First Person is the show where we meet the most interesting people in IT, and learn from them what makes them tick by focusing only on their firsts. First job, first great boss, first failure or first pet. Learn from interesting people talking about serious things in a not-serious way. Contact [email protected]
We meet Manu Gopinath, who tells us how he transitioned from spending his early years in a small town in India, to being President of a global organization with 30,000 employees. He explained how he wasn't initially keen to work in IT, hoping to use his engineering degree to support a career in sales. But the right leadership in the right organization saw him develop the technical, business and - critically - people skills to grow into the role of global leader. He tells us how he learnt to say 'yes, but...' to all opportunities, and that he considers his greatest achievement to be building and leading teams of great people.
We meet Mike Vaughan, chief data officer of a large organization in the financial sector, and in his words blessed with a wonderful family and work life. Mike tells us how he got into technology through coding for his Commodore PC, inspired by the ability to do something creative. How he parlayed that into a computer science degree, then went to work in a textile mill because he chose to work with good people. He describes a career spend in app development, and then data; making the transition from manufacturing to finance. He shares how he learnt along the way the value of a deep understanding on his organizations' goals, and the power of knowing what you don't know. But above all he speaks to the power of working with great people in a good team.
We meet Hal Lonas, CTO of Trulioo and a recognized innovator in cloud security and machine learning. Hal is a long-standing champion of automation technology, having worked in C-suite roles for multiple household names. Hal has also co-authored several patents and holds a degree in aeronautics and astronautics from MIT. He tells us how he shifted from aerospace to software after he took a job as a coder whilst still in school. How he loved the immediacy of solving problems and creating things with code, and how a great boss helped him understand where his skillset and experience fitted in with the wider organization. Hal describes himself as a nerd - someone for whom learning new technology is always a joy. And he says that he actively wants to be told he is wrong because that is how he gets to learn new things.
We meet Dr Francis Goh - academic, author and CEO. In a storied career Dr Francis Goh has been an innovator and technical expert. A strategist, board ember, leadership mentor and sought after public Speaker. He tells us about how he wanted to be an engineer rather than an IT professional, but fell into the industry as a strategist after completing an MBA. He describes his subsequent career as a serious of pivots that lead him to where he needs to be - solving problems with a mixture of technical and business skills, creating an innovation pathway that elevates organizations. Francis speaks of his pride in the book he wrote to distill these ideas, and advises those just starting out to accept change as a constant.
We meet Stephen Kaufman, who has spent 25 years architecting solutions on behalf of Microsoft. Stephen tells us that his defining characteristic is curiosity, and how his first memory was of taking things apart and putting them back together, more or less successfully. He says how that led him to a hobby in computers which in turn led him to a computer science degree. But he chose to major in both marketing and computers, because for him success is in solving problems with technology, for people.
We meet Magan Naidoo, Chief Data Office of the World Food Programme. Magan tells us how he started out in software engineering but transferred into data when his bosses recognised his talent for connecting technology to business problems, and flew him across continents to have him lead on an important project. He talks about his desire to understand and solve problems from first principles rather than just do things on request. Magan gives advice to those starting out: figure out where you can add value, and work hard. He describes how important it is to really define the terms of engagement on any project, and not to presume anything. And he talks about his finest achievement being his current work building a future proof data organization to help solve world hunger.
We meet Greg Finnigan, who has navigated a career through hardware to security software and on to cloud; large corporates and startups. Greg tells us about how he found a career he loved through working with the right people, and made career changes based on major trends in IT. He talks about how his biggest mistake was not always being his authentic true self until well into his career, and advises people new to the world of work to focus on working with the right people who have the right values.
We meet Ian Mountford, a governance, risk and compliance consultant who transitioned into cyber security late in his career after being the victim of a hack. Ian talks about his rich and varied career before cyber, which incorporated spells in professional sports, HR, banking, and running his own recruitment businesses. He tells us how difficult it was to find a path into cyber security and how a university tutor put him on the right track to incorporate his hard-won soft skills with new technical chops into a successful career consultancy. We touch on the importance of building a network and helping others, what Ian (and Matt) learnt from playing team sports, and how the path into cyber security needs to be made smoother in order to tap into the rich resource of experienced people looking for new skills and challenges.
We meet Mel Migrino, an infosec and cybersecurity titan who in late career has pivoted to advocacy. Mel tells us how she got into software development in order to make money, then pivoted to infosec after a friend told her it was an opportunity, before becoming a business leader. She describes the powerful influence of her mentor, a true 'dragon lady' who could see that Mel's technical chops complemented her own strategic and business knowledge. Mel describes her career path and how it has been driven by boredom: when she feels like she is no longer learning she moves on. And she talks about how gratitude for her own success motivates her to act as an advocate both for the digitally excluded and for female leaders in cyber security.
We meet Chris Fuller, a reluctant student with dyslexia who was hand-picked to do a paid PHD. Chris spent time in the UK intelligence community before emerging to work in cyber security startups. Chris advises aspiring people to work harder than they expect they have to, and talks about how his success stems from being surrounded by interesting and interested people. Plus we learn why he doesn't have a pet cat. He talks about the value of failing, and learning from failure, and the value of spending time listening to experts.
We meet Derek Ashmore, a career-long consultant who says the first thing we need to know about him is that he learns for a living. Derek talks about a fortuitous entry into the industry when accountancy turned into coding, but how a lack of political acumen (and patience) almost derailed him. The answer has been to work in consultancy, joining teams to act as mentor and mentee, learning and guiding to successful outcomes. Derek tells us how he doesn't believe in failure, but that his biggest mistakes have been not staying the course and trusting his judgement. But overall his career has been successful because he has given and taken something from everyone he has worked with.
