Episode 7 welcomes CISO Isaac Straley to explore the evolving role of the CISO in higher education — from reporting lines and key relationships with CIOs, presidents, and budget offices to the human impact of breaches.

Bo and Dana discuss practical leadership lessons, collaborative security models like CANSOC, and how security programs should enable research and campus life rather than simply impose controls.

Key takeaways: prioritize people, translate technical controls into institutional outcomes, and build trust across campus to manage risk effectively.

Isaac Straley | LinkedIn

CanSSOC

In part two of their storytelling arc, Bo and Dana unpack the leadership lessons behind their most memorable IT projects. From trust-building in crisis to the art of triage and communication, they explore what it really takes to steer technology through chaos. With reflections on collaboration, resilience, and the occasional comic relief, this episode turns hard-won experience into practical wisdom for anyone leading tech in higher ed.

In this episode Bo and Dana share unfiltered stories of major IT challenges and wins from their careers in higher education — from a risky Office 365 migration and a campus-wide ERP rollout (Project Beacon) to building a Data Resource Center and a resilient campus network through COVID and Hurricane Fiona.

They highlight practical leadership lessons: communication and trust, listening to stakeholders, turning skeptics into allies, and focusing on student experience and process maturity. Expect candid insights on change management, collaboration across IT, libraries and research, and how persistence and transparency pay off.

In this episode of Bytes of Experience, Bo  and Dana  explore the cultural conflicts CIOs face in higher education—resistance to change, shared governance versus agility, misaligned priorities, reporting structures, security and innovation tensions, and uneven digital literacy.

They share examples from campus life, discuss strategies for turning conflict into opportunity through cultural change and storytelling, and present a day‑in‑the‑life profile of Dr. Abby Lee, a CIO balancing diplomacy, strategy, and rapid context switching.

Bo Wandschneider and Dana Sanderson discuss the modern CIO’s challenges in higher education, exploring five themes: translation between tech and stakeholders, navigating institutional culture and shared governance, strategic influence beyond IT, emotional intelligence in leadership, and metrics, wins, and accountability.

This is Part 1 of the episode series, highlighting storytelling, digital moments, building partnerships, trust during crises, and how to communicate wins; Part 2 will follow to cover cultural conflicts and a day-in-the-life CIO story.

Two recently retired CIOs, Bo Wandschneider and Dana Sanderson, reflect on decades of higher education IT evolution. They trace the journey from punch cards and mainframes to cloud platforms, discuss the tension between centralized and decentralized IT, and share lessons about culture, governance, funding, and strategic planning.

The episode also tackles pressing pressure points—security, privacy, accessibility, sustainability, and the impact of AI—while offering leadership takeaways about perseverance, listening, and collaborative strategy.

Resources:

Link to "The Crisis in Information Technology Support: Has Our Current Model Reached Its Limit "- Polley McClure

In the pilot episode of Bytes of Experience, retired higher-ed CIOs Bo Wandschneider and Dana Sanderson introduce themselves and share the journeys that brought them into university IT leadership. They reflect on pivotal career moments, the shift from technical expert to people-centered leader, and the evolving scope and pressures of the CIO role.

The hosts explain the podcast’s purpose: candid, unfiltered conversations about IT strategy, governance, AI, financial challenges in higher education, and practical lessons for CIOs, IT teams, and institutional leaders—inviting listeners to learn, contribute topics, and stay connected to the community.

Glen Hicks | LinkedIn

Rewired not Retired Rewired Not Retired by Glen Hicks on Apple Books

In this episode of Bytes of Experience, Bo Wandschneider and Dana Sanderson talk with Martin Bernier, CIO at the University of Ottawa, about what happens when a faculty IT team joins forces with campus IT. Martin shares the story of integrating the Faculty of Medicine’s IT group into the enterprise fold—why the decision was made, how the process unfolded, and what others can learn from it.

But beyond structure and strategy, this conversation is about leadership with heart. Martin reflects on the importance of transparency, trust, timing, and people, showing how integration succeeds when leaders focus on relationships as much as reporting lines. From governance shifts to benchmarking data, and from friction points to new efficiencies, Martin’s story is a case study in leading with clarity, collaboration, and compassion.

Listeners will walk away with insights not just on IT integration, but on the kind of leadership that builds teams, inspires confidence, and makes change sustainable.

Bytes of Experience revisits CanSoC with guest Isaac Straley to explore how shared security works in practice. The episode digs into trust, real-time signal sharing, regional SOCs, equity across provinces, and how leadership can build a sustainable, collaborative cybersecurity model amid rising costs and AI-driven threats.

Listeners will hear practical examples, governance and technical challenges, and a call to stay committed to a vision of collective resilience for Canada’s post-secondary sector.

