Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 49 | Page 79

GET TO KNOW GET TO KNOW... On the lighter side of things, we ask the industry experts what makes them tick. . . . Mohammad Alotaibi, Director of IT – Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority W What would you describe as your most memorable achievement? I have to admit that my strength comes from my solid technical background, I started my career as a UNIX administrator but my thrust for technology knowledge led me to explore most of the technology sectors therefore I have achieved a huge technical background. But with this kind of strength comes a great responsibility, the responsibility of transferring this knowledge to the right people who will eventually evolve into the future technology leaders. After achieving this I can say this is the most memorable achievement it overwrites any infrastructure overhaul or implementations I have done for any organisation. What first made you think of a career in technology? Since my childhood I was a geek, I loved to play with new technologies and use them. I remember when I was seven years old I started learning MBASIC. Since then I have found technology is very innovative and gives a huge satisfaction, a career in technology is really meaningful. It involves a lot of problem solving. It is a very challenging career path and you will never be bored. To be honest the tech industry is growing rapidly – that’s alone a huge factor for thinking of a career in technology. www.intelligentcio.com What style of management philosophy do you employ with your current position? My style of management philosophy is a combination of motivation and efficiency. My approach is to inspire employees to improve their overall performance by setting high goals in their KPIs and giving them the keys to achieve the goals. To increase the efficiency, I divide the responsibility between employees to ensure getting the maximum efficiency, bear in mind specifying a clear responsibility is a key factor for maximum efficiency. What do you think is the current hot technology talking point? For me its cognitive computing, it’s the core of all new hot technologies like Machine Learning or Natural Language Processing. I think in terms of cognitive “ THE TECH INDUSTRY IS GROWING RAPIDLY – THAT’S ALONE A HUGE FACTOR FOR THINKING OF A CAREER IN TECHNOLOGY. INTELLIGENTCIO 79