DEARBORN, Mich., Dec. 04, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The 2025 Michigan ORBIE Awards recognized the exceptional leadership and innovation of top technology executives from Little Caesars Enterprises and Ilitch Owned Companies, Cummins Inc., PHINIA, Michigan State University, City of Detroit, Jet’s Pizza and Oakland Schools. Hosted by MichiganCIO, a chapter of the Inspire Leadership Network, the prestigious awards honor CIOs and C-suite technology leaders who drive business transformation and industry impact.
Winners were recognized across seven categories: Leadership, Super Global, Global, Large Enterprise, Enterprise, Large Corporate and Corporate. The ceremony, which took place at The Henry brought together top executives and industry leaders to celebrate excellence in technology leadership.
“Great CIOs understand how connections drive transformation,” said Darlene Taylor, MichiganCIO Chair. “The ORBIE® Awards recognize CIOs who leverage relationships to drive innovation, solve complex challenges, and shape the future of Michigan.”
Meet the 2025 Michigan ORBIE Award Winners:
Anita Klopfenstein, CIO, Little Caesars Enterprises and Ilitch Owned Companies, received the Leadership ORBIE.
Earl Newsome, VP & CIO, Cummins Inc., received the Super Global ORBIE for organizations over $15 billion annual revenue and multi-national operations.
Matt Logar, VP & CIO, PHINIA, received the Global ORBIE for organizations over $1.5 billion annual revenue & multi-national operations.
Richard Czarnecki, CIO, Michigan State University, received the Large Enterprise ORBIE for organizations over $3 billion annual revenue.
Art Thompson, CIO, City of Detroit, received the Enterprise ORBIE for organizations over $1 billion annual revenue.
Aaron Nilsson, CIO, Jet’s Pizza, received the Large Corporate ORBIE for organizations over $350 million annual revenue.
Dwight Levens, CTO & CIO, Oakland Schools, received the Corporate ORBIE for organizations up to $350 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 executives. 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
Michigan ORBIE Keynote & Attendance:
The keynote address for the Michigan ORBIE Awards was delivered by Anita Klopfenstein, CIO, Little Caesars Enterprises and Ilitch Owned Companies, who was interviewed by Mamatha Chamarthi. 250 guests attended, representing leading Michigan organizations and their technology partners.
The following sponsors made the 2025 Michigan ORBIE Awards possible:
- Underwriters: Fortinet & Google Cloud
- Gold Sponsors: Glean & YASH Technologies
- Silver Sponsors: Brillio, Cloudflare, Deloitte, HCLTech, Nutanix, Palo Alto Networks, Slalom & Tata Consultancy Services
- Bronze Sponsors: Arista, Between Pixels, Capricorn, Cisco, Comcast Business, Infosys, Island & People Driven Technology
- Media Partner: Crain’s Detroit Business
- National Partner: Year Up United
To learn more about sponsorship opportunities and how to connect with leading C-suite executives across North America, click here.
About MichiganCIO:
MichiganCIO is the preeminent peer leadership network of chief information officers (CIOs) in Michigan. As one of over 40 chapters of the Inspire Leadership Network, MichiganCIO belongs to a national membership organization exclusively comprised of C-suite leaders from public and private businesses, government, education, healthcare, and nonprofit institutions.
MichiganCIO 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 non-commercial 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 nearly 2,000 members across more than 40 local 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
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9ff0224f-5d1b-47fb-86fe-79c37e92320c
