Stay ConnectedThe AI in Business Podcast is for non-technical business leaders who need to find AI opportunities, align AI capabilities with strategy, and deliver ROI.
Each week, Emerj research staff and journalists interview top AI executives from Fortune 2000 firms and unicorn startups – uncovering trends, use-cases, and best practices for practical AI adoption.
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Copyright: © Daniel Faggella, 2014
Today's guest is Bryan Willett, Chief Information Security Officer at Lexmark, joining Emerj Senior Editor Matthew DeMello to explore how organizations can navigate the trade-offs between cloud and on-prem AI deployments—balancing speed to market, cost efficiency, and the protection of sensitive data. Bryan also emphasizes the importance of a strong governance triad—security, privacy, and AI teams working together—to ensure ethical, compliant, and effective AI adoption. From managing data surges in IoT and biometrics to creating hybrid storage strategies, he shares actionable insights for leaders in security, IT, and AI strategy. This episode is sponsored by Pure Storage. Learn how brands work with Emerj and other Emerj Media options at emerj.com/ad1. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast!
Today's guest is Marie Flanagan, Director of Product Management in Digital Projects and Solutions at IQVIA. Marie returns to the program to unpack how AI and automation technologies are transforming drug safety workflows. Together with Emerj Editorial Director Matthew DeMello, she shares how IQVIA uses natural language processing (NLP) built on safety-specific training data to surface early signals from massive, multilingual datasets. She also explains why combining NLP with automation tools, such as RPA and OCR, leads to higher accuracy in adverse event detection, especially across social media and non-traditional data channels. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast! If you've enjoyed or benefited from some of the insights of this episode, consider leaving us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts, and let us know what you learned, found helpful, or liked most about this show!
Today's guest is Zar Toolan, General Partner and Head of Data & AI at Edward Jones, joining Emerj Senior Editor Matthew DeMello to explore how AI can be strategically aligned with corporate goals in financial services. Zar shares his perspective on overcoming barriers to AI adoption, the critical build-versus-buy-versus-partner decisions, and the human-centered change management required for scalable AI transformation. He also discusses the importance of responsible AI principles, leveraging data as a competitive asset, and evolving talent strategies to thrive in today's intelligence age. This episode is sponsored by EPAM. Learn how brands work with Emerj and other Emerj Media options at emerj.com/ad1. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast!
Today's guest is Bryan Willett, Chief Information Security Officer. Bryan discusses how organizations can shift security from a reactive compliance task to a strategic advantage by leveraging AI partnerships and transparent communication. He explains how proactive security packages and AI-driven tools streamline vendor due diligence and RFP responses, reducing bottlenecks and improving cross-team collaboration. Bryan also emphasizes the importance of evaluating vendor development hygiene and maintaining developer awareness as key components to managing evolving AI-enabled cyber threats. This episode is sponsored by Aquant. Learn how brands work with Emerj and other Emerj Media options at emerj.com/ad1. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast!
Today's guest is Miranda Jones, SVP of Data & AI Strategy at Emprise Bank. Miranda returns to discuss the evolving reality of responsible AI in the financial services sector. As generative and agentic systems mature, Jones emphasizes the importance of creating safe, low-risk environments where employees can experiment, learn prompt engineering, and develop a critical understanding of model limitations. She explores why domain-specific models outperform generalized foundational models in banking—where context, compliance, and communication style are essential to trust and performance. The episode also examines the strategic value of maintaining a deliberate pace in adopting agentic AI, ensuring human oversight and alignment with regulatory expectations. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast!
