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be adopted because it is based on consumer
decision making, social acceptance and
individual needs. I think the industry will
need to reflect on these past few weeks and
decide on how it best encourages people
to adopt all the things that have occurred
for the benefit of sustainability and try and
make those stick.
How do you deal with stress and
unwind outside the office?
If anyone that is reading this knows me,
they would agree I love to socialise, play
and watch sport and then socialise again
and mainly laugh at myself. I don’t really
do stress, I enjoy pressure and challenges
and try to break down anything that may be
deemed as stress into things that I can deal
with. I don’t believe in worrying about things
that I can’t shape, and I always take a look
at the end goal, role play the options and
tackle it head on.
If you could go back and change one
career decision what would it be?
I don’t think I would change anything,
things happen for a reason and its always
important not to have regrets or think you
have made mistakes, you may have made
the wrong decision, but that is because
you now have the benefit of hindsight
and different data. Treat everything as an
experience and keep using that experience
to make better decisions.
What do you currently identify as
the major areas of investment in
your industry?
technology, but in the last
12 months, I have seen a
real and tangible shift into
the skills agenda.
We have engaged with
a large number (20 plus)
of the world’s leading DC
providers/operators on multiyear
talent and education
programs. It has been so
refreshing to talk about
development, retention and
longevity and for us to be able
to work with companies and know that these
programs will last for years and years to
come and leave a legacy which will benefit
every single person in the industry and for
those that rely upon the industry.
What are the region-specific
challenges when implementing new
technologies in the Middle East?
The regional challenges with regard to new
technology implementation are affected
by the standards being followed (or not) –
this is the biggest challenge we are asked
to assist with. Quite often, we find that the
specifications that have been laid down
are not clear and explicit, they often are
at loggerheads and have clearly not been
thought through or understood.
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?
My role hasn’t really changed in the past 12
months, I have a
“
I HAVE A GREAT
TEAM SO THE
PLAN GETS
DELIVERED AND
THIS ALLOWS ME
TO WORK WITH
OUR EXTERNAL
STAKEHOLDERS.
great team so the plan gets delivered and
this allows me to work with our external
stakeholders to ensure that we are providing
the right products at the right time and that
we are able to scale at the correct time to
service our clients.
A lot of my time is spent working with those
stakeholders on the two to three-year road
map we have with each of them.
What advice would you offer
somebody aspiring to obtain
C-level position in your industry?
I guess the one piece of advice I would give
to anyone is ‘be prepared for change and
plan for constant change, ensure your teams
also expect constant change – this will help
them understand that change is good and
that sticking to a plan for the sake of it does
not work.’ •
This is an interesting question and one that
normally and historically has been around
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