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A headshot of Ben DeBono

Ben DeBono

Chief Innovation & Technology Officer

“There aren’t many places like Sunrise Banks There’s a can-do ethic that permeates the company. We believe we can do great things, and we deliver on that belief.”

Connect with Ben on LinkedIn

About Ben

Ben DeBono first joined Sunrise Banks in 2017 as a contractor and was promoted to a full-time employee in 2019. In 2025, he was named Chief Innovation and Technology Officer. Ben leads the company’s IT team to support existing solutions, empower them to build and implement new systems, and partner with bank leadership to envision how new and emerging technology can play a role in our future.

Ben sees innovation as a key driver for his team and the company, as a whole.

“It’s about never letting ourselves get trapped in old ways of thinking and always finding new and better ways to take on our challenge,” he says. “Whether we’re troubleshooting a tough tech issue or looking to how to implement a cutting-edge system, I want me and my team always challenging ourselves to think bigger and more dynamically.”

Embracing the “Why”

“At Sunrise Banks, we’re about more than just what we do, but why we do it and whom we do it for,” Ben says. “It’s not enough to go through the motions of running a successful business. We want to inspire positive change in our employees, our community, and our world. Sunrise walks the talk on that intention, and it’s one of many reasons I’m proud to work here.”

Ben describes himself as a life-long learner, so the company’s Always Learning core values resonates deeply with him.

“I love to learn and explore new ideas,” he says. That same curiosity permeates how I approach my job. I want my team to have an attitude of abundance – there’s more to learn, more to discover, more to accomplish.”

Experience and Education

For the first 15 years of his career, Ben worked as a database consultant. He spent many of those years with his father, who worked for more than 30 years as an Oracle consultant.

Ben holds two master’s degrees: one from the University of Northwestern – St. Paul in Theological Studies and one from St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minn. in Theology (for which he had to write and defend a 150-page thesis!) He earned his BA from the University of Minnesota in English Literature.

Personal Life and Interests

Ben is a lifelong Minnesotan and comes from a large, active family – he and his wife have eight children and two dogs! He enjoys cycling, running marathons, doing giant jigsaw puzzles, reading and watching movies with his family.