Technovation with Peter High (CIO, CTO, CDO, CXO Interviews)

The modern workplace wasn’t designed for today’s leaders, and it’s starting to break under the pressure.

In this episode of Technovation, board director, author and former CIO Lisa Davis joins Peter High to examine why the workplace system, built decades ago, no longer supports the realities of modern careers. Drawing from her leadership experience across government, academia, and the private sector, Davis outlines what must change, and what leaders must do now.

Key insights include:

Why the current workplace model is structurally outdated

How power dynamics shape leadership advancement

The hidden cost of talent loss and system misalignment

Why AI leadership lacks critical representation

What executives must do to redesign work for the future

China is competing on control. In this episode, Ram Charan explains the “90% Model,” a strategy designed to dominate global manufacturing through scale, pricing power, and long-term positioning.

Drawing on decades advising CEOs and global leaders, Charan breaks down how this model is reshaping industries—and what it means for business leaders navigating a fragmented, multi-polar world.

Key insights include:

Why China is willing to lose money to gain global dominance

How “asset-light” strategies weakened Western manufacturing

What CEOs must do to redesign supply chains for resilience

Why AI should be treated as a tool—not a strategy

How leadership must evolve in an era of unprecedented scale and speed

What does it really take to scale a company 10X in just a few years? Jon McNeill argues it’s not genius, it’s a system.

In this episode of Technoventure, Jon McNeill, former President of Tesla and CEO of DVx Ventures, breaks down “The Algorithm,” a five-step framework that powered Tesla’s rise from $2B to $20B in revenue. He shares how questioning assumptions, eliminating friction, and accelerating execution can unlock exponential growth.

Key insights include:

Why hypergrowth is a repeatable operating system—not a one-time event

How Tesla reduced complexity to increase speed and conversion

The role of first-principles thinking in breakthrough innovation

Why cycle time is the ultimate performance metric

How leaders can build cultures that embrace feedback and urgency

Why do most AI initiatives fail to deliver real value? Because they automate broken processes instead of fixing them.

In this episode of Technovation, Peter High speaks with Shobhit Varshney, Global Head of Artificial Intelligence at Citi, about how one of the world’s largest banks is rethinking AI from the ground up. With experience spanning Citi and IBM, Shobhit shares how a value-first, platform-driven approach is enabling AI at scale, while maintaining strong governance and control.

Key highlights include:

Why re-engineering workflows is essential before applying AI

How Citi prioritizes high-value use cases with clear ROI accountability

The role of centralized AI platforms in scaling capabilities

Embedding responsible AI across the enterprise

Building an AI-first culture through training and champions

What happens when IT stops delivering projects—and starts delivering outcomes?

In this episode of Technovation, Peter High speaks with Alex Gutman, CTO of Gilbane, about how a 150-year-old construction leader is transforming its IT operating model around value streams. Gutman shares how aligning technology to client-defined value is driving agility, accountability, and measurable business impact.

Key highlights include:

Transitioning from siloed projects to outcome-driven value streams

Building faster learning loops through cross-functional alignment

Treating data as a trusted asset to enable scalable AI

Applying AI to accelerate RFP responses and field execution

Designing architecture for flexibility, speed, and long-term differentiation