SAN JOSE, Calif., Feb. 17, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- For over 25 years, the ORBIE Awards have recognized technology executives for outstanding leadership and business value created by technology innovation and enterprise security. Annually, ORBIE winners from over 50 Inspire Leadership Network chapters across North America are eligible for the National ORBIE Awards.
The 2026 National ORBIE Awards finalists are:
Super Global Finalists – includes CIOs for organizations over $25 billion annual revenue & multi-national operations:
- Dr. Besufekad Alemayehu, SVP, Digital Manufacturing & Supply, Merck & Co., Inc.
- Nathalie D’Hers, Corporate VP Microsoft Employee Experience, Microsoft
- Motti Finkelstein, CIO – Global IT, Intel Corporation
- Seemantini Godbole, Chief Digital & Information Officer, Lowe’s
- Jennifer Hartsock, Chief Information & Digital Officer, Cargill
- Ed McLaughlin, President & CTO, Mastercard
- Laura Money, EVP, Chief Information & Technology Innovation Officer, Sun Life Financial
- Earl Newsome, VP & CIO, Cummins Inc.
Global Finalists – includes CIOs for organizations over $3 billion annual revenue & multi-national operations:
- Mark Bloom, Global CIO, Arthur J Gallagher & Co
- Vishal Kumar, Global CIO, Monster Beverage Corp
- Mark Molitor, CIO, Milwaukee Tool
- Sameer Purao, SVP, CIO & CDO, Celanese
- Saurabh Raisinghani, EVP & CTO, Ford Credit
- Viren Shah, SVP & Chief Digital & Information Officer, AGCO Corporation
- Derek Shaw, CIO, H.B. Fuller
- Seshadri Tirumala, CIO, WESTERN DIGITAL
Large Enterprise Finalists – includes CIOs for organizations over $3 billion annual revenue:
- Michael Carrel, SVP & CTO, Nationwide Financial, Nationwide
- Rob Childs, SVP, Chief Digital & Information Officer, Ameren
- Sastry Durvasula, Chief Operating, Information & Digital Officer, TIAA
- Sathish Muthukrishnan, Chief Information, Data & Digital Officer, Ally Financial
- Kavita Rao, SVP & CIO, CoBank
- Billy Runyan, EVP & CIO, LPL Financial
- John Russell, CTO, Dominion Energy
- Greg Zeh, SVP & CIO, Weis Markets Inc
Enterprise Finalists – includes CIOs for organizations over $1.2 billion annual revenue:
- Andrew Blackmon, CIO, United Launch Alliance
- Venkat Gopalan, Chief Digital, Data & Technology Officer, Belcorp
- Cris Kibbee, EVP & CIO, MV Transportation
- Aparna Mathur, VP IT, Nabors Industries
- Jody McDonough, VP of IT & CIO, SubZero Group Inc.
- Chintan Patel, CIO, National DCP
- Rob Spellman, CIO, Leidos QTC Health Services
- Darlene Williams, Global SVP & CIO, Rocket Software
Large Corporate Finalists – includes CIOs for organizations over $800 million annual revenue:
- Sanjay Chandra, VP, IT, Lucid Motors
- Mark DeLorenzo, Senior Director of Global IT, IPG Photonics
- Uma Gopinath, SVP & CIO, Porter Airlines
- Michelle Kaufman, SVP, Technology, Distribution Management, Inc
- Brian Minnix, CIO, Rack Room
- Gisela Riggan, EVP & CIO, Prosperity Bank
- Joel Tracy, CIO, IMC Logistics, LLC.
