Erik Langhans is Vice President of Employee Benefits Technology at The Hartford, leading large-scale digital transformation, AI-driven innovation, and cloud modernization initiatives. With more than 25 years of technology leadership across Fortune 100 financial services organizations, he has managed multimillion-dollar portfolios, delivered significant business growth and operational efficiencies, and spearheaded modernization programs that improved customer experiences, accelerated delivery, and reduced costs. A recognized leader in AI-first engineering, agile transformation, and business technology strategy, Erik is passionate about leveraging technology to drive innovation, scalability, and measurable business outcomes.
Recently, in an exclusive interview with CIO Magazine, Erik shared insights into his journey from a mathematics student at Ohio University to Vice President of Employee Benefits Technology at The Hartford. Erik believes the future of group benefits is moving toward year-round, personalized, AI-enabled engagement that meets employees where they are, while emphasizing that the strongest approach pairs AI efficiency with human support. On leadership in the AI era, he champions a bias for action, continuous learning, and building giver cultures that empower the next generation of technology leaders to solve problems at the root level. The following excerpts are taken from the interview.
Hi Erik. What first drew you into technology and business transformation, and how did that shape your path?
My journey into technology was initially sparked during my sophomore year at Ohio University, where I was pursuing a degree in mathematics education and took a whim on enrolling in early programming courses. What started as an interesting course description evolved quickly into a genuine love for architecting, designing and building software. This excitement launched my career at Nationwide, where my natural curiosity pushed me to keep expanding my horizons. I constantly sought out more complex engineering and architecture challenges, building on that initial spark to shape my broader approach to technology leadership.
As my career progressed, my focus expanded from purely technical problem-solving to larger scale business transformation. I realized early on that to drive true, lasting value, technology must be applied through a relentless customer lens. This realization fundamentally shaped my path, shifting my focus toward aligning technology with strategic business goals—empowering large, cross-functional teams to modernize complex legacy systems, navigate multimillion-dollar portfolios, and deliver innovative solutions at scale. Ultimately, my drive has always been to bridge the gap between technical execution and strategic vision, orchestrating meaningful, customer-centric change that moves the entire business forward.
As an IT leader, you bridge business strategy and technology execution. What part of that role energizes you the most every day?
What energizes me is the intellectual challenge of strategic problem-solving at the intersection of business vision, emerging technology, and data-driven analysis. I am deeply passionate about taking complex challenges and leveraging cutting-edge capabilities—like AI, advanced automation, and cloud platforms—to architect forward-looking solutions that deliver measurable business outcomes and enhanced customer experiences.
However, technology and data are only part of the equation; real magic happens through people. At The Hartford, it’s incredibly energizing to work with business leaders who understand the importance of responsibly integrating transformative technology across our operations. This deep commitment to delivering strong performance through bold innovation fosters a high-performing culture where cross-functional teams are driven by customer-focus, urgency, curiosity, accountability and a shared commitment to excellence. Bringing together diverse perspectives to tackle complex problems, aligning everyone around quantifiable metrics, and watching a united team execute on a strategic vision is what truly makes my role incredibly rewarding.
Group benefits are at the intersection of HR, health, and finance. What do you see as the biggest shift in how employers will deliver benefits to employees over the next 5 years?
Benefits enrollment is moving from once-a-year moment to a year-round benefits engagement strategy which, in turn, provides a better employee benefits experience for employees – from enrollment through benefits utilization. Additionally, Technology is moving benefits from disconnected products, systems, and annual touchpoints toward a more connected experience. That experience will recognize an employee’s current life stage, anticipate changing needs, and bring in human support during complex situations such as claims and leave.
AI can help enable that shift, but the data, integration, and experience need to be right. It also must make benefits easier for employees without creating more work for HR. Currently, multiple benefits providers are creating a strain on HR and resulting in disconnected employee experiences.
The opportunity for AI is to simplify complex information, personalize guidance, and connect employees with relevant benefits during enrollment, life events, claims, or leave. The strongest approach will combine AI-enabled efficiency with human support during more complex and sensitive moments.
The workforce is more distributed and diverse than ever. How will group benefits technology need to adapt to serve gig workers, remote teams, and multi-generational employees?
Benefits technology will need to become more flexible, personalized, and connected. As the workforce evolves, employees will expect benefits experiences that adapt to how they work and what they need. And employers want solutions that work with their existing HR systems, not another tool to manage.
For multi-generational workforces, AI-powered tools will help explain coverage, give personalized benefits recommendations, and make benefits decision based on employees’ life stages and unique needs, from student loans and mental health support to family planning and retirement readiness. While mobile-first platforms and human assistance remain important for distributed and nontraditional workers, who want benefits to follow them across jobs and potentially aggregate benefits from multiple income sources.
