--- title: Blake Williams description: Explore Blake Williams' path to CIO/CISO at Williams Cancer Institute, where he discusses the evolving tech landscape, the importance of learning, and the integration of AI in healthcare. image: https://www.theciocircle.com/hubfs/Blake%20Williams.png --- [![Black CIO Circle logo-2](https://www.theciocircle.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Black%20CIO%20Circle%20logo-2.png?width=160&height=60&name=Black%20CIO%20Circle%20logo-2.png) ![White CIO Circle logo](https://www.theciocircle.com/hs-fs/hubfs/White%20CIO%20Circle%20logo.png?width=160&height=60&name=White%20CIO%20Circle%20logo.png)](https://www.theciocircle.com) [![Black CIO Circle logo-2](https://www.theciocircle.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Black%20CIO%20Circle%20logo-2.png?width=180&height=68&name=Black%20CIO%20Circle%20logo-2.png)](https://www.theciocircle.com) - [Advisory](https://www.theciocircle.com/advisory) - [Advisory Overview](https://www.theciocircle.com/advisory) - [Tech Cost Optimisation](https://www.theciocircle.com/tech-cost-optimisation) - [Tech Leadership & Strategy Advisory](https://www.theciocircle.com/technology-strategy-advisory) - [Community](https://www.theciocircle.com/the-cio-circle-community) - [Community Overview](https://www.theciocircle.com/the-cio-circle-community) - Memberships - [Community Membership](https://www.theciocircle.com/community) - [Leader Membership](https://www.theciocircle.com/membership-leader) - [Executive Membership](https://www.theciocircle.com/membership-executive) - [Partners](https://www.theciocircle.com/partners) - [Partners Overview](https://www.theciocircle.com/partners) - [Insights](https://www.theciocircle.com/insights) - [Advisory](https://www.theciocircle.com/advisory) - [Advisory](https://www.theciocircle.com/advisory) - [Advisory Overview](https://www.theciocircle.com/advisory) - [Tech Cost Optimisation](https://www.theciocircle.com/tech-cost-optimisation) - [Tech Leadership & Strategy Advisory](https://www.theciocircle.com/technology-strategy-advisory) - [Community](https://www.theciocircle.com/the-cio-circle-community) - [Community](https://www.theciocircle.com/the-cio-circle-community) - [Community Overview](https://www.theciocircle.com/the-cio-circle-community) - Memberships - [Community Membership](https://www.theciocircle.com/community) - [Leader Membership](https://www.theciocircle.com/membership-leader) - [Executive Membership](https://www.theciocircle.com/membership-executive) - [Partners](https://www.theciocircle.com/partners) - [Partners](https://www.theciocircle.com/partners) - [Partners Overview](https://www.theciocircle.com/partners) - [Insights](https://www.theciocircle.com/insights) [Member Login](https://member.theciocircle.com/wp-login.php) [Join Free](https://www.theciocircle.com/request-access-to-the-cio-circle-community) # Blake Williams ![The CIO Circle Editor](https://www.theciocircle.com/hubfs/FAVICON.png) February 03, 2025 **BLAKE WILLIAMS** ### CIO/CISO at Williams Cancer Institute ##### **Can you please provide a little introduction about yourself** I'm from Louisiana and am based currently in Ecuador where I work as the CIO and CISO of my company. ##### What path have you taken to your current position? For 15 years I've been working with computers and also worked in the medical field so once I got my education in cybersecurity I was selected to work at a private medical company in charge of IT and cybersecurity. ##### Has it always been your vision to reach the position you’re at? Was your current role part of your vision to become a tech leader? It was my vision for quite a while and I'm impressed that I was able to achieve it at a young age. ##### Have you had a role model or mentor that has helped you on your journey? ##### John Mcafee was always a role model for me because he took cybersecurity quite seriously and was willing to innovate as well as promote the advancement of all things technological. ##### How do you see the role of the technology leader evolving over the next 5 years? It's going to change significantly. Artificial intelligence will alter the space and people will become far more reliant on technology. I think that eventually, technology is going to be massively integrated across various industries.  [![CIO Guest interview 2](https://www.theciocircle.com/hs-fs/hubfs/CIO%20Guest%20interview%202.png?width=1200&height=600&name=CIO%20Guest%20interview%202.png)](https://www.theciocircle.com/be-featured) **What skills do you think leaders of the future will need in order to thrive?** You have to adapt. This field changes constantly and you have to be willing to learn. There's no comfortable spot in this industry ##### Is there anything in particular that you would still like to achieve in your career or what is the next step on your journey? I am exploring other avenues in tech such as AI but I would like to revolutionize IT in some way it may take a while and it's not at the top of my list right now.  ##### What has been your most significant achievement or proudest moment as a technology leader? The biggest challenge I've faced is working at a small company where the budget isn't infinite and the acceptance of change isn't all the way there. There are lots of challenges in that kind of environment but I enjoy it as someone who likes to go down to the development level so that I can implement strategies that benefit the company.  *"You have to adapt."