DENVER, July 24, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The 2026 Colorado ORBIE Awards honored leading chief information officers (CIOs) from Johns Manville, Bio-Techne, Cetera Financial Group, Sage Hospitality Group, iFit, and Holland & Hart LLP, for their exceptional leadership. Hosted by ColoradoCIO, one of over 50 Inspire Leadership Network chapters, the prestigious award honors CIOs who drive business transformation and industry impact. View finalists, partners, and more on the Digital ORBIE Feature.
This exclusive event brought together top executives and industry leaders from Colorado. The morning honored excellence in technology leadership across six award categories at the Sheraton Denver Downtown.
“Behind every technology innovation is a CIO leading the vision and shaping the strategy,” said Matt Melbrech, ColoradoCIO Chair. “The ORBIE Awards are the ultimate recognition program for the leaders behind the work.”
Meet the 2026 Colorado ORBIE Award Winners:
- John Shellenberger, VP & CIO, Johns Manville, received the Leadership ORBIE.
- Matt Mehlbrech, VP IT & CIO, Bio-Techne, received the Global ORBIE for organizations over $1.28 billion annual revenue and multi-national operations.
- Michael Ragunas, CTO, Cetera Financial Group, received the Large Enterprise ORBIE for organizations over $3.5 billion annual revenue.
- Matt Schwartz, CTO, Sage Hospitality Group, received the Enterprise ORBIE for organizations over $1.1 billion annual revenue.
- Jason McMurdie, SVP of IT, iFit, received the Large Corporate ORBIE for organizations over $800 million annual revenue.
- James Johnson, CIO, Holland & Hart LLP, received the Corporate ORBIE for organizations up to $550 million annual revenue.
About the ORBIE:
The ORBIE is the preeminent executive recognition for C-suite leaders. Since 1998, the ORBIE Awards have recognized leadership excellence, building relationships between executives and trusted business partners, and inspiring the next generation of leaders. Finalists and winners are selected through an independent peer-adjudicated process led by prior ORBIE recipients based on the following criteria:
- Leadership and management effectiveness
- Business value created by technology innovation
- Engagement in industry and community endeavors
Colorado ORBIE Keynote & Attendance:
The keynote address for the Colorado ORBIE Awards was delivered by John Shellenberger, VP & CIO, Johns Manville, who was interviewed by Brian Gabbard, SVP, CIO and Head of Global Shared Services, Ball Corporation (ret). Over 250 guests attended, representing leading Colorado organizations and their technology partners.
The following partners made the 2026 Colorado ORBIE Awards possible:
- Underwriters: Comcast Business, Google Cloud, Prosource IT, Rimini Street, & Slalom
- Silver Partners: Cloudflare, Cohesity, CompuNet, Myriad360, Palo Alto Networks, & T-Mobile
- Bronze Partners: Authority Partners, Between Pixels, Elisity, Peloton Consulting Group, PwC, RevGen, SAP, & truData Solutions
- Media Partner: Denver Business Journal
To learn more about partnership opportunities and how to connect with leading C-suite executives across North America, click here.
About ColoradoCIO:
ColoradoCIO is the preeminent peer leadership network of chief information officers (CIOs) in Colorado. As one of over 50 chapters of the Inspire Leadership Network, ColoradoCIO belongs to a national membership organization exclusively comprised of C-suite leaders from public and private businesses, government, education, healthcare, and nonprofit institutions.
ColoradoCIO is led by a CIO Advisory Board, with support from an executive director and staff. Underwriter executives support the chapter and ensure the programs remain member-led and exclusive to qualified CIOs and members.
About Inspire Leadership Network:
Inspire Leadership Network is the preeminent peer leadership network of C-suite executives. With over 2,000 members across over 50 chapters, Inspire members serve public and private businesses, government, education, healthcare, and non-profit institutions. Inspire exists to help leaders thrive in today’s most challenging executive roles.
Media Contact
Nicole Lammes
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A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/433957aa-7372-4a7b-abe2-4fcbd96aad54
