Arizona’s Top Technology Executives Honored at the 2026 Arizona ORBIE Awards

Leading CIOs honored for leadership, innovation, and business impact at the Arizona ORBIE Awards on October 23, 2026 at Kimpton Miralina Resort & Villas.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Oct. 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The 2026 Arizona ORBIE Awards honored leading chief information officers (CIOs) from Discount Tire, Benchmark Electronics, Pathward Financial, Mount Graham Regional Medical Center and arrivia for their exceptional leadership. Hosted by ArizonaCIO, chapter of the Inspire Leadership Network, the prestigious awards honor CIOs who drive business transformation and industry impact. View finalists, partners, and more on the Digital ORBIE Feature. 

Held at Kimpton Miralina Resort & Villas, the ceremony brought together top executives and industry leaders to honor excellence in technology leadership across five award categories.

“Behind every technology innovation is a CIO leading the vision and shaping the strategy,” said Kris Singleton, ArizonaCIO Chair. “The ORBIE Awards are the ultimate recognition program for the leaders behind the work.”

Meet the 2026 Arizona ORBIE Award Winners: 

• Gary Desai, CIO, Discount Tire, received the Leadership ORBIE.
• Bipin Jayaraj, Global Chief Digital & Information Officer, Benchmark Electronics, received the Large Enterprise ORBIE for organizations over $1.3 billion in annual revenue.
• Charles Ingram, Chief Information and Digital Officer, Pathward Financial, received the Enterprise ORBIE for organizations over $600 million in annual revenue.
• Justin Millar, VP & CIO, Mount Graham Regional Medical Center, received the Large Corporate ORBIE for organizations over $320 million in annual revenue.
• Benito Ralph, EVP, IT & Security, arrivia, received the Corporate ORBIE for organizations up to $300 million in 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
• Business protection created by enterprise security
• Engagement in industry and community endeavors

Arizona ORBIE Keynote & Attendance: 

The keynote address for the Arizona ORBIE Awards was delivered by Michael Zuieback, Chairman, Discount Tire and Dean Muglia, CEO, Discount Tire who were interviewed by Ed Dzadovsky, EVP & CTO, Circle K. Nearly 300 guests attended, representing leading Arizona organizations and their technology partners.

The following partners made the 2026 Arizona ORBIE Awards possible:

• Underwriters: Comcast Business, Snowflake and Vaco
• Gold Partner: Fortinet
• Silver Partners: Cloudflare, Dynatrace, Nutanix, Palo Alto Networks, SentinelOne, Tata Consultancy Services, The Intersect Group and T-Mobile for Business
• Bronze Partners: Capgemini, Cato Networks, Citius Tech, CSI, Darwin Box, Integrated IT, Keenstack, RGP and Staffing Science
• Media Partner: Phoenix Business Journal
• Nonprofit Partner: Year Up United

To learn more about partnership opportunities and how to connect with leading C-suite executives across North America, click here.

About ArizonaCIO:

ArizonaCIO is the preeminent peer leadership network of C-suite technology and security leaders in Arizona. As one of over 50 chapters of the Inspire Leadership Network, ArizonaCIO belongs to a national membership organization exclusively comprised of C-suite leaders from public and private businesses, government, education, healthcare, and nonprofit institutions.

ArizonaCIO is led by a CIO Advisory Boards, 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 nearly 2,000 members across more over 50 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
nicole.lammes@inspirecxo.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/065a5f84-0e75-4979-9f4c-050c61598be2