Cathy C. Smith

Cathy C. Smith advises executive leaders on the leadership, governance, and organizational capabilities required to navigate AI transformation successfully. With more than two decades of experience leading technology, transformation, governance, and strategic initiatives, she brings a practical executive perspective to the opportunities and challenges presented by artificial intelligence.

Her work focuses on strengthening leadership accountability, organizational readiness, governance oversight, and sustainable adoption across the enterprise. As CEO of Chameleon Consulting, Cathy developed the Executive AI Transformation Model™ to help organizations align leadership, governance, talent, culture, and innovation in support of responsible AI adoption and long-term organizational value.

The model is informed in part by her experience establishing an AI Center of Excellence focused on governance, workforce enablement, executive engagement, and organizational alignment.

Career & Industry Experience

Her career includes leadership roles in the financial services industry, where she led complex enterprise initiatives involving technology modernization, governance, risk management, and organizational change. She has served in numerous leadership and governance positions, including Board Chair of the New York Institute of Technology and Chairwoman of the Passaic County Workforce Investment Board.

Cathy holds a Master of Public Administration from New York University and has completed advanced education in executive leadership, governance, cybersecurity, digital transformation, and emerging technologies.

Community & Sector Leadership

Earlier in her career, she founded Women in Tech NJ & NY, building cross-sector partnerships that advanced technology leadership for more than seven years.

She is the author of How to Become a Digital Leader: A Roadmap to Success, a contributor to The Cyber Elephant in the Boardroom, and author of the forthcoming book Leading the Shift: AI Transformation and the Future of Enterprise Leadership.

Today, Cathy advises executive teams seeking to establish the leadership structures, governance practices, and organizational foundations necessary to achieve sustainable AI transformation.

Her approach combines executive discipline, governance rigor, and practical experience leading organizational change in an increasingly AI-enabled world.