{"id":12193,"date":"2026-02-26T09:55:48","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T15:55:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/?p=12193"},"modified":"2026-02-25T15:55:50","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T21:55:50","slug":"exchange-cio-chad-lucas-recognized-as-2026-orbie-finalist-for-outstanding-leadership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/2026\/02\/26\/exchange-cio-chad-lucas-recognized-as-2026-orbie-finalist-for-outstanding-leadership\/","title":{"rendered":"Exchange CIO Chad Lucas Recognized as 2026 ORBIE Finalist for Outstanding Leadership"},"content":{"rendered":"

DALLAS \u2014 <\/strong>Army & Air Force Exchange Service Chief Information Officer Chad Lucas has been named a finalist in the 2026 ORBIE Awards<\/a> for the Dallas CIO category. Lucas was selected from nearly 400 nominees and is one of just five finalists in the Global CIO category.<\/p>\n

Since 1998, the ORBIE Awards have honored more than 5,000 top C-suite executives who exemplify extraordinary leadership, innovation and excellence. Rather than focusing on the products or technologies, the awards recognize people who drive change within their organizations.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no one more deserving of this recognition,\u201d said Exchange Director\/CEO Tom Shull. \u201cChad\u2019s drive and accomplishments propel the Exchange forward and reinforce our commitment to serving Soldiers, Airmen, Guardians and the broader military community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lucas, who joined the Exchange in 2001, has served as the Exchange\u2019s CIO since 2020. Working with more than 500 IT professionals in approximately 20 countries, Chad relies on a team approach to identify opportunities to enhance the critical services the Exchange provides service members and military families around the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe Go Where Warfighters and their families go,\u201d said Lucas. \u201cThe agility and innovation needed to adapt systems to align with varying mission requirements necessitates a collaborative team approach. Empowering the team to share their perspectives and expertise has been key to our success in rapidly deploying solutions, whether connecting a mobile field exchange\u2019s point of sale system in Poland, safeguarding commercial and government systems in Okinawa or rolling out new technology to capture efficiencies and accelerate speed of service at a distribution center in Virginia, Texas or California.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2025, Lucas and his team implemented more than 1,600 self\u2011checkout registers across 490 BX, PX and Express convenience retail stores; upgraded the Department of War\u2019s largest military exchange e\u2011commerce platform with emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence; and introduced robotics in major distribution centers. These achievements represent only a portion of the significant impact Lucas\u2019s leadership and vision has had on military readiness during his 24-year career of serving those who bravely serve our nation.<\/p>\n

Finalists and winners are selected by an independent peer review process led by previous ORBIE recipients. Recipients are judged on their leadership and management effectiveness, business value created by technology innovation and engagement in the industry and community endeavors.<\/p>\n

The 2026 Dallas CIO ORBIE Awards winners will be announced Feb. 27.<\/p>\n

Facebook-friendly version: <\/strong>@ShopMyExchange CIO Chad Lucas is a 2026 Dallas CIO ORBIE Awards finalist, standing out among nearly 400 nominees. Learn more: https:\/\/wp.me\/p9Q7PG-3aF<\/a><\/p>\n

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Since 1895, the Army & Air Force Exchange Service has gone where Soldiers, Airmen, Guardians and their families go to improve the quality of their lives by providing\u00a0valued goods and services at exclusive military pricing. The Exchange is the 51st-largest retailer in the United States. 100% of Exchange earnings support military communities. In the last 10 years, your Exchange benefit has provided $15 billion\u00a0in earnings that support the military community, including through contributions to critical military Quality-of-Life programs.\u00a0<\/strong>The Exchange is a non-appropriated fund entity of the Department of Defense and is directed by a Board of Directors. To find out more about the Exchange history and mission or to view recent press releases please visit our website at\u00a0http:\/\/www.shopmyexchange.com<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0follow us on X at\u00a0https:\/\/x.com\/shopmyexchange<\/a>.<\/u><\/p>\n

###<\/p>\n

Media Notes:<\/strong><\/p>\n

For more information or to schedule an interview with an Exchange representative please contact Teonja Tatum, 214-312-6514 or tatumte@aafes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Follow the Exchange:<\/p>\n

Facebook: www.facebook.com\/shopmyexchange<\/a><\/p>\n

X: https:\/\/twitter.com\/shopmyexchange<\/a><\/p>\n

Instagram: @shopmyexchange<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

DALLAS \u2014 Army & Air Force Exchange Service Chief Information Officer Chad Lucas has been named a finalist in the 2026 ORBIE Awards for the Dallas CIO category. Lucas was selected from nearly 400 nominees and is one of just five finalists in the Global CIO category. Since 1998, the ORBIE Awards have honored more […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":313,"featured_media":12196,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[25],"tags":[160,174,106,733,734,107,735,736],"class_list":["post-12193","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press_releases","tag-aafes","tag-army-air-force-exchange-service","tag-army-and-air-force-exchange-service","tag-chad-lucas","tag-cio","tag-exchange","tag-orbie","tag-orbie-awards"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"http:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/2026\/02\/26\/exchange-cio-chad-lucas-recognized-as-2026-orbie-finalist-for-outstanding-leadership\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Exchange CIO Chad Lucas Recognized as 2026 ORBIE Finalist for Outstanding Leadership","url":"http:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/2026\/02\/26\/exchange-cio-chad-lucas-recognized-as-2026-orbie-finalist-for-outstanding-leadership\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/2026\/02\/26\/exchange-cio-chad-lucas-recognized-as-2026-orbie-finalist-for-outstanding-leadership\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/ExPost-OrbieAward.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/publicaffairs-sme.com\/ExchangePost\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/ExPost-OrbieAward.jpg"},"articleSection":"Press Releases","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Teonja Tatum"}],"creator":["Teonja Tatum"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"The Exchange Newsroom","logo":""},"keywords":["aafes","army & air force exchange service","army and air force exchange service","chad lucas","cio","exchange","orbie","orbie awards"],"dateCreated":"2026-02-26T15:55:48Z","datePublished":"2026-02-26T15:55:48Z","dateModified":"2026-02-26T15:55:48Z"},"rendered":"