Chief Information Officer, Astec
Search every verified Melanie Ruiz interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. In a September 2021 CIONET Spotlight interview, Melanie Ruiz, then Chief Information & Technology Officer at ABM, discussed the company's rapid pivot to remote work during the pandemic, including upgrading infrastructure and moving from Skype to Teams to enable secure, productive work from home within days. She noted that new services like enhanced clean and enhanced facility were developed largely remotely, with technology enabling quick training and client engagement. Ruiz also highlighted the challenge of building relationships and embedding technology teams within the business in a remote environment, which she described as critical for understanding day-to-day operations. Ruiz addressed diversity and inclusion, stating that business leaders should shadow and visit different communities to understand inequalities firsthand and make meaningful partnerships. She acknowledged that everyone has biases and emphasized the importance of self-awareness and deliberate action to remove them in hiring. Ruiz attributed the lack of women in technology to early grade school dynamics, where boys are more aggressive and confident while girls tend to hold back, and suggested that technology kits and coding games for young children can help shift the gender imbalance over time. She also predicted that smart building technology with sensors would improve client experience and operational efficiency in the next five years, while noting that robotics adoption would take longer due to human comfort levels.
“When lockdown came, the first thing that was top of mind was security. We had to create an environment where people could access our systems securely from outside the network, especially since we were primarily an in-office staffing management organization before COVID.”
“We quickly pivoted to enable remote work by upgrading our infrastructure and moving from Skype to Teams for communication, ensuring our employees could be productive from home within days.”
“During the pandemic, we launched new services like enhanced clean and enhanced facility, developed largely remotely, with technology enabling quick training, client engagement, and delivery.”
“One downside of remote work is the challenge of building relationships and embedding technology teams within the business, which is critical for understanding day-to-day operations and solving problems effectively.”
“I believe business leaders should shadow and visit different communities to understand inequalities firsthand, which can be eye-opening and help make meaningful partnerships rather than just checking boxes.”
“We all have biases regardless of our background, and it's important to be self-aware and deliberate in removing them, especially in hiring, to ensure diversity and bring different perspectives to problem-solving.”
“The lack of women in technology starts early in grade school, with boys being more aggressive and confident, while girls tend to be shy and hold back; addressing STEM skills from a young age is a long-term play to build a diverse talent base.”
“Technology kits and coding games for young children are more accessible now, making it easier to encourage early interest in STEM, which will help shift the gender imbalance over time.”
“In the next five years, smart building technology with sensors will improve client experience and operational efficiency by providing real-time data on usage and cleaning needs, while robotics adoption will take longer due to human comfort levels.”
“At ABM, technology is aligned with strategy and transformation rather than just finance or operations, which is fairly rare and enables us to better support corporate goals and client needs.”
Watch this episode of the CIONET Spotlight, featuring Melanie Kirkwood Ruiz, Chief Information & Technology Officer at ABM ...
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