Tech Life Stories

Katrina is the Co-Founder of HIT Global where Humanising IT™ applies human-centred design principles to the world of IT service management. Katrina is recognised as leading global expert in ITSM field, she trains and advises international and publicly listed institutions.Katrina is an ITIL Master, former ITIL Global Ambassador, and was a contributing author to all ITIL 4 official publications. She is an award-winning author of her book “Humanising IT”She is the creator of the Humanising IT™ podcasts where she interviews the most influential and powerful business leaders across the globe.Top 3 takeaways1.     What is Humanising IT – 07:252.     Design thinking principles - 12:483.     Starting again as an entrepreneur – 22:15Guest Website - https://hitglobal.services/Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/katrinamacdermid/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Sean has spent the past 35 years working for BT in a variety of roles. Working his way up from a Customer Service Engineer to Head of Change Management, ITIL Specialist and now his current role as Senior Manager, Governance and Insights. He is ITIL 4 certified and is a Certified Scrum Master. Member chair at the ITSMF for London and South East region.  Top 3 takeaways1.     All about the right people 8:572.     Overcoming the stigma of mental health 13:473.     XLA’s 29:41Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sean-burkinshaw-b19a04204/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Hear the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Jag Sohal is an experienced IT Business Relationship Manager working in Financial Services and reporting up to C suite level. She is a Certified Business Relationship Management professional, ITIL4, Prince 2 practitioner and Management of Portfolios. She is a volunteer for the British Computer Society and generated an 8 part series of IT webinars.Top 3 takeaways1.     Growing Business Relationship ManagementCommunity 6:352.     Early careers ambassador 18:153.     Apprenticeships 21:20Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jag-sohalSponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Sara works for a software house as Head of Business Process & Intelligence. She discusses her varied career before entering the tech world. She is an American working in Spain and is passionate about work-life balance.Top 3 takeaways1.     Business Process Triangle 24:122.     Success of Work-Life Balance 34:213.     Working in another country 54:40Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarabeyer/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.comFind the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Greg is an experienced IT Service Operations and IT Service Management Leader with certifications in ITIL and Prince2. He has worked in the MSP sector for 17 years however last year moved to a software house where he managed to refresh his career.Top 3 takeaways1.     Apprenticeships over a degree 19:252.     Recharging the batteries 41:583.     Frameworks that offer value 55:38Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-riddle-912a8524/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Simon is an expert in IT Service Management and currently runs his practice with his wife and focuses on personal, business, and digital transformation.He experienced a life-changing brain haemorrhage stroke in 2021 and wrote a book called ‘The Gift’ talking through his experience of stroke survival.Top 3 takeaways1.     The role of BRM 08:202.     Stroke survival 44:453.     Disability acceptance 01:16:20Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonkent2112/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Patrycja is an award-winning Service Delivery Professional who thrives in highly pressurised situations and runs high-profile teams, projects and services.Patrycja is currently the Global Vice President of Digital Workplace at Unisys and has certifications in ITIL, Price2 and Six Sigma.Top 3 takeaways1.     Leading by example 11:232.     The value that tech delivers 27:333.     Developing an experience management office 45:27Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrycjasobera/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Megan is an ITILv4 Strategic Leader and currently working as Head of IT Operations at SoftCat, a leading IT infrastructure provider. She’s a rare breed loyal to SoftCat in various roles over the past 11 years. She is skilled in strategy development, vendor management,budget control, and optimising IT operations for organisation success. She has exceptional communication skills, building strong partner relationships and leading teams.Top 3 takeaways1.     Care about the ‘why’ 12:092.     Chimp paradox – controlling your emotions 21:493.     Succeeding and failing in front of your team39:44Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/megan-leadbetter/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Simon is an experienced IT Service Manager passionate about leadership and culture.ITIL certified and led ITIL adoption within his previous businesses allowing IT services to be delivered consistently. A Lean Six-Sigma certification has allowed him to work on projects to drive efficiencies and cost savings to the business.Top 3 takeaways1.     Change of leadership style 16:432.     Values written by employees 25:453.     The impact of ITIL 37:58Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-gale-7a278453/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Iain is an experienced Tech Leader with over 20 years of experience in software and service delivery. He is passionate about mentoring high-performing teams which comes across passionately in this episode. Iain holds multiple certifications including ITIL4, Lean, Scrum Master & Product Owner. Iain talks about the importance of building a tech network and how you can use personal hobbies to do this. He has a passion for martial arts and is a professional TTRPG Games Master.Top 3 takeaways1.     The importance of building a tech network 20:172.     Understanding contracting and IR35 31:053.     Value Stream Mapping 57:52Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/iain-russell-itsm/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Hear the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Tim has over 25 years experience in IT Service Management, managing and transforming IT Services. Tim is the Founder of ITSM People a team of consultants supporting clients across IT and Enterprise Service Management with accreditations across ITIL, SIAM, DevOps and Agile.Top 3 takeaways1.     What is IR35? 25:142.     Back to basics with ITIL3 51:123.     Encouraging the next generation into ITSM 55:10Guest Website - https://www.itsmpeople.co.ukGuest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-mills-6787391/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmiSign up for updates – www.techlifestories.com

