Dive Brief:
- Musical instrument retailer Guitar Center tapped Adolfo Rodriguez, a seasoned tech executive with stints at IBM and Citrix, as its EVP, chief technology and information officer, the company said Tuesday.
- Rodriguez, who most recently served as SVP of technology transformation at Advance Auto Parts, will report to CEO Gabe Dalporto.
- As Guitar Center’s tech chief Rodriguez to oversee end-to-end technology, including emerging technologies, with customer experience in mind.
Dive Insight:
Rodriguez, who's also a guitarist with philanthropy-focused group Mind the Gap, joins Guitar Center less than a year into Dalporto's stint as CEO.
“Adolfo’s extensive experience and exceptional ability to harness emerging technologies make him a phenomenal addition to Guitar Center as we forge ahead with our transformation,” Dalporto said Tuesday in an emailed statement.
The company appointed Dalporto in November to replace Ron Japinga, appointing a new CFO and chairman of the board as part of a major leadership shift.
In May, Guitar Center appointed retail veteran Michael Martin as EVP of retail sales and operations. The company said in the announcement it was working to reimagine the in-store experience for customers.
Guitar Center is the latest organization to appoint a technology executive midyear, joining a host of firms in the financial services, retail and restaurant industries. Fiscal year alignment and ongoing transformation efforts are among the contributing factors driving the summer push, analysts told CIO Dive.
Rodriguez is also taking the CIO role at a time of change for the retail sector with tech leaders weighing the potential adoption of a growing set of in-store and back-of-house technologies. This effort includes generative AI use cases such as improving product search and customer support.
Amid the ongoing evolution of technology, companies looking for their next CIO will be gauging how well those executives can deliver transformation, according to Martha Heller, CEO at Heller Search.
"Transformational CIOs are the ones that can turn their architecture and their organizations into proactive, successful, business-oriented, flexible entities," said Heller. "That is what they're looking for from their CIOs, they want a modern IT organization that is coupled right up to the rest of the business.”
