John M. Seral, 2009 Honoree
- Title
- Vice president, CIO
- Employer
- GE Infrastructure
- Location
- Atlanta
- First job:
- "Newspaper route. I learned a lot about customer service and collections."
- Most valuable career advice:
- "Always execute well, then don't be shy to ask for what you want and need."
- What do you love about IT?
- "Being close to new innovation. I love playing with new technologies and finding a place for them."
- Best mentoring relationship:
- "A very informal mentor who was available for a thousand two-minute midcourse adjustments that pointed me to where I wanted to go."
- Passion outside of work:
- "Family, golfing and boating."
- Twenty years ago, I was...
- "wet behind the ears but having a blast learning everything I could."
- In high school, I should have been voted "Most Likely to ..."
- "be an IT geek."
- Favorite book:
- Good to Great, by James C. Collins
- Leadership philosophy in a nutshell:
- "Stay very connected to the business process and cycle, propose innovative and low-cost ideas to grow the business, and hire the best talent to execute those plans. It is important to feel and respond to the business growth as well as the financial chall