DGTL Voices with Ed Marx — "From AC/DC to AI... Engineer to CEO" (ft. Eduardo Conrado)

Date: October 14, 2025
Guest: Eduardo Conrado, President and soon-to-be CEO, Ascension
Host: Ed Marx

Episode Overview

This episode of DGTL Voices dives into the transformative journey of Eduardo Conrado, tracing his evolution from engineer to soon-to-be CEO of Ascension, one of the largest healthcare systems in the US. Host Ed Marx explores how Conrado’s multicultural background, wide-ranging career in tech and strategy, and philosophy on leadership, innovation, and digital transformation shape his vision for healthcare’s future. Listeners will find practical guidance on career development and the increasing intersection of technology and healthcare leadership.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal Background and Playlist Inspiration

• [01:05] Eduardo’s musical taste is a mix of classic 80s bands, especially AC/DC's "Back in Black," and modern tracks shared by his daughter. He notes the cyclical nature of music taste across generations.

  • "So I got this hybrid, the 80s, the stuff that I'm used to, which never gets old ... and the new stuff that my daughter listened to." — Eduardo Conrado [01:13]

• [01:59] His multicultural family brings global influences; his Norwegian wife always adds ABBA to their playlists.

2. Life Mantras and Philosophies

• [02:19] Conrado references Thomas Friedman's book and the idea of "acting like an immigrant" to stay resilient and driven:

  • "You have to have that immigrant spirit to, you know, don't take no for an answer and then just work hard on it ... the harder I work, the luckier I get." — Eduardo Conrado [02:32]

• [03:12] Ed Marx highlights the positive impact and drive of immigrants in the US.

3. Eduardo’s Career Journey

• [03:28-07:02]
  • Born in Nicaragua; moved to the US in 1979 due to civil unrest.
  • Studied Industrial Engineering; first job at Texas Instruments.
  • Pursued an MBA and international management, with study stints in Spain and Norway; married his classmate.
  • Joined Motorola, where he spent 26 years, ascending through roles in engineering, marketing, IT, and ultimately as Chief Innovation & Strategy Officer—overseeing CIO, CTO, and strategy functions.
  • Became a generalist: “Center of gravity is engineering, but expanded into marketing, innovation, strategy.” [11:08]
  • Notable Quote — "You can go deep in your trade...but if you want to go wide, you have to build on your weaknesses, so you're constantly learning something new." — Eduardo Conrado [11:57]

4. Transition to Healthcare (Ascension)

• [07:18-09:45]
  • Tapped to join Ascension’s board because of experience in disruptive industries (telecom).
  • Joined management at Ascension to lead technology, innovation, and data science transformation.
  • Progressed to strategy roles, learning "the idiosyncrasies of healthcare" and drawing parallels between telecom disruption and healthcare’s transformation post-COVID.

5. Ascension’s Scale and Community Impact

• [10:02-10:39]
  • Oversight of massive clinical operations, including approximately one in every 50 births in the US; 53% through Medicaid.
  • "We probably have one of the highest [birth] volumes across all healthcare systems ... 53% are Medicaid." — Eduardo Conrado [10:17]

6. Career Advice: Specialize or Generalize?

• [11:08-13:13]
  • Two paths: deep functional expertise vs. broad generalist experience.
  • Cites advice from Motorola’s CEO: focus on strategy, capital deployment, and talent.
  • Strategy means questioning the status quo and balancing inside-out and outside-in perspectives.
  • Essential CEO/leader focus: simplifying complexity and enabling faster movement.
  • "Strategy ... means you gotta question the status quo every day." — Eduardo Conrado [12:38]

7. Value of Tech Background in Executive Leadership

• [15:04-18:32]
  • Having an engineering/tech background enables data-driven, process-optimization leadership.
  • Industrial engineering is about process redesign and simplification.
  • Success depends on extracting key KPIs and leveraging real-time data for operational and clinical advantage.
  • Prepares organizations for AI by establishing robust data engineering and cloud infrastructure.
  • "Being data driven and insights driven on everything you do will educate you on the strategy ... Healthcare is data rich." — Eduardo Conrado [16:24]