* ##### What role do you see emerging technologies (e.g., AI, machine learning, blockchain) playing in your industry, and how are you preparing for them? AI at the moment is a massive help to me but AI is also going to be implemented not just in my field but the medical field as well so we are also trying to be on the frontline in that aspect as well.  ##### How do you ensure that you and your team stay updated with the latest technology trends and industry best practices? This is a very important part of my job because most of the other employees aren't aware of it but that is ok and I like to help guide them because there is a lot of benefit in allowing technology into our jobs and its also important to be aware of the dangers as well so I make sure that our technology is built on a good foundation and also I teach awareness on how people try to take advantage of that because we've witnessed it multiple times in such a short span of time.  **Can you share a book that has the most profound impact on shaping your professional journey and approach as a leader?**   ![61BFOf9Ap-L.\_SL1200\_](https://www.theciocircle.com/hs-fs/hubfs/61BFOf9Ap-L._SL1200_.jpg?width=267&height=404&name=61BFOf9Ap-L._SL1200_.jpg) **The Lean Startup by Eric Ries**   Most startups fail. But many of those failures are preventable. The Lean Startup is a new approach being adopted across the globe, changing the way companies are built and new products are launched. Eric Ries defines a startup as an organization dedicated to creating something new under conditions of extreme uncertainty. This is just as true for one person in a garage or a group of seasoned professionals in a Fortune 500 boardroom. What they have in common is a mission to penetrate that fog of uncertainty to discover a successful path to a sustainable business.   A big thank you to [Blake Williams](https://www.linkedin.com/in/blake-w-33b924121/)from [Williams Cancer Institute](http://Williamscancerinstitute.com)for sharing his journey to date. If you would like to gain more perspective from Tech Leaders and CIOs you can read some of our other interviews [here](https://theciocircle.com/interviews/). [![Subscribe to newsletter 2](https://www.theciocircle.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Subscribe%20to%20newsletter%202.png?width=1200&height=600&name=Subscribe%20to%20newsletter%202.png)](https://www.theciocircle.com/subscribe) ###### Tags: [Productivity,](https://www.theciocircle.com/insights/tag/productivity) [Self Improvement,](https://www.theciocircle.com/insights/tag/self-improvement) [Leadership,](https://www.theciocircle.com/insights/tag/leadership) [Interview](https://www.theciocircle.com/insights/tag/interview) ![The CIO Circle Editor](https://www.theciocircle.com/hubfs/FAVICON.png) Post by [The CIO Circle Editor](https://www.theciocircle.com/insights/author/the-cio-circle-editor) February 3, 2025 ![Top-5-Leadership-Traits-Book-Cover-Aug-25-2022-09-19-45-81-AM](https://www.theciocircle.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Top-5-Leadership-Traits-Book-Cover-Aug-25-2022-09-19-45-81-AM.png?width=250&height=171&name=Top-5-Leadership-Traits-Book-Cover-Aug-25-2022-09-19-45-81-AM.png) ### Top 5 Traits of a Modern CIO The role of the CIO is evolving, learn the traits of a modern CIO and get access to our free membership. [![White CIO Circle logo](https://www.theciocircle.com/hs-fs/hubfs/White%20CIO%20Circle%20logo.png?width=150&height=56&name=White%20CIO%20Circle%20logo.png)](https://www.theciocircle.com) - Tools & Resources - [Our Trusted Partners](https://www.theciocircle.com/our-trusted-partners) - [Speakers](https://www.theciocircle.com/speakers) - [Team](https://www.theciocircle.com/our-team) - [Contact Us](https://www.theciocircle.com/contact-the-cio-circle) ©2026 Intercor Transformation Limited T/A The CIO Circle. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy](https://www.theciocircle.com/privacy-policy) | Terms of Service | FAQ's | Contact - - - ```json { "@context": "http:\/\/schema.org\/", "datePublished": "2025-02-03T8:15:00 AM", "dateModified": "2025-02-03T8:15:00 AM", "headline": "Blake Williams", "description": "Explore Blake Williams' path to CIO/CISO at Williams Cancer Institute, where he discusses the evolving tech landscape, the importance of learning, and the integration of AI in healthcare. ", "mainEntityOfPage": { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://www.theciocircle.com/insights/blake-williams-cio/ciso-at-williams-cancer-institute" }, "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "The CIO Circle Editor", "url": "https://www.theciocircle.com/insights/author/the-cio-circle-editor" }, "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "The CIO Circle a Trading entity of Intercor Transformations Limited", }, "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://26082710.fs1.hubspotusercontent-eu1.net/hubfs/26082710/FAVICON.png" }, "name": "Blake Williams" } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "The CIO Circle Editor", "url" : "https://www.theciocircle.com/insights/author/the-cio-circle-editor" }, "dateModified" : "2025-02-03T08:15:00.444Z", "datePublished" : "2025-02-03T08:15:00.000Z", "headline" : "Blake Williams", "image" : [ "https://www.theciocircle.com/hubfs/Blake%20Williams.png" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.theciocircle.com/insights/blake-williams-cio/ciso-at-williams-cancer-institute", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://www.theciocircle.com/hubfs/Black%20CIO%20Circle%20logo-1.png" }, "name" : "Intercor Transformations Limited T/A The CIO Circle" } } ```