Dr Colin Williams

Business CTO, Computacenter

Most surprising lesson 2024 has taught you?

Not to forget to celebrate when things are worth celebrating. I have a tendency to take things in my stride and not fanfare things too often (I don’t like creating a fuss) and whilst I am always happy to be a very vocal cheerleader of the success of others, I forget to do it for myself. However, a “wake up” conversation with my eldest daughter (who is way wiser than she realises) made me realise I need get out of my own way and receive applause with a smile from time to time. Regardless of age, every day is a school day and everyone can learn from everyone else.

If you could have dinner with anyone who would be and why?

Tom Cruise would be good. It would be great to understand if he really is as intense in person as the characters he plays (I may actually find someone more intense than I am at times). And also, to understand how he maintains the unmatched performance level he still manages to achieve without age taking its toll (or maybe it does but he hides it very well). He has remained at the top of his profession for pretty much his whole career and few can say that in any industry. Inspirational

Which tech or channel figurehead has impressed you the most this year, and why?

Jeetu Patel, Cisco. To be an executive leader in one of the big hitting technology vendors, ie Cisco, Microsoft, Hewlett Packard, Dell, AWS and the other significantly large organisations is highly coveted but extraordinarily difficult role. In a short timeframe, Jeetu has massively impressed me because not only does he now have one of the most senior and significant roles in Cisco, he continues to push forward fuelled by positive disruption and innovation when it may be less risky to simply play it safe at that level of seniority. Very impressive. And to completely ignore your ask of one, I need to also give a mention to François Locoh-Donou the CEO of F5. He leads the organisation fantastically and drives innovation, with relentless execution but with a social conscience too. Brilliant.

What technology trend do you think is being overhyped, and why?

This one’s hard for me to answer because I ignore anything that’s overhyped with such concepts discarded by my brain before they enter. I guess for many it may be Artificial Intelligence as a broad field informed by the recent GenAI furore and sensationalised commentary but I disagree. Ai and Ml used within applications and systems have delivered tangible benefits for many years. However, the overinflated claims or promises describing the potential for GenAI are diluting the highly beneficial and previously unavailable value it already offers to so many. Therefore I will position ‘overinflated GenAI expectations’ as the overhyped trend and a continuation of it may do more harm than good.

If you were stranded on a deserted island but could have one piece of tech with you, what would it be?

An iPhone (above a model “14”) with an unlimited battery and data sim so I could call for help and have fun getting answers on how to get things done whilst I’m waiting to be rescued. If I need to say something serious or grown-up, probably a water purifier.

What's your go-to productivity hack that keeps you on track during a busy day?

I picture/visualise the finished outcomes of my activities for the and mentally break them into small units of time associated with a corresponding tangible output, whether I am creating a document or presenting to a customer (in fact for pretty much everything). It means I can use all of my available time effectively, will remain motivated because there are expected outputs appearing frequently and I always have a clear view of completion (this can be simply completion of the time unit or realisation of the end outcome). This approach helps me to start even the most complex tasks and maintain progress.

If you had the time to learn one new skill, what would it be?

I would love to learn how to effortlessly tell jokes. I am really really bad at telling jokes and using humour because I’m quite introverted and often very serious. It means my default “go to” emotion is to be reserved and calm and rarely humorous which means I have nothing but adoration for my daughters and others who are naturally humorous and can make even the most serious things sound funny by the way they deliver it or facial expressions. I would love to be capable of telling jokes well or do stand-up comedy, because those with the natural gift of humour can use it in so many unbelievable ways to disarm, excite, inspire or simply “make others happy” - it’s a truly invaluable skill.