- Thai Vong, CIO, ACR (Amercareroyal)
Corporate Finalists – includes CIOs for organizations up to $800 million annual revenue:
- Mike Anderson, Chief Digital & Information Officer, NetSkope
- Erik Jones, VP – Technology, Arizona Cardinals Football Club
- Raman Krishnaswami, CIO, Eagleview Technologies
- Sharon Milz, CIO, TIME
- Raj Sampoornam, SVP & CIO, Byline Bank
- Doug Saunders, CIO, Arctic Glacier
- Scott Schemmel, CIO, Construction Resources
- Christina Shuffield, EVP & CIO, Speedcast
Healthcare Finalists – includes CIOs of hospitals & healthcare organizations:
- Kiran Achen, Chief Information & Digital Officer, Delta Dental of Missouri
- Tom Barnett, Chief Information & Digital Officer, Baptist Memorial Health Care Corporation
- Renee Fosberg, SVP, Chief Digital & Information Officer, Emerson Health
- Laura Groschen, EVP & CIO, Acadia Healthcare
- Scott Morgan, SVP & CIO, Health Care Service Corporation
- Deb Muro, CIO, El Camino Health
- Onyeka Nchege, EVP, Chief Digital & Information Officer, Novant Health
- Amish Patel, CTO, Elevance Health
Nonprofit/Public Sector Finalists – includes CIOs of government, education & nonprofit organizations:
- Reginal Bryant, SVP & CIO, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
- Dr. Chris Crist, CIO, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
- Rob Lloyd, CTO, City of Seattle
- Dr. Bianca Lochner, CIO, City of Scottsdale
- Juan Lucero, SVP & CIO, Denver International Airport
- Bharath Prabhakaran, VP & CDO, University of Cincinnati
- Art Thompson, CIO, City of Detroit
- Scott West, CIO, Department of Ecology
CISO Large Enterprise Finalists – includes CISOs for organizations over $20 billion annual revenue:
- Ron Banks, CISO, Toyota Financial Services
- Christina Bray, CISO, Collins Aerospace
- Sherron Burgess, Global SVP & CISO, BCD Travel
- Kris Burkhardt, CISO, Accenture
- Krishnan Chellakarai, CISO, Gilead Sciences
- Upendra Mardikar, EVP & CISO, TIAA
- Mary Rose Martinez, CISO & VP of Infrastructure, Marathon Petroleum
- Abhay Raman, SVP & CISO, Sun Life Financial
CISO Enterprise Finalists – includes CISOs for organizations over $2 billion annual revenue:
- Frank Aiello, CISO, Maximus
- Michael Baker, Global CISO, DXC Technology
- Marc Crudgington, VP IT Infrastructure & Cybersecurity, Crane Worldwide Logistics
- Monique Hart, VP, IS & CISO, Piedmont Healthcare
- Kim Keever, CISO, Cox Communications
- Bob Litterer, CISO, Teradyne
- Scott Moser, SVP & CISO, Sabre
- Becky Palmer, VP & CISO, National Life Group
CISO Large Corporate Finalists – includes CISOs for organizations up to $2 billion annual revenue:
- Joseph Berglund, Director of IT Operations & Cybersecurity, US Med-Equip
- Kenny Cunningham, Senior Director, IT Security, OneDigital
- Brian Elrod, VP & CISO, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Inc.
- Esteban Gutierrez, CISO & VP IS, New Relic, Inc
- Chris Liles, VP – IS, Privacy & Enterprise Technology Infrastructure, Wingstop Restaurant Inc.
- Cheryl Nifong, CISO, University of Texas at Arlington
- Murtaza Nisar, VP & CISO, Clario
- Michael Smith, SVP & CISO, ATI Physical Therapy
The ORBIE® Awards is the preeminent executive recognition for C-suite leaders. Since 1998, the ORBIE Awards have recognized leadership excellence, building relationships between executives and trusted business partners, and inspiring the next generation of leaders. Finalists and winners are selected through an independent peer-adjudicated process led by prior ORBIE recipients based on the following criteria:
- Leadership and management effectiveness
- Business value created by technology innovation
- Business protection created by enterprise cybersecurity
- Engagement in industry and community endeavors
The 2026 National ORBIE Awards are made possible by:
- Premier Sponsor: Google Cloud & Lumen
- Conference Sponsors: T-Mobile & SHI International
- Awards Sponsors: Future Tech Enterprise
To learn more about partnership opportunities and how to connect with leading C-suite executives across North America, click here.
The National ORBIE winners will be announced live on August 6, 2026 during the National ORBIE Awards in San Jose, California. Learn how to get in the room.
About Inspire Leadership Network
Inspire Leadership Network is the preeminent peer leadership network of C-suite executives. With over 2,000 members across more than 50 local chapters, Inspire members serve public and private businesses, government, education, healthcare, and non-profit institutions. Inspire exists to help leaders thrive in today’s most challenging executive roles.
Media Contact
Nicole Lammes
nicole.lammes@inspirecxo.com
