Large Enterprise Finalists

Mike Conley, Vice President of Information Technology Services at East Penn Manufacturing, is a transformational leader with over 30 years of experience driving enterprise IT, cybersecurity, and operations. He leads large-scale digital initiatives that strengthen resilience, accelerate decision-making, and deliver measurable business value. Known for building high-performing teams and trusted business partnerships, Mike aligns technology with strategic growth while developing future leaders through mentorship and a culture of innovation and excellence.

I’m most proud of how the team strengthened the foundation of East Penn’s operations while positioning the company for sustained digital advantage. Beyond technology, we invested in people, processes, and culture, and built strong business partnerships through consistent stakeholder engagement and alignment to operational priorities. We delivered measurable outcomes, including improved manufacturing uptime, enhanced safety and risk mitigation, faster decision-making through better data access, and strengthened cybersecurity posture with ISO 27001 certification. These efforts increased operational efficiency, reduced risk, and supported scalable growth; all achieved with disciplined fiscal stewardship and a focus on modernizing operations.

Melanie Harris joined the School District of Philadelphia in 1999 and has served as the Chief Information Officer for almost 20 years. She is responsible for the strategic use of technology across the educational, administrative and operational areas of the District. She leads the teams responsible for all aspects of AI strategy, IT infrastructure, cyber security, educational technology, IT apprenticeships, as well as enterprise systems deployment, which includes development, data management, integrations, training, and support.

My team ensures that all 9,000 instructional spaces in the School District of Philadelphia offer teachers and students access to robust, secure internet connectivity (90 GBPS), Chromebooks, interactive flat panels, and state of the art computer labs to support collaborative and engaging instruction. We also promote internet safety through our elementary school digital literacy curriculum and through robust cyber safeguards including multi-factor authentication for 20,000+ employees. We also prioritize ease of access to digital tools through use of single sign-on portals for staff, students, and families, connecting them with over 70 instructional and business applications.

As PECO's CIO, Jennifer Peterson-Gutleber leads enterprise technology portfolios spanning customer, corporate, analytics, data, and AI-driven capabilities. With more than 25 years of experience in the utility industry, she has led large-scale digital transformation, enterprise platform modernization, and complex IT operations. Her leadership focuses on leveraging data, analytics, and emerging AI innovations to deliver measurable business value, enhance customer outcomes, and build scalable technology solutions that advance operational excellence across the enterprise.

Under my leadership, our IT team delivered transformative results, driving measurable business value through strategic innovation and operational excellence. We enabled new revenue streams, achieved significant cost savings, and elevated organizational satisfaction by aligning technology initiatives with core business objectives. Our talent development practices fostered a high-performing culture, resulting in breakthrough accomplishments and sustained enterprise impact. These achievements reflect our commitment to advancing the organization’s mission and exemplify the power of collaborative leadership and continuous improvement.

Andy Santacroce is a dynamic technology leader and Vice President/Deputy CIO with a proven track record of delivering enterprise-scale solutions across industries. He excels in strategic planning, portfolio management, and digital transformation, including core systems, analytics, and cloud initiatives. Known for building high-performing teams and strong partnerships, he drives innovation and operational excellence while advancing sustainable technology practices as a board member at SustainableIT.org.

Under my leadership, teams delivered transformative enterprise initiatives that modernized core insurance operations supporting more than $5 billion in annual premium, including implementation of policy, billing, and claims platforms that improved resilience, scalability, and customer service. We also led major business transformations, including SAP S/4HANA Cloud, Workday, ADP, and IFRS implementations across multiple companies, enhancing operational efficiency, compliance, and decision-making. Additionally, we advanced analytics, automation, DevOps, IoT, cybersecurity, and shared architecture capabilities, creating measurable business value. Most importantly, we built high-performing teams trusted to successfully execute complex change and deliver sustainable enterprise results.