Innovative Problem Solving

LES OTTOLENGHI 94MBA has earned a reputation as someone who seeks out big challenges and leverages innovative technology to solve them. As Caesar Entertainment Corporation’s executive vice president and CIO from 2016 to 2020, he brought Caesar’s gaming function online. During his tenure as CIO and chief innovation officer at Las Vegas Sands Corporation, Ottolenghi deployed the largest cybersecurity platform in the gaming industry.

In his current role as chief information and technology officer at Stride Inc., a technology-based learning company, Ottolenghi is establishing Stride as a cutting-edge “ed-tech” company. This summer, Stride launched an esports platform where students can build real-time strategy skills, work in teams, and learn to code. “You get to learn and have fun. When you associate those two things, guess what? People like to learn,” says Ottolenghi.

Ottolenghi is dedicated to fueling success for young people in the digital era, working with them “to have an impact on the world and actually change the world through startups, innovative technologies, and new business concepts,” he explains. He has launched a social incubator dubbed “Phoenix” in which students design innovative approaches to major problems (such as designing technology that can determine the truthfulness of online content). He founded NetEffects Ventures, a self-sustaining social impact venture fund, and has helped to grow the “living lab” collaborative workspace for students and tech companies at Black Fire Innovation in Las Vegas. The newly renovated ZenNest is his canyon-top corporate retreat and vacation rental, and his favorite escape for creative thinking.

Grateful for his time at Goizueta, Ottolenghi praises his professors for their insight. “They got my DNA. They were super supportive of me pursuing something bigger and more meaningful that would have high impact. None of them ever looked at the work through the lens of ‘so what’s the immediate return on investment,’” he says. “They were looking at ‘what was the impact on you personally and what could you do for the world around you.’”