Sanj Maghera

CIO / Transformation Executive Consultant

Can you please provide a little introduction about yourself

London. I work with multiple companies on a fractional basis, in addition to the occasional full-time/interim role. 

What has your journey to your position been like? What path have you taken?

My current place is the sum of my experience to date which spans Executive Advisory, Coaching, Technology Team Leadership, Consulting, Digital Transformation, Customer Experience Transformation l, Change Management, Sales, Agile Product Delivery,  supporting Mergers & Acquisitions driven due diligence and modernisation. As a result, I tend to land roles where I am augmenting incumbent CIOs or CTOs that are missing some of the commercial / outwardly focused mindset due to them being closer to hands-on technical work more akin to an Engineering lead. It is my role to help grow other members of the technology organisation so that they can become more powerful, and support the growth objectives of the organisation they work for, and improve the experience of the customers their organisation serves.

Has it always been your vision to reach the position you’re at? Was your current role part of your vision to become a tech leader?

I’ve always been drawn to roles where I can add value by unlocking the potential of the people I lead, and doing things that matter for the average customer or society. Over time the people I’ve helped have become more senior in stature but the original motivation remains the same.

Have you had a role model or mentor that has helped you on your journey?

I’ve had many role models over a long period of time. They include friends, family and people that I’ve worked with. I’m drawn to everyday heroes – a parent helping their child, and customer services rep going the extra mile to support someone, a CEO that is passionate about ensuring they have a happy and productive workforce that can deliver exceptional value for their customers, while ensuring they balance work and life to ensure their families are also happy.

How do you see the role of the technology leader evolving over the next 5 years?

Technology leaders will continue to grow as their role increasingly come to dominate the success or failure of the organisations they work with. I see them as being on an equal footing to a CFO or COO, and not a second division member of the C suite. As a result, future technology leaders will not be the ones doing code reviews for people, rather they will be the ones penning a strategy for growth that includes internal and vendor solutions as part of a jigsaw puzzle to serve the medium-term needs of an organisation. They are part strategist, part change manager, part programme director, with experience managing budgets and people. 

What skills do you think leaders of the future will need in order to thrive?

A commerical mindset, the ability to empathise with customers, and the experience to lead multidisciplinary product teams (and not just engineers).

How do you keep current with new skills, technologies and personal development?

I talk to people, and consume a lot of content. It’s easy as that’s just part of what I’m interested it. I also don’t code anymore which gives me a lot more time to keep up with and contribute the latest macro digital and technology trends.

What do you see as the next leap in technology that will impact your business or industry in particular?

I think current thoughts around AI, ethics, automation are interesting. However, there are some planetary-scale problems we still need solutions for: endless clean energy,  sustainable farming to ensure nobody goes hungry, greater equality of opportunity for people irrespective of the circumstances in which they are born, climate change. Perhaps some of these technologies will contribute to these issues. Technology leaders are some of the bright minds on the planet, and it would be nice etc think that collective intelligence could somehow be used to solve some of these problems.

“People are at the heart of everything.”

If you were mentoring a leader of the future, what advice or guidance would you give to help them on their way?

People are at the heart of everything. Build relationships, care about the people you lead and the customers you serve.

Is there anything in particular that you would still like to achieve in your career or what is the next step on your journey?

I’d like to help more organisations transform the way they deliver products and services. CEOs please feel free to get in touch 🙂

If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?

To replace hard flooring in all public outdoor spaces with fluffy, self-cleaning carpets.

A big thank you to Sanj Maghera for sharing his journey to date.