AI technology is attractive but to implement it in an organization would require proper planning, risk assessment, and right-fit considerations.
This is an exclusive interview series conducted by the Editor Team of The Mainstream with Ts. Saiful Bakhtiar Osman Head of IT, Shared Services at PNB COMMERCIAL
How did you plan your career path to be a successful Technology Leader?
I did not have any plans at the beginning of my career in 2000 until I joined Credit Guarantee Corporation (CGC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysia’s Central Bank, in 2008.
I was fortunate enough to be groomed by the Head of IT, Encik Mohd Izzanee Idris, to prepare myself to advance in the IT corporate ladder.
I was just an Assistant Manager at that time, but he trained my focus to think like a businessperson, speak the business language, and apply IT where it would bring value to the business.
It was at CGC that I learned that IT is the catalyst to business, and we were responsible for introducing technology and IT investments that would be beneficial to the overall Mission and Vision of the company.
Coupled with strong support from the Top Management and the Board of IT, IT successfully delivered multiple game-changer projects for the company. What was more significant, IT was not seen as a cost center but an enabler of Business.
What challenges you faced in your career path and how did you overcome them?
Frankly, my career path was not that smooth sailing. I have encountered numerous frustrations that no matter how excellent you deliver, you were still not being considered for promotion. My late father always reminded me that, ‘Your value doesn’t decrease due to the inability of others to see your worth’.
Not being promoted is not the end of the world. It just meant that your place was not there, and God had better plans for you. Fast forward to this day, here I am in my 7th company, in the span of 24 years of working.
What’s important is not to burn the bridge with your previous companies because no matter how bad, they had once accepted you to become part of their family.
What are the challenges faced by Technology Leaders today while implementing digital technologies?
In my opinion, the biggest challenge is to balance between the business needs and the emerging technologies. Let’s take AI for example. I am certain that there are a lot of CIOs, CTOs and IT Heads out there who are currently being pressured by their Management to be the early adopters of AI technology.
The AI technology is indeed attractive but to implement it in an organization would require proper planning, risk assessment, and right-fit considerations. Your Management may not want to be left out in the technology race, but every technology comes with unique risks only applicable to your organization. There is no such thing as a ‘one size fits all kind of solution’.
Proper planning would prevent your projects from becoming obsolete or becoming a ‘white elephant’ project because of the rapid change of technology. By the time you are finishing your 1st year AI implementation project, the technology has evolved to a better version than the one you are implementing.
Another concern is to ensure that the Business really understands what they are getting from this technology, and if the ROI would be as realistic as they anticipated. CIOs need to understand the business well so that we can provide the right advice and facilitate business in the right direction.
Sometimes, new technologies are like unchartered territories. For you to champion the technology, you are in the dark like any other CIO out there. By hook or by crook, you are expected to deliver results to the Business and the journey would be full of uncertainties. That is why understanding the company’s Risk appetite and Risk tolerance is essential, to make sure that the Business is ready to face all the possible impacts should it go sideways.
How can Technology Leaders overcome the challenges faced?
My first advice is ‘learn and continue to learn’. We need to catch up with the latest emerging technologies if we want to position ourselves as better Advisors to the Business. Attending IT events would help a lot or having all the vendors come to your organization to present technology updates.
My second piece of advice, ‘build a strong network with all your peers in the industry’, be it locally or cross-borders. What I’ve learned and benefited from my involvement with Global CIO Forum, I am CAAS, and CyberEdBoard Community is, that we can tap on the experience and the expertise from all over the world. There must be someone out there who has already walked down that path so that he/she can share with you tips and lessons learned that would prevent you from falling into the same implementation mistakes.
My third advice is ‘prioritize’. There is no way that you can deliver everything under the sun, with limited budget and resource constraints. There are a lot of projects in the pipeline, but you need to pick the ones that have the biggest impact or ROI on the organization.
Any best practices/industry trends/advice you would like to suggest to fellow Technology Leaders for their successful professional journeys?
Coming from a PRINCE2 school of thought, I would suggest having a strong Business Case for whatever projects you are implementing, and always start with ‘What if we do nothing?’. The Management needs to make an informed decision before they engage in any IT Investment and to do that, they need to know what will happen if they choose to remain as-is. Will the company lose its competitive advantage over other organizations? Will the company be at risk of non-compliance with a new regulation issued by the Regulator? Will the company be vulnerable to the latest malware attacks?
All these questions need to be answered before the Management would be able to decide. This Business Case would also contain the risk and the potential gain that help the consideration of the viability of the whole proposal. It will end up becoming the Report Card for CIOs (once approved) to ascertain if the promised value is delivered accordingly.
Any other points that you would like to highlight?
I would like to encourage all Vendors to become the Technology Partners to companies, and not be confined to the focus of what you can sell. It should be a Win-Win partnership between Vendors and Customers.
I am sure that there are no Vendors who are good at everything. If what the Customers require is beyond what you can deliver, please be gentlemanly enough to share the cake with other Vendors, so that you are able to fulfill the Customer’s requirements.
About Saiful Bakhtiar Osman
Saiful Bakhtiar Osman a seasoned multiple-awards winning CIO with an MBA currently the Head of IT, Shared Services for PNB Commercial. Awarded the Global Top 200 CIO, by the Global CIO Forum, for 5 years in a row, specifically in 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, and 2020, for his achievement in the industry. Awarded the Top CIO for ASEAN in 2024 (CIO100), 2023 (CIO100), 2021 (CIO75), 2020,(CIO50), and 2019 (CIO50) by Foundry (previously known as IDG). He brings with him a 24-years of experience in diverse industries such as Real Estate, Fund Management, Oil & Gas, Financial & Banking, as well as in the Economic Regulatory Body. He holds a few active CSR roles in certification bodies, universities, and government agencies, as a Board Member and Committee Member.
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