GET TO KNOW
accordingly would
have been needed.
Hopefully I am better
at that by now.
What do you
currently identify
as the major areas
of investment in
your industry?
What do you think is the
current hot technology talking point?
Firstly, it’s getting the code out of the door
as quickly as possible to meet the fast pace
of growing user demands. A wide variety
of tech solutions – from IaaS, CaaS, PaaS
and DevOps tools and processes etc –
make this possible.
Deciphering data is also a hot topic,
whether it be to understand and observe
distributed systems/applications or analysing
business data to improve, or self-generate
improvements via learning. This also comes
with a wide array of tech, from software
defined storage to analytics and AI-related
techniques, as well as hardware to store and
process data appropriately.
How do you deal with stress and
unwind outside the office?
Stress from young kids can eat office
stress for breakfast! But for me, unwinding
actually includes technology; trying out new
VR headsets, looking at new open source
projects, (trying to) understand how new
special FXs are achieved, etc.
Outside of tech, travel and being exposed to
new things, cultures, people and fresh ways
of thinking, especially ones that make life
simpler, definitely helps me.
If you could go back and change one
career decision what would it be?
I would have more training and educate
myself more, even about things I think I knew
about already. Education and training require
time, and so prioritising and filtering tasks
104
INTELLIGENTCIO
At SUSE, we adapt
and support open
source technologies for
our customers to use
appropriately and successfully. And we do that
‘openly’, in our relationships with partners,
customers, the way we do business etc.
Balancing security and maturity with
agility is key for us, ensuring innovation is
not done just for the sake of it but that it
is usable and applicable in solving real life
business needs. Investment in people is key
as well, particularly when it comes to hiring,
development and personal growth.
What are the region-specific
challenges when implementing new
technologies in the Middle East?
Firstly, customers in both the public and
private sectors are pragmatic: they need
software and solutions that work. They
need to be supported in driving forward
their businesses, reducing time to market
for new offerings and services, while being
cost-efficient. The Middle East region is
keen on implementing new and emerging
technologies. But still, like everywhere, most
“
STRESS FROM
YOUNG KIDS
CAN EAT OFFICE
STRESS FOR
BREAKFAST!
enterprises are not starting from scratch when
it comes to technology. They have existing
infrastructure, software applications, tools
and processes, with this existing investment
needing to be taken into account.
That’s why the industry is talking about bi,
or even multi, modal IT, whereby legacy
infrastructures must be combined with the
new, and both have to co-exist. The main
challenge here is to bridge the old with the
new, to securely run, maintain and prepare
those two sets of technologies for the future.
What changes to your job role have
you seen in the last year and how do
you see these developing in the next
12 months?
The only constant in my job role is probably
change. Being flexible and agile is more
important than ever, as is being open to new
ideas while being aware of the past; always
with customers, users and their businesses
in mind. Being able to work within a team,
a company, an open source community, as
well as with partners, customers and even
competitors, is becoming more and more
important too.
At SUSE we’ve been doing that for a very
long time, and I’m now seeing it done
more often in the industry as a whole. This
trend will likely continue, given the people
and technology that are currently coming
together to solve things.
What advice would you offer
somebody aspiring to obtain c-level
position in your industry?
There’s certainly not a single way to get
there. I can only put mine down to a
combination of luck, the people I’ve met,
as well as hard work, curiosity, and trying to
understand and work with people.
Perhaps above all, it’s important not to strive
to be c-level for the sake of it, but to work on
something you really love doing because you
are going to spend a lot of time and energy
on it in your lifetime. And of course, focus on
putting your business, your company, your
peers and your teams first, but make sure to
look after yourself too, as this can also help
you serve others. n
www.intelligentcio.com