Intelligent Data Centres Issue 29 | Page 67

LEADERS ARE ULTIMATELY MEASURED BY THE SUCCESS OF THEIR TEAMS AND THE TRANSITION TO REMOTE WORKING HAS MADE IT MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER TO KEEP EACH AND EVERY MEMBER OF YOUR TEAM MOTIVATED .
DEEP DIVE ready for the day and before I get to work – to swim . This helps me start my day fresh and motivated .
In the evenings , I make sure I have a predetermined ‘ hard stop ’ to my workday and after shutting down at this time , I follow up with another session of physical activity . This can be anything from weightlifting to boxing and serves as my outlet for the stresses of the day .
What do you currently identify as the major areas of investment in your industry ?
As previously highlighted , organisations today are implementing Software-Defined Data Centres to have a better hybrid environment that positions them to effectively utilise the cloud . As Software- Defined Data Centres extend into the cloud , the virtualisation of the WAN becomes an imperative . A software-defined WAN digitalises all the connectivity paths and enhances automation and orchestration , making the entire hybrid infrastructure act as a single centralised data centre .

LEADERS ARE ULTIMATELY MEASURED BY THE SUCCESS OF THEIR TEAMS AND THE TRANSITION TO REMOTE WORKING HAS MADE IT MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER TO KEEP EACH AND EVERY MEMBER OF YOUR TEAM MOTIVATED .

Of course , anything that is software-defined has the potential to cause challenges with visibility and control . To be able to head down this route , organisations must make sure they understand their existing environment . This involves taking a baseline of the current infrastructure behaviour and application performance within it . If they fail to do so and proceed with software-defined , they will have nothing to compare against and also lack the visibility needed to pinpoint issues when they arise . Similarly , without the right controls in place , they will not be able to address issues that arise .
What are the region-specific challenges you encounter in your role ?
Leaders are ultimately measured by the success of their teams and the transition to remote working has made it more important than ever to keep each and every member of your team motivated .
Key to this is understanding that each individual is unique and would therefore require a personalised management approach . And in the Middle East , teams typically comprise of professionals from a diverse range of cultures . Rather than seeing this as a challenge though , I believe it offers an incredible opportunity to adapt my own skills and approaches and thereby grow as both an individual and a leader .
What changes to your job role have you seen in the last year and how do you see these developing in the coming months ?
Due to the pandemic , we have had to shift the majority of our customer engagements to virtual platforms . In a region where business is highly relationship-oriented , this presented a unique set of challenges . Trust and reliability are more important than ever as customers are under pressure to accelerate their Digital Transformation strategies without any setbacks . The way we have done this has been to always under commit and over deliver so our customers are always confident that we will exceed success baselines . ◊ www . intelligentdatacentres . com
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