8. Strengthening CIO-President/CEO Partnerships

• [18:32-20:01]
  • CIOs should demystify technology for clinical/operational leaders, focusing on solving real business problems—not tech minutiae.
  • Build trust and communicate simply; "Their eyes will glaze over if you go too deep."
  • "The technologists that can figure out what the issue is and address that issue ... if they trust you, they're going to trust the technologist to take care of the complexities." — Eduardo Conrado [18:55]

9. The Future of Health Tech and Digital Transformation

• [20:01-21:37]
  • Real-time data and AI will continue to drive clinical and operational decision-making.
  • Data visibility enables more responsive, efficient management.
  • Key: "Don’t give me everything—give me what to look at so I can do something with it."
  • "I think the data component on healthcare is going to continue to grow ... Once you have the data, then as we're moving more into AI-driven insights, how do you start feathering that in to be able to solve operational or clinical issues?" — Eduardo Conrado [20:12, 20:46]

10. Parting Leadership Advice

• [22:23-23:32]
  • Encourage CIOs, CDOs, and functional leaders to push to the edges of business operations and learn the business, not just the tech.
  • Impact is highest when technology and data insights are grounded in genuine business knowledge.
  • "Go to the edge of that world in terms of the impact that you're having and learn the business itself ... allows you to migrate into other areas if you want to." — Eduardo Conrado [22:54]

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• [02:32] "You have to have that immigrant spirit ... just work hard on it. The harder I work, the luckier I get." — Eduardo Conrado
• [10:17] "We probably have one of the highest [birth] volumes across all healthcare systems ... 53% are Medicaid." — Eduardo Conrado
• [11:57] "If you go deep, you play to your strength ... If you’re gonna go wide, you gotta build on your weaknesses." — Eduardo Conrado
• [12:38] "Strategy ... means you gotta question the status quo every day." — Eduardo Conrado
• [16:24] "Being data driven and insights driven on everything you do will educate you on the strategy ... Healthcare is data rich." — Eduardo Conrado
• [18:55] "The technologists … figure out what the issue is and address that issue ... if they trust you, they're going to trust the technologist to take care of the complexities." — Eduardo Conrado
• [20:46] "Once you have the data, as we're moving more into AI-driven insights, how do you start feathering that in to be able to solve operational or clinical issues?" — Eduardo Conrado
• [22:54] "Go to the edge of that world in terms of the impact that you're having and learn the business itself ... allows you to migrate into other areas if you want to." — Eduardo Conrado

Episode Flow & Timestamps

• [00:17] Introduction to Eduardo Conrado and his career milestones.
• [01:05] Playlist discussion, generational music influences.
• [02:13] Life mantras; acting like an immigrant.
• [03:28] Eduardo’s background from Nicaragua to the U.S., early education and career.
• [07:18] The leap from Motorola to the Ascension board and management.
• [09:45] Little-known facts about Ascension's mission and impact.
• [11:08] Mid-career advice on growth: specialization vs. generalization.
• [15:04] The impact of a tech background on CEO perspective and decision-making.
• [18:32] Advice for CIOs on effective partnership with executive leadership.
• [20:01] The future: real-time data, AI, and decision-making in healthcare.
• [22:23] Final words: pushing boundaries, learning the business, and maximizing technology's impact.

Tone & Takeaways

Eduardo shares his story candidly, blending practical wisdom with humility and a sense of curiosity. The conversation remains inspiring and actionable for current and aspiring digital leaders, emphasizing lifelong learning, the courage to cross disciplinary boundaries, and the strategic centrality of data in healthcare’s future. Listeners are encouraged to leverage technological insights to drive real operational and clinical value—and to always keep learning the “business” behind the technology.

Summary prepared for professionals looking to quickly absorb the key points, lessons, and leadership philosophies discussed in this episode of DGTL Voices with Ed Marx and Eduardo Conrado.