Todd Kackley is Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Textron, Inc., where he helps shape enterprise technology strategy, strengthen digital capabilities, and advance the responsible adoption of artificial intelligence. He is an active technology community leader, mentor, speaker, and advocate for developing the next generation of leaders. Todd regularly shares perspectives on transformation, resilience, purpose, and leading through adversity. His leadership philosophy centers on service, relationships, accountability, and creating meaningful business outcomes through people and technology. Beyond his corporate role, he contributes to industry, philanthropic, and community organizations focused on leadership development, cancer survivorship, and making a lasting difference for others.
Recently, in an exclusive interview with CIO Magazine, Todd shared insights into how his journey from project management to VP & CIO at Textron taught him that successful technology leadership is less about deep technical expertise and more about connecting strategy, people, process and technology to deliver meaningful business outcomes. He believes the most disruptive trend will be AI evolving from a productivity tool into an embedded, agentic business capability, and that true transformation will come not from overlaying AI on old processes but from redesigning work around people and AI with strong governance and human accountability. Guided by his experience navigating Stage 4 cancer while serving as CIO, he shared that empathy, vulnerability and service are irreplaceable leadership qualities, with his future goal centered on leaving a lasting impact by building a trusted, future-ready technology organization and developing the next generation of leaders. The following excerpts are taken from the interview.
Hi Todd. Your journey reflects a steady progression through diverse leadership roles in IT strategy and enterprise systems. What was the defining moment at the beginning of your career that set you on the path to technology leadership?
My initial exposure to IT started through project management. Early in my career, I was responsible for bringing teams together, aligning stakeholders, managing complex initiatives, and driving outcomes. What fascinated me wasn’t the technology itself. It was seeing how the right technology, combined with strong leadership and execution, could transform a business process, improve customer experiences, and create meaningful value.
As I moved from project management into broader technology leadership roles, I learned that the most successful leaders aren’t necessarily the ones with the deepest technical expertise. They’re the ones who can connect strategy, people, process, and technology to achieve meaningful results. That realization shaped the way I lead today.
As a CIO, you lead enterprise-wide and business unit digital strategy. What excites you the most about your current role and its impact on the business?
As CIO, I get to work with leaders across the enterprise to solve business challenges, unlock new opportunities, and help teams reimagine what’s possible. That’s incredibly energizing.
What makes this role particularly exciting is the pace of change. Technologies like AI, automation, advanced analytics, and digital engineering are creating opportunities that simply didn’t exist a few years ago. The real value isn’t in deploying technology. It’s in helping the organization adopt it in a way that improves decision-making, enhances customer outcomes, empowers employees, and drives measurable business results.
Ultimately, technology leadership is a people business. The impact I’m most proud of isn’t a system implementation or a technology platform. It’s building high-performing teams, developing future leaders, and creating an environment where innovation can thrive. When we can combine great people with great technology and a clear business purpose, that’s when transformational outcomes happen.
At the end of the day, what excites me most is knowing that the work we do in technology has a direct influence on the company’s ability to compete, grow, serve customers, and create opportunities for our employees. Being part of that journey is both a responsibility and a privilege.
Data is often called the new oil, but data governance remains a challenge. How do you believe organizations will have to rethink data strategy and governance in the coming years?
I believe organizations are going to have to fundamentally change how they think about data. Historically, data was often viewed as a byproduct of business processes. In the future, data will increasingly be seen as the product. In an AI-driven world, the quality of your outcomes will be directly tied to the quality of your data product.
That means governance can no longer be viewed as a compliance exercise. It must become a business capability focused on trust, ownership, quality, and responsible use. We’re also seeing a convergence of data governance and AI governance, because organizations need to understand not only where their data comes from, but how it’s being used by intelligent systems.
The organizations that gain the greatest advantage from AI won’t necessarily have the best models. They’ll have the most trusted, well-governed, and accessible data. That’s where the real differentiator will be.
The technology landscape is shifting from digitization to true digital business transformation. What do you see as the single most disruptive technology trend that will redefine enterprises in the next five years?