We meet Eamonn O'Neill, founder and CTO of Lemongrass. Eamonn tells us that he is a technologist first and foremost, as excited about tech today as he was decades ago when he got his first Spectrum computer. He describes his journey from typing out code from magazines through an engineering degree to getting the enterprise software bug working as a graduate. He explains how his peers have been his mentors, and advises those starting out in tech to be excited about the future, do the background reading, and learn from other people. Eamonn ends by sharing his excitement for the future and his view that AI will amplify the efficacy of the most talented people.
We meet Linus Hakansson, who became a Chief Product Officer by way of developing mobile apps, architecting cloud solutions, and a spell of consultancy. Throughout his career Linus has succeeded by applying technology to solve real problems. Linus explains how his progression was due to a mixture of skill, hard work and good fortune. Espouses the value of a mentor who knows talent where he sees it, and explains how he was never more stressed than when his job was stress free. We discuss why good health is the only thing that matters (and critical to career progression) and digress into naming animals after footballers. Finally Linus explains how he views the AI revolution as a good thing for those entering the workforce - if they can be solutions orientated.
We meet Aaron Momin, a seasoned cybersecurity and cyber risk professional with over 30 years of experience in managing cyber and technology risk. Aaron tells us how he studied computing at college after becoming obsessed with the technology taking to pieces his Compaq PC. He talks about taking that approach into the workplace and benefitting from a really hands on technical grounding, but building his career through knowing how to translate technical to business language - how to connect with people, build the network and drive value for the organization and your peers. Aaron speaks a little about how travel, culture, and moving countries in his childhood helped furnish him with an open mind and an ability to connect, and offers advice on how to build a successful career: never stop learning, and always be building the network.
We meet Emma Philpott MBE - academic, cyber security expert and business leader. Emma tells us how her career has meandered to a good place, and that is okay. That when she was underestimated and frustrated early in the piece her best boss saw her potential and gave her the support to grow in her own way. And how she landed in the right place through adversity: changing tack and building communities of cyber security firms, driven by a sense of fairness. She explains how mistakes and failure can be turned into opportunities with the addition of a sense of optimism. Emma closes by explaining how the organisation she founded and runs succeeds because it is inclusive and proactively recruits neuro-diverse people. It's not just the right thing to do, it's good for business.
We meet Daniel Avancini, an academic turned entrepreneur, analyst and business person turned coder. He tells us about how he doesn't always know his final destination, but he understands the direction in which he wishes to travel and makes decisions so he heads that way. How he hedged (in his parlance) by keeping one foot in academia and one in corporate life. And Daniel has some great advice for those starting out who are challenged by the impact of AI on the future of work: understand your passion and what you are great at, and add value by doing things that AI can't do.
We meet Dr CJ Meadows - from the US, based in Singapore, having worked around the world from Japan to India and beyond. An accountant by training and IT pro by practice, CJ is an entrepreneur, consultant, and educator who runs a not-for-profit using tech to bring access to education to excluded folks. We spoke about how her career (and life) path has never been linear or conventional. We discussed how the future of work will require leaders who can use design thinking to focus on solving new and real problems rather than building the shiniest tech. She explained how her best bosses showed empathy and support, and that those same skills are useful in family and personal life make for great business success. CJ ends with some great lessons for life: follow your own path, and try not to kill each other. Words to live by.
We meet David Jones - a chief architect, CTO and CIO who describes his work as elevating business technology strategy through architectural excellence. David introduces himself as someone who loves collaborating, doesn't do politics and is always honest. He tells us how he got started by choosing to study electrical engineering inspired by his brother and a French pen pal, and espouses the value of practical, in-industry training over academic learning (although he returned to his own school to teach). David tells us how he was supported to accelerate his career by studying bleeding edge tech whilst he was working in an operational business, and how that taught him a valuable architectural lesson: the best solution for the organization you are in may not always be the most current technical solution. David's message to those starting out is to follow your passions, learn, and be open and curious - you never know where life will take you.
We meet Arno Schilperoord, a global leader for Heineken who believes that coding is magic and poetry, offering the opportunity to create something from nothing and infinite possibility. Arno tells us how studying physics and using computer models and writing computer code to help in the analysis was his way into IT. He says that in IT everybody was learning things for the first time, and explains how designing resilient high-performance solutions was just a small step from his current practice of architecture. Arno tells us that great bosses are able to spot and resolve problems early, and that great leadership isn't just about technical expertise, it's about awareness, timing, and creating a culture of high performance and creating an environment where people feel safe and feel supported.
We meet Jim Wilt, a voraciously curious CTO, distinguished chief architect and engineering advocate. Jim's enjoying a stellar career with roles as CTO, CDO and chief architect across a multitude of enterprise organizations. In this conversation we learn about his success and failures, and how he may have learnt more from the latter. He takes us from being inspired by a Disney movie to learn to code on paper because he couldn't afford access to a computer, to working in medical research and winning prestigious awards for huge organizations. He describes a great boss in McDonalds who taught him the value of giving your best to everything you do, including the story of the janitor at NASA who sent a man to the Moon. Jim shares how he needed to be convinced of his own expertise, and shares the view that material success follows passion and focus - don't waste your time being safe.