavioral economics, Mary’s research aims to apply these disciplines in corporate settings. A frequent and engaging keynote speaker, Mary effectively communicates complex concepts to a broad audience, aiding organizations in harnessing behavioral science for effective leadership and change. The rapidly developing world of AI is shifting the way we live, work and interact — with one another and with machines. Gartner analyst Mary Mesaglio explores this shift and what it means for leadership’s approach to both human and machine talent. Mary also discusses vital factors for healthy and beneficial human-machine relationships, provides key questions to consider as we approach unexplored territory, and focuses on how leadership can boost machine capability and the human experience.

This episode explores: CIOs continue to face serious employee well-being issues, with burnout, stress, fatigue and isolation all still on the rise in the workplace. A focus purely on finding purpose in work for most employees isn’t enough. Instead, as this session shows, CIOs can identify ways employees derive meaning from a sense of play at work.

In this episode of the CIO Mind podcast, we delve into the transformative journey of allyship, exploring how and why leaders should actively advocate for marginalized groups within workplaces and broader communities. The conversation aims to enlighten those unfamiliar with allyship and to motivate those already on this path, addressing the impactful roles individuals can play in fostering inclusivity and support. Listeners will gain insights into evolving their perspectives, embracing learning opportunities after mistakes and constructing an inclusive environment, empowering them to be advocates for change within their spheres of influence. This episode explores: Tori Paulman is a Research Analyst on Gartner’s Digital Workplace team. Tori focuses on ensuring that employees have a validating, supportive and engaging experience with work.