AWS Executive in Residence Blog
Author: Ishit Vachhrajani
Ishit serves as CTO for AWS Marketing with a dual mandate: leading global technology, AI, and analytics while overseeing the Executives in Residence organization. His technology portfolio spans the entire MarTech ecosystem including marketing automation, channels, campaign, and content management platforms. He leads enterprise-wide AI innovation and adoption across marketing, while building sophisticated measurement and analytics frameworks that power AWS Marketing's performance. The Executives in Residence organization under his leadership comprises former customer CXOs who provide strategic guidance to AWS customers and internal leadership.
From Tools to Teammates: CTO’s Guide to Evolving Architecture for Agentic AI
In my previous blog, I shared how to evolve leadership for agentic AI using familiar mental models. As a CTO, I’ve been thinking about the corresponding architectural shifts required: We need to move from building predictable systems to developing autonomous capabilities that augment teams. Based on hands-on explorations and working with fellow technology leaders navigating […]
From Automation to Agency: Leading in the Era of Agentic AI
AI agents are as transformative as the advent of the internet. They will change how we organize work, manage operations, and drive value A question I often hear from AWS customer executives is how they should think about leading in this new era. I use the same mental models I use to lead my most […]
Fuel Your Data with Generative AI
Automate tedious tasks, gain faster insights through conversational analytics, and innovate using synthetic data – accelerating time-to-value from data assets.
Lessons from Edison’s Bulb: Using Generative AI to Light the Way for Business Transformation
“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” —Arthur C. Clarke Thomas Edison Center at Menlo Park in Edison, New Jersey, commemorates the birthplace of recorded sound and the world’s first practical incandescent light bulb. On New Year’s Eve, 1879, Thomas Edison used his newly invented incandescent lamp to illuminate Christie Street, where his laboratory […]
Managing in Economic Uncertainty: Cost Reductions
Managing in times of economic uncertainty means facing difficult choices. Reducing costs is a choice that leaders often face but mostly dread. Many of us on the Enterprise Strategy team have faced multiple macroeconomic headwinds or other industry- and company-specific challenges in our previous roles as CXOs. In this post, I outline some of the […]
Announcing the New AWS Enterprise Strategy Track at re:Invent
Recommended sessions for enterprise executives looking to accelerate digital transformation. On behalf of the entire Enterprise Strategy team at AWS, we’re looking forward to welcoming you to re:Invent 2022. With over 2,000 sessions including keynotes and leadership sessions, re:Invent provides an excellent opportunity to learn, share, and connect with your peers. We are excited to […]
Surviving Digital Disruption: Back to Basics
Internet was the future and the dot-com boom was just around the corner. I had just landed a job as a developer before I even graduated. I was looking forward to learning Java, working on some e-commerce projects, and being a part of the next dot-com success story. Optimism was in the air. Then, on […]
Hitting the Target but Missing the Mark
When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. — Goodhart’s law As a developer fresh out of school, the first two service level agreements (SLAs) that I was accountable for were on-time delivery (OTD) and first time right (FTR). While the intention of the first time right measure was to reduce rework […]
AI Explorations of a Former Media CTO (With No Prior Machine Learning Experience)
One of the challenges many enterprise leaders face is how to experiment and quickly create business value from machine learning without establishing large teams with specialized skillsets and infrastructure. As a CTO, I found that having access to Amazon Web Service’s pre-trained AI Services enabled our developers, even those with no prior machine leaning experience, […]
How to Build Data Capabilities
“He uses statistics as a drunken man uses lamp posts—for support rather than for illumination.” —Andrew Lang When it comes to the data, it is culture first and capability second. In my previous post, I talked about how executives can create a data-driven culture in their enterprises. In this post, I am going to dive […]