GET TO KNOW...
On the lighter side of things, we ask the
industry experts what makes them tick. . . .
Andrew Stevens,
President and CEO, CNet Training
WWhat would you describe as your
most memorable achievement?
I think my most memorable achievement on
a personal level was to cycle over 400 miles
in four days with a small group of friends to
raise money for a cancer charity. I agreed to
the feat in my usual fashion of ‘what could
possibly go wrong’. . . and as always with
me once I said I was doing it, then failure
was not an option. From a work perspective,
my most memorable achievements are
every time I see my team recognised for the
brilliant professional work they do. It makes
me very proud that they get the recognition
they deserve.
What first made you think of a
career in technology?
I didn’t think of a career in technology, I
fell into it. My story was more about the
way in which I preferred to learn and that
the pure academic route didn’t suit me. I
left university (university really bored me)
and started as a junior internal salesperson
with a network infrastructure manufacturer
back in 1988.
What style of management
philosophy do you employ with
your current position?
I believe that as you and your company
moves through the phases of development
“
WHEN A TEAM
FEELS SAFE AND
EMPOWERED,
IT IS AMAZING
WHAT THEY WILL
ACHIEVE.
and growth, then your management
philosophy requires changes. I see myself
currently as a facilitator, and my job is to
ensure that all the talented and dedicated
people around me have all the tools at
their disposal to drive
the business forward
to achieve our stated
and yet to be stated
goals. I need to look at
the business and think
about what it needs
in the next five years,
that might be new skills
sets, new direction, new
levels or empowerment
but most of all for
them all to know that
as the leader I am
primarily focused on
looking out for them and protecting them.
When a team feels safe and empowered, it is
amazing what they will achieve.
What do you think is the current hot
technology talking point?
Currently, the shift has obviously focused on
the digital first responders (all those in the
digital infrastructure industry) who support
the medical and care first responders and
how the digital infrastructure industry is
supporting the new norm of working, playing
and communicating from home.
This, of course, brings challenges but it is
certainly one that the industry has been
scaling up for. I have said for a long time
it is impossible to actually predict how a
service, product or cultural shift will occur or
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