Outside of work, what book, podcast, or thinker has influenced how you approach problem-solving and leadership?
I regularly tune into Peter High’s Technovation podcast. It is an incredible resource for staying grounded in how technology executives are navigating modern leadership challenges, scaling digital and AI transformations, and structuring their IT organizations to deliver real business value.
When it comes to team dynamics, I am heavily influenced by organizational psychologist Adam Grant. His books, particularly Think Again and Give and Take, have shaped my approach to leadership. From Grant, I’ve adopted two key principles: first, the practice of ‘rethinking’—constantly challenging my own assumptions and avoiding the trap of groupthink; and second, fostering a ‘giver’ culture within my teams. I believe that leaders who focus on helping others succeed and building collaborative, psychological safety-first environments ultimately drive the highest-performing organizations.
For artificial intelligence, I closely follow Andrew Ng’s articles and updates. His pragmatic, builder-focused perspective on AI is invaluable. Specifically, his focus on the transition toward agentic workflows—moving from simple, single-prompt AI to multi-step, iterative AI agents—and his philosophy on Responsible AI have heavily influenced how I think about strategically deploying emerging technology to solve complex business problems safely and effectively.
Technology leaders need ways to reset. What is one daily habit or ritual that keeps you focused and energized?
To navigate the fast-paced, high-stakes demands of technology leadership, my essential daily anchor is a brief mindfulness meditation session every morning. Before diving into emails, metrics, or meetings, taking just ten to fifteen minutes to quiet the noise, focus on my breathing, and set a conscious intention for the day is incredibly grounding. This quiet space allows me to clear my mind, build mental resilience, and step into the day with a sense of calm and clarity.
If you could have dinner with any technologist, business leader, or innovator, who would it be and what is the first question you would ask?
Having recently read Walter Isaacson’s biography of Elon Musk, I would choose to have dinner with Elon. While he is undeniably a complex and polarizing figure, his ability to achieve what many deemed ‘impossible’—disrupting aerospace and automotive manufacturing simultaneously—is fascinating from a pure engineering and leadership perspective.
Musk operates under the belief that the only real rules are those dictated by the laws of physics, and everything else is just a recommendation. Knowing his obsession with stripping away unnecessary constraints through his famous ‘five-step algorithm’ (questioning requirements, deleting steps, simplifying before ever optimizing or automating and accelerating cycle times), the first question I would ask him is: ‘When you are facing a massive, seemingly intractable problem, how do you mentally strip away the layers of institutional inertia, legacy requirements, and “the way it’s always been done” to ensure your team is solving the absolute root-level physical problem, rather than just optimizing a broken process?’
As an IT executive, bridging business strategy and technology often means tackling deeply entrenched legacy thinking. Discussing how to foster a culture of radical, unconstrained first principles thinking—and learning how to recognize when we are optimizing something that shouldn’t even exist—would make for an incredibly energizing conversation.
What is your biggest goal? Where do you see yourself in 5 years from now?
My biggest goal is to remain an active, lifelong learner. In an era where technological paradigms like AI change almost weekly, the moment you stop learning is the moment you stop leading effectively. This philosophy aligns perfectly with our company culture, where integrity leads, performance matters, and learning is continuous. Living these values every day over the next five years, I see myself continuing to lead at the forefront of business transformation—executing large-scale, high-impact strategies that leverage emerging tech to solve complex enterprise problems, while delivering measurable excellence for our business and customers.
Equally important to me, however, is where I see myself in relation to others. In five years, my goal is to continue to build a legacy of leadership development. I am deeply passionate about coaching, mentoring, and cultivating the next generation of diverse, high-performing IT leaders. Ultimately, success for me isn’t just about the systems we modernize or the metrics we hit; it is about the talent we develop. I want to look back in five years and see a thriving network of leaders I’ve had the privilege to guide, empower, and help elevate into key strategic roles.
For someone starting their career in IT or business transformation today, what is the one piece of advice you wish you had heard on day one?
The single piece of advice I wish I had received on day one is to cultivate an unrelenting bias for action. In IT and business transformation, it is incredibly easy to fall into the trap of analysis paralysis—waiting for perfect data, flawless plans, or absolute consensus. But transformation is inherently messy, and momentum is your greatest asset. Early in your career, understand that taking decisive, calculated action—even in the face of ambiguity—is almost always superior to hesitation.
By prioritizing speed, executing quickly, and being willing to course correct in real-time, you do more than just deliver results; you set the operational tempo for your entire team. As a leader, your energy and bias for action are contagious. If you move with urgency and a focus on progress over perfection, your team will mirror that pace, ultimately turning strategy into tangible execution far faster than the competition.