In this episode of Innovation and the Digital Enterprise, Patrick Emmons and Shelli Nelson are joined by Mike Maresca, Chief Technology and Transformation Officer at Ulta Beauty. Mike delves into his career journey, highlighting his progression from consulting to leading a major technological transformation at Ulta. He discusses the critical components of Project SOAR, a multi-year effort that aligned teams, data, and platforms to enhance customer experiences both in-store and digitally. Mike emphasizes the importance of a strong guest-focused business-driven IT strategy, born of continuous learning and an innovation culture. He shares insights on Ulta's approach to AI, data centralization, and maintaining a customer-centric philosophy. With a focus on future growth and sustainability, Mike outlines Ulta's bold vision, which includes expanding into wellness and international markets, as well as scaling personalization and marketplace capabilities. Mike shares his advice for aspiring leaders: be bold, listen, harness the power of team, and approach challenges with passion.

1. (00:00) Introducing Mike Maresca, Chief Technology and Transformation Officer at Ulta Beauty
2. (01:22) Mike's Career Journey
3. (03:08) Modernizing Ulta Beauty's Platform
4. (04:47) Ulta Beauty's Customer-Centric Philosophy
5. (05:58) Project SOAR and Digital Transformation
6. (08:21) AI and Innovation at Ulta Beauty
7. (19:07) Sustaining Innovation and Future Plans
8. (22:16) Final Thoughts and Advice

Mike Maresca’s career spans technology and digital transformation initiatives, in the retail and consulting sectors. Currently, he is the Chief Technology and Transformation Officer at Ulta Beauty. Previously, he held roles at Walgreens Boots Alliance, serving as Global Chief Technology Officer, and Accenture, where he spent nearly 25 years in various tech leadership positions. He earned a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering from Iowa State University.

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Podcast episode production by Dante32.

In this episode of Innovation and Digital Enterprise, Patrick and Shelli talk with Michael Ehlers, the new Chief Technology Officer at PlanSource. Mike outlines his leadership philosophy and career evolution, emphasizing that professional growth is rarely linear. He shares formative experiences at Hewitt and Xerox that taught him the importance of transparency during project setbacks, the value of blameless postmortems, and how to treat failure as a chance to grow.

Those experiences inform his current leadership and hiring strategy, which prioritizes candidates with grit, curiosity, and collaborative spirit, over those with rigid technical expertise. He explains that technical skills can be acquired, but behavioral attributes are foundational to a successful dev culture.

Mike shares insights earned through his range of experience, from startups to large multinationals, stressing that at any scale, leaders need empathy to understand customer needs, agility to make change, and transparency to build trust.

• (00:12) Welcome to Michael Ehlers, CTO at PlanSource
• (03:35) Navigating Leadership Challenges
• (10:40) The Importance of Career Growth and Culture
• (23:34) Leveraging Postmortems in Software Engineering
• (28:31) Cultural Shifts in Organizations
• (37:32) Empathy in Innovation: Understanding Customer Needs

Michael Ehlers has had a full career leading software and engineering teams, often at SaaS companies in the HR space. Currently, he is the new Chief Technology Officer at PlanSource. Previously, he has held roles at Benefitfocus, Paylocity, Voya Financial, Aon Hewitt (Alight), and Xerox, where he served as Vice President of Front End Development for their HR Outsourcing business. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering from the Milwaukee School of Engineering.

If you'd like to receive new episodes as they're published, please subscribe to Innovation and the Digital Enterprise in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a review in Apple Podcasts. It really helps others find the show.

Podcast episode production by Dante32.

In this special compilation episode of Innovation and the Digital Enterprise, Patrick Emmons highlights key insights on digital transformation from top tech leaders. Featuring perspectives from Andrei Girenkov, Christopher Paquette, Ann Yeung, Sandee Kastrul, Deepak Kaimal, Jeff Miller, Christina Garcia, Tanya Hannah, Dan Kirsche, Dom Scandinaro, Subramanian Kunchithapatham, and Gene Kim. The episode delves into leading transformative tech teams, balancing disruption and protection, the role of AI, the need to stay nimble, and the foundational significance of human connection and communication in achieving successful digital transformation.

• (00:00) Welcome to Innovation and the Digital Enterprise
• (02:17) Andrei Girenkov Understanding the Scope of Digital Transformation
• (03:17) Christopher Paquette on Balancing Protection and Disruption
• (04:00) Ann Yeung on The Role of Corporate Functions
• (04:52) Sandee Kastrul on Diversity and Innovation
• (05:22) Deepak Kaimal Leveraging Gen AI for Business Solutions
• (07:01) Jeff Miller on Navigating Technological Change
• (07:21) Christina Garcia on Empowering Teams
• (07:59) Tanya Hannah on Keeping Nimble
• (08:28) Dan Kirsche on Org Structure and Accountability
• (09:17) Dom Scandinaro on Growth, and Agility
• (10:10) Subramanian Kunchithapatham on the Challenges of Digitization
• (10:53) Gene Kim on Connecting People Through Norms, Rituals, and Processes

Andrei Girenkov is Chief Technology Officer at CSC Service Works. Christopher Paquette is Chief Transformation Officer at Personify Health. Ann Yeung is VP of Engineering at GEICO. Sandee Kastrul is President and co-founder of i.c.stars. Deepak Kaimal is Chief Technology Officer at COMPLY. Jeff Miller is Chief Product Officer at Coates Group. Christina Garcia is SVP of Engineering at Echo Global Logistics. Tanya Hannah is Chief Information Officer at OneTen. Dan Kirsche is Chief Technology Officer at Chamberlain Group. Dom Scandinaro is Chief Technology Officer at Cameo. Subramanian Kunchithapatham is Vice President - BI Solutions at Morgan Stanley. Gene Kim is an author, researcher, and founder of Tripwire, Inc.

If you'd like to receive new episodes as they're published, please subscribe to Innovation and the Digital Enterprise in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a review in Apple Podcasts. It really helps others find the show.

Podcast episode production by Dante32.