Careers: Interviews
A Chat with Chant Vartanian: Technology entrepreneur and infrastructure innovator; Founder & CEO, M-Theory Group and with James H. Herring: Senior Technology Leader and Data Strategist; Chief Information Officer at M-Theory Group

This week, Stephen Ibaraki has an exclusive interview with Chant Vartanian and James H. Herring.

Chant Vartanian is a founder-led technology entrepreneur and infrastructure innovator who has spent nearly three decades engineering solutions at the intersection of enterprise technology, financial architecture, and managed services. Over the course of his career, he has brought more than 30 new service lines to market, the majority of which had no precedent in the industry until he designed, built, and introduced them.

Chant's operating mindset was forged early, running his father's small automotive service center after stepping away from college to help build the family business. The shop is still operating today, opened and closed every day by his 82-year-old father, a living reminder of discipline, ownership, and what it means to build something that endures. That foundation shaped everything that followed: his long-term view of work, his respect for operational rigor, and his belief that great businesses are built through relentless commitment to serving others.

In 1996, exposure to emerging technology fundamentally changed his trajectory. Compelled by the massive shift he saw forming, Chant made the difficult decision to leave the family business and pursue technology entrepreneurship full time. Since that moment, he has never worked for anyone else.

He began as a hands-on systems builder and value-added reseller during the earliest days of commercial internet adoption, experiencing firsthand the rapid commoditization of hardware and the fragility of transaction-based business models. Those hard-won lessons drove him to pioneer early financing-driven and subscription-like delivery models for enterprise technology, well before "cloud," "SaaS," or "as-a-Service" entered the industry lexicon. His instinct for identifying structural market gaps and engineering first-of-their-kind solutions became the throughline of his career.

As credit markets tightened in the mid-2000s and subscription software reshaped buyer behavior, Chant identified another inflection point: businesses needed enterprise-grade technology without the friction of capital expenditure, traditional underwriting, or fragmented vendor ecosystems. In 2007, working from a small loft in downtown Los Angeles, he formalized that insight with the creation of CapEx-as-a-Service™, laying the technical and financial foundation for what would become M-Theory Group.

Today, Chant leads multidisciplinary teams across product development, engineering, operations, and professional services, orchestrating a unified platform for designing, financing, deploying, and managing business-critical technology. His work has helped thousands of organizations, from startups to large enterprises, consume infrastructure in a way that aligns with economic reality rather than legacy accounting conventions. Each new capability introduced under his leadership reflects the same principle: if the market does not yet offer the right solution, build it.

By 2026, M-Theory has evolved into an extremely proficient and disciplined data engineering organization, innovating once again to deliver a next-generation approach to AI computing and data sovereignty. True to form, Chant continues to lead from the front, building what does not yet exist and turning it into what the market cannot do without.

James H. Herring is an accomplished Senior Technology Leader and Data Strategist with over 31 years of experience driving innovation, digital transformation, and operational excellence in technology, consulting, and leadership. Currently serving as CIO at M-Theory Group. Prior to this role James worked as a Principal Program Manager at Microsoft, James specializes in leveraging advanced data solutions, cloud technologies, and strategic leadership to deliver measurable business outcomes.

With a robust background at Microsoft and Tanglewood Consulting (Managing Director), James has led high-impact initiatives, including implementing enterprise-wide data platforms and building teams to scale. His expertise spans data engineering, machine learning, team building, and stakeholder engagement, enabling them to bridge technical innovation with business strategy effectively.

As an Adjunct Professor at Southern New Hampshire University, James is passionate about mentoring the next generation of professionals, teaching courses in their graduate Data Analytics program. James holds a B.S. in Accounting and Business Administration from High Point University and an M.S. in Analytics from Villanova University. He recently completed his dissertation and has scheduled his final dissertation defense, after completing his coursework and comprehensive exams, as a Ph.D. candidate, for Organizational Leadership | Analytics at Regent University.

James is an active contributor to the professional community, frequently sharing insights on LinkedIn, engaging in industry forums, and events. He was a regular speaker at the Microsoft Ignite and intern Microsoft Ready Conferences for nearly a decade and is an advocate on behalf of fellow veterans in the Student Veterans of America, where he serves as Chapter President. Outside of work, James enjoys spending time with his wife of 30 years, enjoying time on the lake, and reflecting on his commitment to lifelong learning and impact.

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