When technology is moving faster than training programs and AI is rewriting job descriptions, how do leaders keep teams aligned, resilient, and ready for what’s next?

Paul Davis, Field CTO at NetApp, has spent his career at the intersection of systems, strategy, and human problem-solving—from rebuilding the Pentagon’s infrastructure after 9/11 to guiding enterprise sales conversations today. In this episode, he shares why redefining failure is essential to long-term success and how the CTO’s role differs from the CIO’s in shaping a company’s future.

Paul explains that while CIOs often focus on current operations, CTOs must bridge the gap between immediate execution and future readiness. That means asking tough questions about architecture, talent, and delivery assumptions—often before others are even thinking ahead. As a Field CTO, Paul blends technical credibility with business acumen to help sales teams connect product capabilities to customer outcomes.

You’ll also hear why “failing forward” is more than a catchphrase. For Paul, it’s a deliberate strategy to build resilient teams that can iterate quickly, learn from setbacks, and move on without carrying baggage from past mistakes. That mindset, he says, is what keeps organizations competitive in high-stakes markets.

AI is central to this discussion. Paul warns that without continuous upskilling, enterprise AI adoption can stall—or worse, introduce risk. He describes how legacy silos between infrastructure and application teams are holding companies back, and why breaking them down is critical for innovation, performance, and long-term cost savings.

Key learnings from this episode:

• The CTO’s job is to translate strategy into technical roadmaps that serve both current needs and future goals.
• Failing forward builds the resilience and psychological safety teams need to innovate at speed.
• AI is a productivity multiplier only when guided by skilled, experienced teams.
• Breaking down infrastructure-application silos improves uptime, innovation, and revenue.
• Continuous upskilling protects both productivity and intellectual property in the AI era.

If you lead technology strategy, manage high-performance teams, or need to align sales, product, and technical execution, this conversation is packed with actionable insight. Listen now to learn how you can strengthen your organization’s resilience, adapt faster to change, and turn failure into a strategic advantage.

Links:

• Blog/Podbook: https://www.bigleaf.net/podcast-episodes/020-paul-davis/
• YouTube Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSnAvj9VfOKQ2ISXOUIAc3Jse8S3eJIde
• LinkedIn Newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/build-relation/newsletter-follow?entityUrn=7313431647520006144
• Captivate Feed: https://feeds.captivate.fm/go-beyond-the-connection/