Notable CIO Appointments and Leadership Shifts in Southeast Asia's IT Sector

As we begin 2025, IT leadership roles are encountering greater challenges than ever before. However, with recent movements and appointments this month, CIOs and IT leaders are more than prepared to turn these challenges into opportunities. Effective leadership is defined by influence rather than authority, a quality clearly demonstrated by the newly appointed leaders in Southeast Asia’s IT sector. Here's a quick overview of some of the notable CIO appointments and shifts that took place in January 2025.

Help Education Group appoints James Thang as its new Chief Information Officer

James Thang previously served as the Group CIO of Malaysia's UCSI Group Holdings for over three years, leading the group's digital transformation efforts across its subsidiaries. With more than 27 years of corporate experience, James specializes in software development, digital transformation, digitalization strategy, IT project management, and people leadership, having gained extensive international experience across the Asia Pacific, China, and Europe.

ANKH names Aaron Lee as its new Group Chief Information Officer

Aaron is a fintech and digital transformation expert with over 25 years of experience in IT strategic planning, project management, and strategic partnerships. Before this, he served as the Chief Technology Officer at YF Life Insurance International Limited for 18 months and as the CIO of Blue Insurance for over two years.

Trusted Novus Bank names Huan Tran as its new Chief Information Officer

Huan is an accomplished technologist and digital architect with expertise in digital transformation, enterprise architecture, and innovation. Before this role, he served as the President of CIO Vietnam for six years. Huan also held positions as the CTO of SonKim Group & SonKim Retail for five years and as VP and CIO of Vinfast LLC for nearly a year. He spent the majority of his career at IBM Vietnam, where he worked for over a decade and served as CTO for more than seven years.

DXC Technology appoints Brad Novak as its Chief Information Officer

In this position, Novak will strategically integrate AI across the infrastructure. He will also lead efforts to unify, standardize, and streamline various platforms, tools, and processes to boost workforce productivity and operational efficiency. With over 30 years of experience in financial services, Novak is a seasoned technologist with expertise in application development, infrastructure, and service management.

CoreWeave names Sandy Venugopal as its Chief Information Officer

As CoreWeave's head of IT and digital transformation strategy, Venugopal works toward the establishment of a strong foundation to help the company in its rapid growth and scalability. Venugopal has over two decades of experience in technology leadership and digital transformation and is effectively driving the innovation, operational efficiencies and growth in businesses of global reach.

Woolpert Appoints Carl Lucas as Chief Information Officer

Woolpert has made an announcement appointing Carl Lucas as a Chief Information Officer who will thereby oversee all kinds of IT development, integrations, and Security functions regarding the globally owned architecture, engineering, and geospatial (AEG) operations of the emerging company, as well as its artificial intelligence technologies. Lucas boasts 30 years of global IT experience overall and has worked in the geospatial industry for 10 years, providing information technology strategy and leadership to numerous tech startups, Fortune 500 companies, and private equity-backed firms.

CNH elevates Luis Abreu to Chief Information Officer

Having most recently served as Acting CIO, Luis Abreu has now been promoted to the company’s Global Leadership Team (GLT) to further drive the rapid growth and efficient execution of CNH’s strategic priorities for sustainable growth on a global scale. Abreu contributes more than 20 years of experience gained from working with CNH and its predecessors.

Boeing names Dana Deasy as its Chief Information Officer

Boeing recently appointed Dana Deasy to the position of Chief Information Digital Officer and Senior Vice President of Information Technology & Data Analytics effective December 31, 2024. Deasy will be responsible for all aspects of information technology, information security, and analytics and data. He will report directly to Boeing President and CEO Kelly Ortberg and also will be a member of the company's Executive Council.