The most disruptive trend will be the evolution of AI from an individual productivity tool into an embedded, increasingly agentic business capability. AI will move beyond generating content and insights to coordinating workflows, supporting decisions, and influencing product designs and go-to-market strategies.
The real disruption, however, will not come from the technology alone. It will come from redesigning work around the combined strengths of people and AI. Organizations that simply overlay AI onto existing processes may achieve incremental efficiency. Those that rethink their operating models, decision rights, talent, controls, and customer experiences will create significantly greater value. The winners will be the organizations that move with appropriate urgency while maintaining strong governance, human accountability, and trust.
In an era where AI can generate code, insights, and even strategies, what do you believe will remain the most uniquely human and irreplaceable quality of a great leader?
I believe the most uniquely human and irreplaceable quality of a great leader is the ability to inspire and elevate other people.
Technology and AI will continue to transform how we work, but leadership has never been primarily about information. It’s about connection, trust, empathy, and purpose. Great leaders help people navigate uncertainty, believe in themselves, and rally around a shared vision.
The best leaders I’ve known weren’t remembered for the technology they implemented or the strategies they created. They were remembered for how they invested in people and the impact they had on others’ lives and careers. As technology becomes more powerful, I think these human qualities become even more valuable, not less.
Leadership is often shaped by what we read and learn outside of work. What is a book or article that has fundamentally influenced your thinking and why does it remain a favorite?
While I’ve learned a great deal from books and articles over the years, the greatest influence on my leadership did not come from something I read. It was navigating Stage 4 cancer, and continuing to navigate cancer, while serving as a CIO.
That journey changed my perspective on leadership in ways no book ever could. It taught me that empathy is a strength, vulnerability builds trust, trust unlocks innovation, and people matter far more than any technology, strategy, or organizational chart.
Cancer forced me to reevaluate what success really means. Today, I still care deeply about business outcomes and transformation, but I think much more about the impact we have on people. The experience reinforced my belief that leadership is ultimately an act of service, helping others grow, navigate adversity, and achieve more than they thought possible. From a legacy perspective, what endures is the impact we have on people.
More than any book on my shelf, that experience continues to shape how I lead, how I make decisions, and how I show up for others every day.
In a high-pressure role that demands constant decision-making, everyone needs a way to recharge. What is your favorite way to disconnect and find clarity outside of technology?
My favorite way to disconnect is spending time with family and friends. They keep me grounded and remind me that there’s more to life than what’s on my calendar or in my inbox.
Going through cancer changed my perspective in many ways. It reinforced that work is something I do, not who I am. I love my role and the opportunity to make an impact, but I’ve grown to believe more in working to live rather than living to work.
I’ve found that the greatest clarity often comes when I step away from technology and invest time in the relationships that matter most. Those moments help me recharge, maintain perspective, and ultimately show up as a better leader, colleague, husband, father, and friend.
What is your biggest goal? Where do you see yourself in 5 years from now?
My biggest goal is to leave a meaningful and lasting impact on the people and organizations I have the privilege to serve. That includes helping build a technology organization that is trusted by the business, prepared for the future, and capable of delivering value responsibly at scale. It also means developing leaders who will accomplish far more than I could accomplish on my own.
In five years, I hope to continue to lead, mentor, and serve at the intersection of technology, business, and advocacy. Titles and specific roles may change, but the purpose should remain consistent: helping others grow, bringing people together around meaningful challenges, and using my experiences, including the difficult ones, to encourage leaders navigating their own journeys.
If you had to give one piece of timeless advice to the next generation of leaders who want to lead with both performance and purpose, what would it be?
Lead with purpose, invest in relationships, and do not allow ambition to outpace character. Results matter, but how you achieve them matters just as much.
Be curious enough to recognize that you do not have all the answers, courageous enough to make difficult decisions, and humble enough to change direction when you learn something new. Build a network before you need one, seek mentors who will challenge you, and create opportunities for others as you advance. Most importantly, remember that leadership is not about being the most important person in the room. It is about serving others, creating clarity, and helping people become more capable and confident because you were there.