CTO Confessions Brought to you by IT Labs

How do tech leaders roll? What are they all about? What really is important for tech leaders and their approach? On the hows and whys, I got Jonathan Rigby, a senior engineering leader, who sat down for a chat with me, and we dived deep into his personal journey in the world of tech – from his beginnings, through today, all the way to what’s in store for the future and what he’s learned so far, coupled with advice and insights from him – all worth their weight in gold! Key takeaways from the podcast are: - Building a successful technology company requires a strong leadership team that can work together effectively. - Deep understanding of the company's core product or service is important as it can help engineers make better decisions and ultimately drive business success - Leaders must strike the right balance between management and technical skills in order to get the best out of their teams and empower them Our Guest: Jonathan Rigby LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan-rigby/ Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)

Data and AI are the thing of today that is shaping the world of tomorrow – at a rate that is both exciting and scary. Some people, like Databricks’ CTO, Robin Sutara, have a vast experience in the field, and are using it to create solutions and services that help business leverage and use the data they have, to drive businesses forward. I sat down with Robin to talk about her journey in the world of tech, the leadership style she practices, and how she sets about tackling problems and finding solutions for customers and her teams. Key takeaways from the podcast are: - Collaboration and communication are essential in building successful products - Prioritizing diversity and inclusion leads to better business outcomes - Ethics and responsibility are critical in the development of technology Our Guest: Robin Sutara LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robin-sutara/ Website: https://www.databricks.com/ Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)

All public places get busy at some point in time, but nothing is as busy is airports – the run around the clock and they must do so with incredible precision and efficiency, as incidents and events that stop the flow of people and planes can cause a domino effect that can be hard to mitigate once it gets going. In this episode, I have the CTO of Manchester Airports Group, John Hudson, who sat down for a chat with me to talk about the work he does for them, how he rolls as a leader, all the way to sharing some bits of wisdom stemming from the experience he’s had as a techie and a tech leader. Key takeaways from the podcast are: • How to create champions from the people you have • The importance of succession plans and how they work • Why enjoying yourself while learning is important Our Guest: John Hudson LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-hudson-11588b2a/ Website: https://www.magairports.com/ Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)

Wearing a perfume means one thing – you feel good about yourself and you radiate that self-confidence. So in today’s digital era – how can we find those smells that will help us show our swagger and style? Well, a rocket-scientist-turned-tech-leader, Andrei Rebrov, CTO & Co-founder of Scentbird, seems to have found the answer to this question, with the work that he’s been doing for his company doing just that. In this episode, I sat down with Andrei, as he shared his experience and know-how from the world of tech! Key takeaways from the podcast are: - Find a great mentor if you’d like to grow properly and learn much more in a shorter period - The importance of having the right tools to execute strategies and ideas - Why proper communication is important among different departments in order to ensure seamless flow of business and information Our Guest: Andrei Rebrov LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrebrov/ Website: https://www.scentbird.com/ Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)

When growing teams and helping people develop is something that comes naturally to you, you know that your leadership skills are on point – so what’s left when you have that mastered? You help businesses grow by helping them utilize the latest, most cutting-edge technology out there. This is exactly how I would describe the work Scott Buchholz, CTO at Deloitte Consulting, has been doing. I sat down with Scott to talk more about his leadership style, the work he’s been doing for Deloitte, and waiting for him to give up the gems of knowledge and experience worth their weight in gold – and he has delivered! Key takeaways from the podcast are: - Telling stories helps bring people into the fold, giving them a better grasp of the task/project ahead; - Diversity of thought is paramount for growth and progress; - Finding the right role models is the fast-track to success; Our Guest: Scott Buchholz LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/buchholzscott/ Website: https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en.html Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)

We all know the joke – Excel spreadsheets are the thing that holds whole industries together and holding them from collapsing – and the truth is that a lot of data is stored in them. But sifting through all that data can be an arduous task, and the need for a solution that would do it faster and more efficiently is there. Fortunately, there’s a company named Coherent, that does a lot of this work, helping businesses extract valuable inputs from these vast seas of data, and I have Coherent’s Senior Technology Director, Nick Leimer, here to talk about it. From his journey in the world of tech, his leadership style, all the way to his views on how to improve teams – we talked in depth about all of these topics and much more! Key takeaways from the podcast are: - Why diversity in character and perspectives is more important than finding like-minded people - How changing roles and workplaces is important for growth and knowing what suits you - Failing is the gateway to learning, and allowing people to fail can be invaluable for growth Our Guest: Nick Leimer LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-leimer-05851611/ Website: https://www.coherent.global/ Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)

Being a leader is not just about innovating new technologies that make people’s lives easier – following the newest trends and emerging technology is also important. These can help tech leaders get a better feel of what the next big thing in the world of tech will be, and how they can help make their businesses better and more efficient. One such leader that does both is Hanna Helin, Global Head of Tech Innovation at London Stock Exchange Group, who sat down for a chat with me in November 2022, sharing her experience, know-how, and leadership secrets! Key takeaways from the podcast are: - adaptation and perspective are important in growing companies, as they require different approaches - Maintaining close connections with clients can help tremendously in your work - Being flexible in changing roles can help you grow tremendously Our Guest: Hanna Helin LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannahelin/ Website: https://www.lseg.com/en Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)

Tech leaders are people that reach for the stars – some literally, some do it by pushing the boundaries of what’s possible to ensure that the lives of humans become easier and simpler. And then, there are those that have done both, but have found the “earthly experience” with technology to be far more important. Noy Grisaru, R&D Group Manager at Optimove, belongs in the latter – and he sat down for a chat with me to talk about his journey in tech, the work he’s been doing for Optimove, and how he leads his teams. Key takeaways from the podcast are: - Why sometimes going with your gut feeling can be counterproductive; - The path to learning something new starts by asking a question - The importance of putting customers first Our Guest: Noy Grisaru LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noy-grisaru-994bb810b/ Website: https://www.optimove.com/ Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)

Tech leaders are known for tackling hard issues – ones that require a lot of work and know-how in order to solve them, and in turn, help improve the livelihoods of people, and help businesses grow! Well, meet Simon Munch-Andersen, CTO at Ultimate, a tech leader of the type I described above, and one who sat down for a chat with me, as he shared everything from how he started out in tech, through his experience around the industry, all the way to the amazing work he’s doing now for Ultimate! Key takeaways from the podcast are: - Projects need to be handled and approached on a team level, not an individual, as this way all team members will have the sense of being part of something; - Why having more smaller decisions is better than making big ones that can destabilize your project and your team - The true value of leadership comes when your teams are capable of making decisions on their own; Our Guest: Simon Munch-Andersen LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonma/ Website: https://www.ultimate.ai/ Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)

You don’t become a tech leader by just having the skills and then one day you decide you’ll take on a leadership or C-level position and that’s it. Well, it takes a lot more than that. It takes the willingness to tackle issues but also enable people to grow and develop, and become leaders of their own making. Marcus Campbell, CTO at Hermes Logistics Technologies, is one such tech leader, and of course, I had to have him on CTO Confessions. With 20+ years of experience in tech, Marcus covered in depth all the work he’s doing for HLT, how his road has been so far, and gave his advice worth its weight in gold. Key takeaways from the podcast are: -Collaboration is the one way that teams can move forward and achieve success and growth at the same time; -Patience is key – as a leader you’ll need it in order to ensure your focus stays on point, and that your team stays on course; Our Guest: Marcus Campbell LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcuscampbell100/ Website: https://www.hermesworld.com/int/ Intro and background music: Craig MacArthur - Power Shutoff (www.youtube.com/watch?v=x74iB_jtauw)