Railinc Chief Information Officer and Vice President Joan Smemoe was recently named a finalist in the 2023 Carolina ORBIE® Awards for Corporate Leadership. Since 1998, the ORBIE has honored chief information officers who have demonstrated excellence in technology leadership.

You can find the full list of finalists here.

On how she achieves success, Joan said, “Sometimes, I find that you have to slow down to go faster. It sounds counterintuitive, but in those slow moments you start to build relationships. You spend time really thinking about your strategy and planning, and down the road, this turns into an accelerator to get you to your results faster.”

Joan was nominated for her commitment to advancing Railinc’s mission of providing innovative technology solutions for the freight rail industry. Over the years, she has overseen major projects like the completion of a two-year data migration effort in 2023, and currently leads a team of over 100 talented technology professionals at Railinc.

Away from Railinc, Joan sits on the Board of Executives for the NC TECH Association, which has helped pave the way for young women and girls to break into the technology industry. She participates in their CIO Executive Roundtables to provide mentorship and discuss strategies for organizational success with other leaders in the Triangle.

Joan also was recognized by Supply & Demand Chain Executive as a leading woman in the supply chain in 2023.