PROFILE
were primarily responsible for providing voice
and SMS services.
The launch of the iPhone in 2007 by Apple
altered the landscape dramatically. The
implosion of smart phones, tablets, wearable
gadgets etc revolutionised the mobile industry.
Mobile broadband quickly grew from a
niche segment to a ‘must have’ for the
general masses. Operators had to keep pace
with these rapidly changing ecosystems.
Users are getting more and more
demanding and knowledgeable.
With the launch of mobile number
portability in Kuwait in 2013, no operator
could afford to take its customers for
granted. The era of complacency was over.
There have been significant changes
because we have seen that our industry is
relying on the technology 100%.
In the last 10 years we have seen
tremendous changes in technology starting
especially when we moved from 3G to 4G
and now we are moving from 4G to 5G.
So the entire landscape has changed. It is
entirely impacting on our business. Primarily
the business is relying more on the data. The
entire ecosystem is shifting now.
For a time the telcos were primarily focussing
on the consumer now they need to focus on
enterprise businesses to explore new verticals
for business and revenue.
What are the major factors
that you’ve learnt from your
organisation?
In my job, I need to keep a cool head or risk
a quick burn out. A few minutes outage in
BSS systems causes huge disruption for any
operator. So the first thing I would say I have
learnt in VIVA is to stay composed and in
control at all times.
VIVA has a culture of trust and
empowerment, they very highly value
integrity and commitment. I believe my
management style has imbibed these values
over the years.
One of the things I have learnt is how the
organisation has transformed, starting
www.intelligentcio.com
IN THE LAST 10 YEARS WE HAVE
SEEN TREMENDOUS CHANGES IN
TECHNOLOGY STARTING ESPECIALLY
WHEN WE MOVED FROM 3G TO 4G AND
NOW WE ARE MOVING FROM 4G TO 5G.
from greenfield and launching as the third
mobile operator. At that time the mobile
penetration was among the highest in the
region. I learnt how to be innovative and
dynamic in an environment where a lot of
technological changes were coming. This
involved bringing in new solutions without
impacting our existing business.
As a matter of fact we became the first
operator in network speed and become
an innovative leader in the region that
introduced several technology initiatives
particularly 4G/LTE and full real time
Convergent Billing System.
I learnt how new projects were being rolled
out and how the challenges were being taken.
Could you describe your
managerial style?
I focus on the team. I need to empower
them and delegate and give them all
possible support so they can perform
their duties.
For me as a manager at a personal level I
am technical but at the same time I look at
the task from a business perspective – I am a
risk taker as well. I believe in innovation and
exploring the new technology.
I have to be very adoptive and agile rather
than just be bureaucratic. So being a team
player is critical to my managerial style.
How far has 5G progressed in
the region?
I think all three of the main operators are
working actively and aggressively on the
rollout of 5G.
At VIVA there is significant emphasis to be
among the first players to capitalise on 5G.
We already have significant numbers of sites
developed so we are more than half of the
way there.
We are progressively working on the use
cases because there are a few challenges
with 5G.
One is the technology itself and secondly the
use cases because 5G is different from 4G
and 3G because still with 4G the technology
was relying on the network speed.
But with 5G the dynamics are totally
changed, the speed is only one component
of the entire technology landscape.
For my team I empower them. I trust
them and give them direction to work
collaboratively with all stakeholders and
team members. However, it is opening a lot of other doors
like IoT and smart devices. There will be a
tremendous number of devices that will be
connected to the network. That will bring a
lot of challenges that any operator needs to
manage. The biggest challenge for operators
is how they would be able to monetise 5G.
My job is to enable technology to facilitate
business so for that reason I have to very
much be a team player to interact with
all the business stakeholders like finance,
marketing and sales to interact with them to
see what their requirements are in terms of
the evolving business. 5G is about how you transform this speed
and technology into service and from service
into revenue. In this respect my department
is crucial because if you want to monetise
5G you have to have an efficient business
support system in place to monetise all of
this investment. n
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