Eversource Employee Wins CIO Of The Year 'ORBIE' Award

From Eversource: Eversource Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Kathy Kountze, a Sharon resident, is the winner of the prestigious 2017 CIO of the Year ORBIE Award in the Enterprise category. The annual honor, presented by the Boston CIO Leadership Association (BostonCIO), recognizes chief information officers in five key categories – Leadership, Global, Enterprise, Corporate, and Nonprofit.

“Kathy is a strategic and collaborative leader whose innovative thinking and strong ability to deliver complex technology projects have been critical factors in our ability to successfully execute on our mission,” said Eversource Executive Vice President of Human Resources and Information Technology Christine Carmody. “These technologies have fundamentally changed how we interact with our customers and improved their overall experience.”

Kountze is tasked with establishing the short and long term technology strategies to support the company’s business objectives. She is responsible for setting the strategic direction for information technology for the organization in all areas including, IT security and risk mitigation, IT project management and process improvement, enterprise application selection, implementation and support, information management, IT infrastructure and operations, IT compliance and disaster recovery.

Prior to becoming CIO at Eversource, Kountze was the Vice President and CIO for United Illuminating Electric & Gas in Connecticut. She holds a Master of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of New Haven and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Actuarial Math from the University of Connecticut.

“To be recognized among the best and brightest in Boston is an absolute honor,” said Kountze. “This success would not be possible without my co-leaders at Eversource who recognize the significance of IT’s role in the company’s overall growth.”

Nominees are evaluated on innovation, leadership, business value creation and community involvement. When not in the office, Kountze is a tireless advocate for STEM education, working with the Girl Scouts of Connecticut, Grace Academy in Hartford and a variety of other youth organizations in the Boston area to sponsor and encourage young women and men who are underrepresented in STEM roles to explore STEM activities and fields.

Photo courtesy of Eversource