CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 23, 2025 -- The MIT Sloan CIO Symposium today announced three finalists for the 18th Annual MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award. The winner will be announced on May 19, 2025.
For nearly two decades, the Award has recognized Chief Information Officers (CIOs) who lead their organizations to deliver exemplary levels of business value through innovative use of IT.
"We are thrilled to announce the finalists for this year's MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award," said Dr. George Westerman, Award Co-Chair. "These exceptional leaders are driving innovation and delivering significant, real-world impact within their organizations and the industry at large. It is a privilege to recognize their achievements and engage with them at this year's Symposium."
The 2025 MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award finalists are:
- Dimitris Bountolos, Chief Information & Innovation Officer, Ferrovial
- Monica Caldas, Global Chief Information Officer, Liberty Mutual
- Bill Pappas, Head of Global Technology and Operations, MetLife
"Being recognized as a finalist for the MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award is a testament to the exceptional work of our global teams at Ferrovial. We view digital transformation not merely as a project, but as a profound cultural shift driving the next generation of infrastructure," said Dimitris Bountolos, Ferrovial chief information and innovation officer. "I'm deeply honored by this recognition, which underscores our commitment to leveraging technology as a powerful catalyst to deliver smarter, faster and greener infrastructure at scale—positively impacting communities, economies, and society in general."
"I see technology as a force multiplier. It's a strategic lever that creates measurable value for the organization, and for our customers and employees," said Monica Caldas, executive vice president and chief information officer, Liberty Mutual Insurance. "Being recognized as a finalist for the MIT Sloan CIO Leadership award is a reflection of the collective efforts of all 40,000 employees across the company to harness the power of technology, and the outsized role that it plays as a competitive differentiator."
"I am honored to be recognized as a finalist for the MIT Sloan CIO Leadership Award, which serves as a testament to the innovative work and dedication of our entire team at MetLife," said Bill Pappas, head of global technology and operations, MetLife. "This acknowledgement reflects our employees' commitment to living our purpose and delivering long-term value for stakeholders."
Award finalists will be formally recognized at an exclusive dinner at the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium on May 19, 2025, where the winner will be announced. All finalists will also have opportunities to share their insights on panels the next day, May 20, as part of the Symposium programming.
After three rounds of extensive review, a panel of judges that includes CIOs, academic researchers and IT professionals selected the Award finalists who exhibit the key traits of a CIO leader in the following areas:
Judging Criteria
Key characteristics of CIO leadership include:
Exceptional Communicator – Articulates a vision for strategic business value from IT and works across the organization to build partnership around this vision. Focuses communications on value and innovation, not technology. Helps all IT staff to understand the business and speak the language of business leaders.
Recognized IT Leader – Clearly demonstrates value-for-money in the management of core IT services – providing the right services at the right price and the right level of quality. Recognized among peers as an effective leader of the IT unit.
Driver of Business Value – Understands the business and needs of the CEO, CFO, Line-of-Business heads and other senior executives. Ensures clear focus on potential and realized value in all IT initiatives. Incorporates IT into business decision-making by participating in key strategic conversations, suggesting innovative uses of IT, and for managing risk.
Trusted Partner – Exercises authority beyond IT itself. Considered a trusted member of the senior executive team, not just a technology leader. Suggests innovative uses of IT to transform the business – and successfully executes the changes. May receive additional non-IT responsibilities such as Chief Operating Officer or VP of Strategy, or strategic temporary roles such as Head of M&A integration.
These criteria are adapted from the award-winning book The Real Business of IT: How CIOs Create and Communicate Value, which draws extensively upon research conducted at MIT Sloan.
To register to attend the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium, taking place May 19-20, 2025 visit: https://mitcio.info/register.
About the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium
The MIT Sloan CIO Symposium is the premier global conference for CIOs and digital business executives to become more effective leaders. CIOs and senior IT executives explore enterprise technology innovations, business practices and receive actionable information that enables them to meet the challenges of today and the future. The Symposium offers a unique learning environment by bringing together the academic thought leadership of MIT with the in-the-trenches experience of leading global CIOs and industry experts. The MIT Sloan CIO Symposium is organized and developed by the MIT Sloan Boston Alumni Association. For more information and to register for this year's Symposium, visit www.mitcio.com.
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