CanSSOC - https://canssoc.ca/ 

In this episode of Bytes of Experience, Bo and Dana sit down with David Shipley, CEO and Co‑Founder of Beauceron Security, to explore how leadership shapes cybersecurity culture in higher education. Shipley argues that building community and trust is the real work of leaders — the tools will follow. He also shares insights on where higher ed stands today in terms of security posture compared to other sectors, and why those who believe they’re “not a target” actually click 37% more often.

The conversation highlights:

• Why higher ed’s open culture demands leadership beyond technical controls
• How CIOs and executives can model behaviour that drives awareness and trust
• The role of governments and policy in supporting institutional leaders
• Lessons from phishing simulations and faculty pushback that reveal the human side of leadership

Shipley’s journey from university IT leader to entrepreneur underscores a powerful message: cybersecurity is a leadership challenge, not just a technical one.

COO Maroquine Aziz joins Dana and Bo to explore leadership beyond the IT silo—where systems thinking meets strategic vision. From her dual background in computer science and business, Maro shares how transformational leadership thrives on cross-functional partnerships, trust, and the ability to translate between tech and business.

This episode dives into:

• What digital transformation really means (hint: it’s not just new tools)
• Making AI a driver of change, not a side experiment
• Operational excellence as a mindset, not a metric
• Rethinking KPIs to include purpose, people, and platforms
• Navigating CIO–COO tension with radical candor and shared goals

Whether you're a CIO, COO, or aspiring leader, this conversation offers practical insights on building trust, driving change, and earning your seat at the strategic table.

The Speed of Trust

TopFractionalExecs

About Maroquine Aziz:

Maroquine is a seasoned transformation leader and COO with a track record of driving strategic change across complex organizations. As Founder of TopFractionalExecs, she provides agile, high-impact executive support to help companies stabilize, scale, and navigate critical moments of change. Her expertise spans organizational transformation, process optimization, and change management—blending strategic insight with hands-on execution.

You're listening to Bytes of Experience with Dana Sanderson and Bo Wandschneider, joined by Lori McMullen, the inaugural ED of CUCCIO. In this episode Lori traces CUCCIO’s origins, growth, and role as a national forum for Canadian university CIOs.

They discuss early challenges and wins—cloud adoption, cybersecurity, joint procurement—and CUCCIO’s evolution from a peer support group to a collective advocacy voice, including how it helped CIOs navigate crises like COVID-19.

CUCCIO History by Rick Bunt

Keith McWhirter, a retired higher ed IT leader and coach, discusses closing the gap between technology and people by focusing on communication, engagement, and the ‘translator’ role that connects the server room to the boardroom.

The episode covers shared leadership, transparency, overcoming a culture of fear around new features, lessons from COVID collaboration, and Keith’s next chapter as a no-fly-zone nomad and career coach.

Resources

Simon Sinek book link:

In this episode Bo Wandschneider and Dana Sanderson talk with Brian Stewart, CIO at SFU, about Uniform, an administrative benchmarking system used in Canada, the UK and Australia, and how it helped the University of Alberta drive a major service consolidation and cost realignment.

They discuss what Uniform measures, the nuance needed when using its data, how benchmarking informed a service‑hub operating model, and the key lesson: re‑engineer processes and reduce effort before cutting staff to achieve sustainable transformation.

In this episode, Gayleen Gray, CTO at McMaster University, joins us to unpack why blanket budget cuts undermine institutional resilience when IT is treated as a cost center. Drawing on Alex Usher’s insights, we explore digital transformation gaps, the rise of shadow IT, benchmarking strategies, and how smart investments in people and platforms can drive efficiency, trust, and long-term savings.  

Resources: 

"No One is Coming to Save Us”  June 12, 2024 🔗 Link to blog

“Nobody is Coming to Save Us, But…” March 17, 2025 🔗 Link to blog

“Where Canada Lies in Global Trends” (World of Higher Ed podcast) January 9, 2025 🔗 Podcast episode

"Radical Candor"

In this episode Richard Godsmark joins us to reflect on his career across Canadian colleges, Canadian universities, and now the Australian higher education system. He compares how governance, funding models, culture, and decision‑making differ across these environments, offering a rare cross‑border view of how higher ed systems actually function. From committee‑driven universities to policy‑driven colleges to Australia’s nationally unified model, Richard highlights how these structures shape leadership, pace of change, and the role of IT. We also explore his shift from Deputy CIO to Strategic Advisor for Digital Innovation at Sheridan, where he focused on long‑term thinking, institutional differentiation, and revenue diversification. Richard shares lessons about influence without authority, the value of protected thinking time, and adapting to new tech stacks and national policies. His reflections offer grounded insights for anyone navigating change or leading digital strategy in higher education.

