2023 Rising Stars: Jason Boche

Jason Boche, 39
Senior director, corporate development and strategy
Union Pacific Railroad

Nominator’s quote: “In 2017, Jason led a multiyear effort to transform the existing cyber assurance strategy by incorporating the Center for Internet Security’s 20 Controls framework. Once implemented, the new strategy resulted in a unified cyber risk-management approach that was recognized as a significant improvement by the [Union Pacific] board’s audit committee and continues to form the foundation of the company’s cyber assurance strategy today.” — Beth Whited, Union Pacific Railroad

Education: B.S. in computer science, University of Nebraska Omaha; M.S. in computer science, University of Nebraska Omaha; MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University (expected December 2023).

Job responsibilities: Emerging technology. I work with external strategic partners and senior leaders to identify, enable and invest in transformative technologies that address long-term strategic opportunities in the railroad industry. The ability to harness the capabilities of emerging technologies is essential to ensure long-term growth in the industry and to ensure we can deliver safe, reliable service to our customers in a sustainable and responsible manner.

Career path: I started at Union Pacific in an entry-level position as a cyber/tech auditor. From there, I spent over a decade at various levels in the company’s internal audit function. This provided an excellent opportunity to learn about the industry as well as to diversify my experience beyond technical expertise.

Prior to transitioning to my current role, I led the teams responsible for cyber/tech audits and financial/Sarbanes-Oxley audits. As a senior leader in the internal audit function, I interacted directly with our audit committee and senior leaders throughout the organization — most notably, leading a multiyear effort to transform the existing cyber assurance strategy by incorporating the Center for Internet Security’s 20 Controls framework.

How did you get into the rail industry? I attended college in Omaha where Union Pacific is headquartered. Union Pacific had an impeccable reputation in the community, and I was delighted to learn the railroad had so much technology behind the operations. Union Pacific was my first interview after graduate school, and I canceled all the other interviews I had scheduled once I received the job offer.

What is the best career advice you’ve received so far? Recognize that you own your career development and have a bias toward action. Invite feedback from others and be deliberate in crafting an individual development action plan. Understand that early career success is more correlated with things like competence, hard skills and IQ, while teamwork, relationships and EQ become increasingly important to reach more senior-level roles.

What advice would you give to a new railroader? Think boldly and bring new ideas to the table but be humble and mindful of your own limitations when presenting them. The railroad industry can be quite complex and at best it’s extremely inefficient to attempt to become an expert in all facets. Try to learn enough about the different areas of the business so you can ask the right questions.

Focus on developing a diverse network of colleagues who can connect you with experts in each of the critical domains. Most importantly, focus on team wins and learn how to succeed through collaboration rather than competition.

What was your first job? I had a newspaper route growing up. During summer breaks in high school and early college years, I also went to estate sales and sold on eBay Inc. Not only was it a great way to learn about antiques, but it also was a good introduction into foundational business concepts: the relative efficiency/inefficiency of markets, the impact of asymmetric information and game theory of bidding strategies. Far more exciting than a paper route.

Share a fun fact about yourself I took up beekeeping as a hobby several years ago and had over 20 hives at my peak.

If you could have dinner with anyone alive in the world, who would it be and why? My parents. No one has done more for me or means more to me than my parents. It’s sobering when you realize that 90% of the time you’ll spend with your parents is over once you turn 18.

Who has had the biggest influence on your career and why? I owe the biggest debt of gratitude to the teams I’ve had throughout my career and the work they put in to accomplish our team goals. Their feedback and patience were instrumental in helping me to develop as a leader.

Beyond that, Union Pacific’s General Auditor (now retired) Chandra Henley was tremendously influential in my career. Chandra took a chance on me relatively early in my career and trusted me to interface directly with our audit committee on cybersecurity topics. I am forever grateful for the patience she and our audit committee exercised to give me the chance to grow.

Describe a major obstacle in your career and how you surmounted it. On a personal level, in 2018 I was struck by a car as a pedestrian and sustained injuries that required me to miss extended time from work to recover. While it was difficult to be away from the office, my teammates and coworkers took on additional responsibilities to keep things running smoothly during my absence. Among my many lessons learned, it was eye-opening to see the difference their kindness and willingness to help made while I was recovering.