This week on Catalyst, Tammy sits down with Bob Rosen, Chief Information Officer at Arcosa. Bob helps guide technology across a company that builds the infrastructure many communities rely on. Before Arcosa, he led enterprise applications at Trinity Industries and held leadership roles at companies like HP, Fujitsu and PwC. Bob started his career in the Air Force and even designed components of the F14 (the plane from Top Gun)!
Tammy and Bob discuss the obligation to speak up if you know something, the importance of getting outside your own info bubble and the value of staying curiously skeptical.
Highlights from the episode include:
- The best idea wins. To keep the loudest voices from dominating decisions, Bob expects his team to speak up. “The obligation to dissent” means that if you have a better approach, you share it with the group for the good of the business.
- Business first, technology second. Bob is direct about a trap he sees often: technologists who live inside their technology bubble and look for places to plug in a solution. The antidote is a business-first mindset. AI should solve a real problem or support a clear objective, not be applied because leadership feels pressure to use it.
- Hype, fear and the middle path. There are two polarized camps in the AI conversation right now: optimistic evangelists and pessimistic doomers. Tammy and Bob both strive for a middle ground of curious skepticism. Experiment, stay informed and try not to get swept up in either direction.
Check out the full episode to hear about Bob’s morning routine and what he means when he says “bad news doesn’t improve with age.”
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Please note that the views expressed in this episode may not necessarily be those of NTT DATA.
Episode hosts and guests