Books referenced:

After On -  Rob Reid

Off to Be the Wizard - Scott Meyer

We are Legion (We are Bob) - Dennis E. Taylor

Robopocalypse - Daniel H. Wilson

Hustle and Float: Reclaim Your Creativity and Thrive in a World Obsessed with Work - Rahaf Harfoush

In this episode we explore the University of Guelph’s bold experiment in unifying library and IT leadership under one role — a model far more common internationally than in Canada. Mike Ridley, Chief Librarian Emeritus and former CIO, reflects on the decade he spent navigating this hybrid portfolio and the strategic intent behind it: elevating information as a core institutional asset, strengthening collaboration, and giving IT a meaningful voice at the senior table. Ridley shares candid insights into the cultural dynamics between libraries and IT, the importance of not fully merging the organizations, and the critical role of strong delegated leadership in making the model work. He also discusses the national context, including how library‑sector collaboration helped inspire the formation of CUCCIO.  The conversation offers practical lessons for institutions considering similar models: focus on information rather than technology or collections, invest in leadership capacity at all levels, and recognize the deep cultural identities within both libraries and IT.

Book References:

Moby Dick, by H. Melville

The Idea of a University - by JH Newman

In this episode of Bytes of Experience, we sit down with Jason Oliver, CIO at Western University, to explore what it means to lead higher ed IT across borders. Jason shares his journey from the UK to Canada, reflecting on sector similarities, cultural surprises, and the critical role of community in shaping student experience. From navigating financial pressures to modernizing governance and uncovering institutional blind spots, Jason offers candid insights into his first year at Western — and why he sees it as a 10-year transformation. Whether you're in tech leadership or just curious about how universities adapt, this episode delivers thoughtful reflections and practical wisdom.

In this episode of Bytes of Experience, hosts Bo and Dana speak with Kevin Magee about how CIOs earn trust at the boardroom table, what boards want to see, and how CIOs and CISOs should coordinate their message.

Kevin shares practical steps—show up, frame IT as digital transformation, use clear risk metrics (like probability of material impact), and do pre-conversations with board champions—to move conversations from technical detail to strategic decision-making.

Book Reference:

Never Split the Difference - Chris Voss

Welcome to Bytes of Experience with Bo Wandschneider and Dana Sanderson. In this episode Alex Matos, Internal Auditor at the University of Toronto, shares his journey into higher‑ed audit and explains how auditors and CIOs can work together to enable institutional strategy while managing IT and cybersecurity risks.

The discussion covers board oversight and IT governance, the evolving role of internal audit as a trusted partner, the need for technical skills on boards and audit teams, national benchmarking initiatives, and practical advice for building trust and aligning priorities.

Book References:

Quiet Leadership - Winning Hearts and Minds  - Carlo Ancelotti 

Bo Wandschneider and Dana Sanderson sit down with Mark Humphries, the new CIO at the University of Alberta, to explore leadership during major institutional change. They cover governance models, project initiation, consolidation into university-wide services, and the practical challenges of app rationalization and infrastructure at scale.

Mark draws on his experience at multiple universities and the Royal College of Physicians to emphasize the human side of IT: building relationships, earning trust, listening first, and shaping culture to enable sustainable transformation.

Resources:

University of Alberta Technology  With Purpose

University of Alberta - Continuous Administrative Service Improvement Program

Book references:

How Big Things Get Done

Reset

The Five  Dysfunctions of a Team 

In this episode, Bo and Dana sit down with Marc Denoncourt to trace his path from campus CIO to board director — and why he pursued the Chartered Director designation. Marc explains how governance training reshaped his leadership approach, helping him frame technology as a business strategy, engage boards at the right altitude, and build trust through transparency and partnership.

The conversation digs into what boards really want to hear (strategy, finance, and risk), how CIOs can translate technical work into institutional outcomes, and why student‑focused digital services consistently capture board attention. Marc also shares cross‑sector lessons from aerospace, banking, and media, illustrating how technology becomes a competitive differentiator in every industry — including higher education.

Practical takeaways include treating cybersecurity as managed risk, using clear visuals to explain technical debt, elevating IT through dedicated board committees, and three actions for CIOs: be a business partner, lead cross‑institution efforts, and invest in governance training to strengthen board relationships and strategic influence.

Two retired Canadian CIOs and guest Laurie McMullin trace the evolution of Canada’s digital research infrastructure—from servers under desks and fragmented funding to a national strategy led by the Digital Research Alliance of Canada (DRAC). Through advocacy, summits, and hard conversations, CIOs, librarians, VPRs, and funders reshaped how infrastructure is funded, secured, and shared across institutions.

Hosts Dana Sanderson and Bo Wandschneider reflect on the first 15 episodes of Bytes of Experience, distilling recurring themes like people-centered leadership, trust, change management, mentorship, security, and the intersection of technology and human connection.

They share memorable quotes, the "seven T's" of leadership (transparency, trust, translation, timing, tenacity, togetherness, temperament), lessons from guests about collaboration and governance, and practical takeaways about running a podcast and staying connected to the community.

