Corporate Finalists

Amit Basu is CIO and CISO of International Seaways, a leading energy transportation company. With more than 30 years in maritime technology, he leads technology strategy, cybersecurity, AI, and digital innovation across global shore and vessel operations. Amit holds an MBA and MS in Information Management from Stevens Institute of Technology, with executive certifications from Harvard, Carnegie Mellon, and MIT Sloan. He is a Forbes Technology Council member and serves on various advisory boards.

At International Seaways, a global maritime energy transportation company, I led a cloud-first strategy years before it became mainstream, enabling seamless business continuity when COVID-19 hit. An outcome our CEO publicly credited to me on live television. Today, we are building on that foundation with AI powered automation that reduce manual work aboard vessels, accelerate business processes, and make employees more efficient. Alongside this transformation, our cybersecurity program protects both shore-based systems and a global fleet operating 24/7. My goal has remained simple, anticipate what is coming, build the right foundation early, and use technology to make the business better.

Phillip Dundas is Chief Technology Officer and Managing Director at AlTi Tiedemann Global, a $96B AUM ultra-high-net-worth advisory firm. Over 25 years, he has led technology organizations across wealth and asset management and capital markets in the US, UK, Europe, and Asia. He is building AlTi’s first integrated global operating platform with AI and data at its core, and is a 2026 ORBIE Award finalist and 2026 Wealthies Wealth Management CTO of the Year finalist.

At AlTi, I am leading the build of an integrated global technology platform, replacing fragmented regional systems with one connected backbone across finance, client, and portfolio data. The real challenge has never been the technology, it is earning trust in the data itself, so every downstream process, including AI, can be relied on. Along the way we retired multiple legacy ERP systems, significantly reduced manual reporting effort, and are using AI to automate reconciliation across a large global custodian network, work that also helped AlTi become a selected ultra-high-net-worth partner for Nevis Wealth, milestones in a journey that continues.

John Georgatos is Global CIO of VaynerX, overseeing technology, cybersecurity, infrastructure, and AI strategy. He is also CIO of Fireproof, where over four years he has helped more than 50 law firms modernize and transform their technology. John has spent his career leading complex technology transformations, building strong teams, and delivering real business value. Previously, he served as Global CIO at MDC Partners and Stagwell and held various technology leadership roles at WPP.

In less than a year, I led my team through a complete transformation of VaynerX’s global technology environment. We modernized infrastructure and security across 18 offices, 5 continents, introduced automation, standardized how we operate globally, and restructured the team around greater ownership and accountability. We accomplished all of this with little to no disruption to the business. The result is a stronger, more efficient IT organization that reduces risk, moves faster, and gives our employees the technology they need to do their best work.

As CIO at BioReference®, Merve Ozkus is responsible for the company’s IT and end user compute. Merve provides leadership in technology operations and strategy while ensuring an innovative and secure technology ecosystem. Merve brings nearly 20 years of IT experience & progressive leadership to the organization. She is ITIL and Scrum certified and holds an M.B.A. from Montclair State University. In 2023, Merve was named a Top 10 CIO in the Healthcare Sector by Healthcare Digital.

As Chief Information Officer at BioReference®, my team and I have led a transformative technology strategy that has strengthened operational performance, accelerated innovation, and expanded the organization’s long-term growth opportunities. One key accomplishment has been the development and deployment of a next-generation Laboratory Information System (LIS) to address the evolving needs of the modern clinical laboratory industry. An LIS is like the central nervous system of a laboratory, which has improved scalability, efficiency, workflow automation, and data accessibility across the company, positioning BioReference to better serve providers, patients, and collaborative partners.

Rodrigo Parrode is Wedbush Financial Services’ Global CIO & CTO and Chief Operating Officer of Wedbush Securities, leading technology and operations across the firm’s global businesses and its fintech companies. With 25+ years in technology, banking, and operations, he previously held roles at Merrill Lynch, JPMorgan Chase, DkIB, and Deutsche Bank. He holds a BSc from Royal Holloway, an MSc from University College London, and an Americas MBA from FIA, ITAM, Simon Fraser, and Vanderbilt.

I set out to transform Wedbush into a technology-driven firm, and we delivered. I forged disconnected functions into one business-aligned engine that delivers at scale. We launched a prediction-markets clearing business in weeks, among the first FCMs to clear regulated event contracts on day one. I founded Wedbush Technology Services and acquired underperforming firms, transforming them into core parts of our strategy that add value to our broker-dealer business. We moved to the cloud, modernized every client and advisor experience, and launched a responsible, enterprise-wide AI transformation. Today, Wedbush innovates like a fintech and executes like a market leader.

John Sullivan is Chief Information Officer for Major League Soccer and Soccer United Marketing, leading enterprise technology, cybersecurity, infrastructure, Sporting Technology and IT portfolio management. He created MLS Assist, the platform behind more than 50,000 player registrations across the League’s youth and professional competitions and leads MLS’s AI governance program. John serves on Gartner’s New York CIO Governing Body and founded Whitestone FC, a nonprofit soccer club in Queens supporting player development and educational scholarships.

I joined Major League Soccer in 2002 as its only technologist. The League had ten teams & a website. Today, it has global visibility. I built the technology organization that grew alongside it: League-wide cybersecurity, infrastructure connecting 30+ locations, enterprise business platforms, technology for our new headquarters in New York, & Sporting Technology supporting 28,000 matches each season. Most of my leaders were promoted from within. What I am proudest of is the people & what we built together. I love this game & the effort everyone puts into making it a success.