Today's guest is Neil Bhandar, Chief Data Analytics Officer for Generac. Neil brings decades of experience in artificial intelligence, from academic research to enterprise-scale implementation across manufacturing and financial services. He joins Emerj Managing Editor Matt DeMello to explore the hidden costs of building AI in-house, the risks of over-relying on large models, and how service organizations can deploy GenAI to improve efficiency and preserve institutional knowledge. Neil shares how GenAI is helping field teams access hard-to-find information in real-time — reducing the need for costly site visits and accelerating issue resolution. He also explains why human empathy remains essential in last-mile service roles, even as AI tools take on more diagnostic and decision-making responsibilities. Finally, Neil offers practical advice for enterprise leaders evaluating AI partnerships — emphasizing cultural alignment, modularity, and the need to protect what makes their organizations uniquely competitive. This episode is sponsored by Aquant. Learn how brands work with Emerj and other Emerj Media options at emerj.com/ad1. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast!
As global food demand accelerates, the agricultural sector faces rising pressure to innovate faster, safer, and more sustainably. Today's guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast is Brian Lutz, the Vice President of Agricultural Solutions at Corteva Agriscience, the world's leading pure-play seed and crop protection company. Brian joins Emerj Senior Editor Matthew DeMello to discuss their partnership with Deloitte to drive AI for discovery across biology and chemistry in agriculture. He explains how Corteva integrates AI into every phase of R&D — from genetic optimization in seeds to molecule discovery in crop protection. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast! This episode is sponsored by Deloitte. Learn how brands work with Emerj and other Emerj Media options at emerj.com/ad1.
Neil Bhandar, Chief Data Analytics Officer for Generac. Generac is a U.S.-based industrial manufacturer that designs and produces a wide range of power solutions—including portable, residential standby, commercial, and industrial generators, along with automatic transfer switches and related accessories. Neil joins Emerj Editorial Director Matthew DeMello on today's show to explore how companies can make smarter decisions around compute and storage—without falling into the trap of overbuilding for marginal gains. Drawing from his deep background in both business and analytics, Bhandar explains why many infrastructure conversations go off-course by starting with technical specs instead of strategic outcomes. He shares real-world examples of when less compute — and less data — actually delivers more value and why thinking in 3–6 month increments is key to making sustainable, cost-effective choices in today's fast-moving AI landscape. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast! This episode is sponsored by Pure Storage. Learn how brands work with Emerj and other Emerj Media options at emerj.com/ad1.
Today's guest is Josh Haddock, Director of Contact Center Technology at Herbalife. Herbalife is a global health and wellness company that develops and sells nutritional products, personal care items, and weight management solutions through a network of independent distributors. With operations in over 90 countries, Herbalife combines direct selling with a strong focus on community, personal coaching, and customer education. Josh joins the program to share how his team is redefining customer and distributor support in a highly relationship-driven business. Josh explains why adopting AI in the contact center starts with understanding the full journey—from digital engagement to live conversations—and why personalization is about more than just using someone's name. He also contrasts Herbalife's service model with his experience in financial services, where interactions are more transactional and easier to automate. The discussion highlights how Herbalife is leveraging AI for internal efficiencies like call summarization while carefully evaluating the risks and transparency challenges of deploying generative AI directly to distributors. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast! If you've enjoyed or benefited from some of the insights of this episode, consider leaving us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts, and let us know what you learned, found helpful, or liked most about this show!
Today's guest is Phil Christianson, Chief Product Officer at Xurrent. Xurrent is an IT service management platform that helps large organizations coordinate incident response and improve system reliability. They serve clients across healthcare, government, and financial services and are known for their focus on post-incident accountability and automation. Phil joins Emerj Editorial Director Matthew DeMello on today's episode to explore how AI can help break this cycle and build lasting resilience, drawing from years of experience in fintech, e-commerce, and enterprise IT. Phil outlines how war rooms — once a necessary constant in tech operations—are evolving with automation and machine learning, enabling faster response times, cleaner postmortems, and real accountability. He emphasizes how IT's central role in most organizations uniquely positions the function to lead AI adoption — provided the right technology, executive backing, and cultural readiness are in place. Want to share your AI adoption story with executive peers? Click emerj.com/expert2 for more information and to be a potential future guest on the 'AI in Business' podcast! This episode is sponsored by Xurrent. Learn how brands work with Emerj and other Emerj Media options at emerj.com/ad1.
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