Weston is the Global Strategy Director for Digital Workplace at Unisys. He is a rare breed as he has worked there his entire career. Weston is passionate about end users and finds ways to apply disruptive trends and efficiencies for their happiness. Weston is no stranger to podcasts as he runs his own show called ‘Digital Workplace Deep Dive’.Top 3 takeaways1.     Dex tools and data 38:072.     Challenges of Generative AI in the workplace 47:103.     Quantum Computing 55:53Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/westonjmorrisSponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Mark has over 30 years of experience working in the technology sector.He is a dynamic & visionary IT Leader driving transformation & organisational change.An expert in Operating Model Implementation and an Influential people leader with exceptional presentation skills.Top 3 takeaways1.     Less is More 09:122.     Can businesses keep up with technology 26:103.     Will AI be the end of Service Desks 52:36Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-boyer/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Gemma is a Prince2 Practitioner who leads digital transformations,change management, system integrations, implementations and automation.She has spent most of her career in the education sector and is currently Director of Strategy and Innovation for Haberdashers Academies Trust South.Top 3 takeaways1.     Growing a network of thought leaders through networking 36:002.     Using a coach to help with management, challenges, etc 43:103.     The Future of AI – 48:23Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gemma-lavin/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Georgina is an ITIL4, Prince2 certified IT Service Delivery Manager. She has proven throughout her career how ambitious she is with natural progression and promotion. She is the Co-Founder of ‘Women of ITSM’ an initiative to support a growing community of women in the ITSM world. She has mentored many women as part of the Reed Women in Tech programme.Top 3 take aways1.     Beating imposter syndrome 26:252.     Being a STEM ambassador 31:503.     Making service management more appealing 39:12Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgina-otubela/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Alan is a Strategic Technology Leader and the pioneer of ITIL and ITSM. He has successfully launched XLA’s (experience level agreements) that have been adopted by major organisations globally. His work has been recognised with awards such as the "Most Promising Digital Experience Consulting Company" in 2021. HDI recognized Alan as a top-25 Thought Leader in 2023.Top 3 takeaways1.     You either have a career or a CV. 01:452.     XLA’s - what is the experience we want. 21:253.     Everywhere anywhere workforce 30:45Guest Website - https://www.experiencecollab.comGuest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/alannanceSponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Charlotte Picker is a self-confessed generalist across operations and technology. A Prince2 and Scrum Master certified individual with extensive experience across PMO, Programme, Project & Product Management. She is a regular guest on podcasts and co-hosts ‘Careers & Coffee’ podcast where she is a creative career conversationalist.Top 3 takeaways1.     Being a generalist in tech 01:202.     The secret sauce to building an inclusive culture 28:533.     Inspiring the future generation about careers in tech 44:46Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotte-picker-4565b426/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Sophie Hussey is an ITSM & Leadership Consultant running her own practice. An ITIL expert, a STEM Ambassador and an ISO Committee member. She posts daily on LinkedIn and has been recognised as the ‘Top IT Strategy Voice on LinkedIn’. She is a massive advocate for women in tech and has been a finalist at the Women in Tech awards. She has recently set up Women of ITSM, a community to support women in the tech industry.Top 3 takeaways1.     You don’t have to be technical to work in tech 14:142.     Being a STEM Ambassador and attracting children at school into tech 18:443.     Recruiting women in tech 26:05Guest Website - https://www.lapis-consulting.com/Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophiehussey/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Lucy Grimwade is an IT & Improvement Leadership Consultant running her own practice. Lucy is passionate about empowering women in IT and is in the process of setting up a community called Women of ITSM.Top 3 takeaways1.     Sexism in the workplace 25:182.     Allyship book 59:253.     Women of ITSM – 01:01:09Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucygrimwade/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Indy Bhamber is an ITIL qualified Service Desk Manager working for a global Nasdaq and S&P listed company. Indy shares his insights into how he got into IT leadership and how he manages and motivates his team.Top 3 take aways1.     Is there a place for micro management in tech 09:452.     All managers are project managers 30:003.     How to keep Service Desk individuals happy 46:17Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/indy-bhamber-60242224/Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/