In this episode of Bytes of Experience, Bo Wandschneider and Dana Sanderson sit down with Kevin Paul, Director of Cybersecurity at Cybera, whose unconventional path—from computer science to SWAT operator to cybercrime investigator—now shapes how he leads cybersecurity strategy for Alberta’s research and education sector.

Kevin shares how policing gave him a rare, full‑spectrum view of cyber incidents: from threat actors on the dark web to the victims dealing with real‑world consequences. That experience now informs how he approaches triage, speed of response, and the importance of collaboration in higher education.

The conversation explores:

• Why triage and rapid decision‑making
  • —core policing skills—are essential in cybersecurity operations.
• The realities of higher‑ed governance, and why pre‑agreed authority and practice matter during fast‑moving incidents.
• Nation‑state and foreign‑actor risks, including how legitimate student credentials sometimes become initial access points.
• Why the perimeter is dead, and why detection and automated response are now the real battleground.
• Cybera’s shared SOC initiative, built directly from member CIO priorities.
• A groundbreaking partnership with Australia’s ARNet, enabling a follow‑the‑sun SOC model and shared detection IP across continents.
• How this work ties into national efforts like CANSOC, and why Canada needs a unified future-state vision for cybersecurity.
• Why people and processes—not platforms—are the real gold in cybersecurity.

This episode is a deep dive into the future of shared security, global collaboration, and the evolving threat landscape facing higher education.

Book Mentioned: Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss 

In this episode of Bytes of Experience, Bo and Dana sit down with long‑time colleague and leadership strategist Megan Kirwin for a deep exploration of what leadership in higher education really demands today. Megan reflects on her early days working with Mike Ridley, Bo, and the Guelph team, and how those formative experiences shaped her belief that leadership is fundamentally about presence, curiosity, and humanity.

Across two decades working with universities nationwide, Megan has seen cultures transform — and crumble — based on how leaders show up. She shares why the most effective leaders blend vision and perseverance with humility, vulnerability, and a genuine desire to understand others. Drawing on her work in positive psychology and the now‑well‑established research on vulnerability popularized by Brené Brown, Megan explains why conscious leadership is no longer optional in today’s stressed and reactive higher‑ed environment.

The conversation ranges from 360‑degree feedback and performance development, to trust‑building, to the fragility of organizational culture, to the legacy leaders leave in every micro‑moment. Megan also reflects on the wisdom passed down from her father — including the idea that leadership is really stewardship, walking beside rather than ahead.

This is a rich, reflective, and practical episode for anyone navigating leadership, culture, or change in higher education.

Refernces:

Dare to Lead: Brené Brown 

Concious Friends Podcast

Kirwin Group

This episode explores Scarborough’s extraordinary diversity and how it shaped one hospital leaders approach to inclusion, belonging, and employee experience. Michele, a former Executive VP at Scarborough Health Network, walks through the creation of Communities of Inclusion (COIs), the organization’s first employer brand (“SHN… where the world comes to work”), and the Equity, Diversity & Inclusion strategy that connected workplace culture with patient care.

She also breaks down the six “C‑words” of inclusive leadership (from Deloitte’s model): Commitment, Courage, Cognizance of Bias, Curiosity, Cultural Intelligence, and Collaboration — and how these traits show up in daily leadership practice.

Michele also references the LEADS leadership capability framework (Lead Self, Engage Others, Achieve Results, Develop Coalitions, System Transformation) and shares insights from the ICD‑DEP103 program at Rotman, where she and Bo first met.

This episode is a masterclass in people‑centred leadership — in healthcare, higher ed, or any sector where culture is the real engine of performance.

Book Refernce:

Diffusion of Innovation by Everett M Rogers

Hosts Dana Sanderson and Bo Wandschneider sit down with Gary Doucette, former CIO of Acadia University, to explore what happens when a long-time technology leader steps into a new role as an executive advisor focused on process management and institutional transformation.

Gary reflects on leaving the CIO seat, shedding the weight of cybersecurity, and learning to lead without a team — relying instead on influence, trust, and deep listening. The conversation digs into why entrenched processes persist, how culture shapes (and often blocks) improvement, and why frameworks like Lean and ITIL matter less as dogma and more as shared language.

They unpack the realities of remote work, leadership gaps in higher ed, and the importance of slowing down to engage before speeding up to execute. Gary shares practical approaches for building buy‑in, reducing friction, and helping institutions connect operations to strategy in ways that outlast any single project.

The episode closes with what success looks like in a three‑year advisory role, why process work naturally gravitates toward IT, and Gary’s advice for new leaders navigating change in complex environments.

Book Reference:

Your Brain at Work - Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter All Day Long by David Rock

Lean Higher Education: Increasing the Value and Performance of University Processes, Second Edition 

by W.K. Balzar