Tell us about yourself 

I joined Baan in Sydney in 1997 in the dot com boom and formalised their support function. Within 18 months I was promoted to Director Support Operations, Customer Service & Support Asia Pacific Japan (CS&S APJ) headcount ~50.

In the early 2000’s, Baan globally was navigating a period of transformation, with opportunities to enhance customer satisfaction, strengthen consistency in service delivery across multiple cultures and countries, and further improve employee engagement.

Post-transformation, I carried insights learned into my 20+ year consulting career. On my return to New Zealand in 2007, I chose to become an independent contractor (since 2007). Based on my experience at Baan, I specialised in IT Service Management using the ITIL Framework to improve business outcomes and customer satisfaction.

I worked across the entire service lifecycle from pre-sales through transition to business as usual, covering connectivity, cloud, mobility & security solutions. I have been published in 20+ press articles, speaking at conferences and participating on panels.

What positive change have you helped to create?

Not only did Baan CS&S achieve “Best in Class” customer satisfaction, but I also led the APJ Team to be the “Best within the Best” globally.

My work has delivered quantifiable benefits: cost savings through efficiency and supplier renegotiation, improved customer experience with several clients moving from urgent recovery to stable high-performance operations, and enhanced staff engagement and capability.

The experience was so transformational, and I had to share it and co-authored the business case study titled "Strategic Lean Service" on Amazon.

For the New Zealand Parliamentary Service, I led my service lifecycle model to underpin the successful delivery of Elections 2020.

In 2023, I co-founded the self-funded New Zealand Centre for Digital Connections with India, dedicated to accelerating digital, tech, and entrepreneurial collaboration between the two nations – the first of its kind.

In 2025 alone I delivered seven events, featuring 33 speakers (23 women, 8 PhDs), giving a visible stage to under-recognised role models dismantling negative racial stereotypes.

Since keeping records, I have mentored more than 35 professionals, providing practical guidance on career progression, workplace culture, and overcoming barriers.

Most importantly, as the first Indian to be awarded with the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for service to IT, I have become a champion and role model for all other ethnicities by balancing the often negative racial stereotype.

Why are trusted (competent, ethical, accountable and inclusive) professionals more important than ever?

In the digital world of today, everything is underpinned by tech professionals who design, build, implement and support systems – and it goes without saying that they need to be competent and accountable. With AI, ethics becomes even more pronounced.  

These professionals are keepers of critical, complex, interconnected and often poorly understood systems serving all humanity. Same as clerics but serving modern temples and so they need to be trusted more than ever.

How can organisations ensure they have such individuals working for them?

In the context that organisations include government ministries and agencies, industry bodies as well as public and private employers – they need to work collaboratively with such individuals.

As a first step identification and recognition of motivated and driven individuals, and then the willingness to work collaboratively with them – a subtle shift; and often difficult in traditional power structures.

Unless organisations recognise macro-economic and demographic changes and develop strategies to capitalise on opportunities and address challenges – many of them will either be driven out of business as we have seen in New Zealand, or not realise to their full potential.

What words of inspiration do you have for those considering a tech career?

In the “old” days of the dot com boom, one web year was equal to seven years of a real calendar year. Now with the daily developments in AI, a single AI year is seven times one web year!

There has never been a more exciting time in tech, everything is tech, and while knowledge is freely available and barriers to entry are low; paradoxically ignorance is also rife.

Gen-Z are already digital natives and those willing to extend their learning, apply their skills, and communicate tech – the opportunities are truly unparalleled.