Lara Druyan stands out because she's actually sat on the buying side of technology inside a major bank, where she built RBC's West Coast innovation team and drove more than a dozen products into production—experience that lets her show startups how big companies really decide what to purchase. She also brings a product-manager's approach to the boardroom, pushing the idea that every director in 2025 needs to understand cyber and AI well enough to guide a company responsibly, and she's put that thinking into practice through board roles at places like CIBC Bancorp USA and San Jose's $2 billion pension system.