The New Year isn’t the only exciting change happening at Alliant Technologies. At the close of 2010, Alliant announced an organizational restructure that started from the very top. As part of our new “Spotlight Series,” Alliant has decided to take a fresh approach to introducing some of its newly appointed management team. In this first edition, the spotlight is on Manak Ahluwalia. Manak has been with Alliant for over ten years, was previously the Director of the Alliant Boston office, and has most recently been appointed to Chief Technology Officer. We pulled Manak aside recently to pick his brain and find out what he thinks about his new position and his views on the latest trends at Alliant and in the IT industry.
Q: You were recently appointed to CTO at Alliant Technologies. What does CTO mean to you?
A: As a CTO for Alliant Technologies my job is comprised of multiple facets that ultimately lead to the strategic roadmap and development of our product and service offerings. It is my responsibility to listen to and understand the business, technical, and operational challenges our customers are facing - in addition to studying market transitions, emerging technologies, and consumption preferences. With the knowledge I gain, I’m able to make intelligent decisions on the use of our resources to develop new solutions that provide true value for our customers and drive profits for our organization.
Q: In which direction do you see the IT world heading? What are the hottest topics right now?
A: Is “To the Cloud” too obvious of an answer? Realistically, I do believe over the next couple of years many companies will consume more of their key applications and infrastructure in either a cloud or hybrid model. However, another area in which I am seeing interesting trends develop are how the tools we use in personal life are beginning to significantly influence the ways in which we communicate and collaborate in our work life. I’m seeing major changes in the form factors and end user devices being brought into the workforce. I find more CIO’s beginning to realize how increased productivity by being consumer driven is starting to outweigh the operational efficiency of standardized end points. There will be a delicate balance of user freedom and productivity coupled with security and risk mitigation. Case in point: your CEO/CFO/COO/CIO probably has an iPad and most likely is getting corporate email on it.
Q: How would you describe the culture at Alliant?
A: Our culture has always fostered strong engineering talent coupled with an entrepreneurial spirit. That culture puts us in a unique position to leverage our core strengths and continue to innovate and evolve as the market changes so rapidly. We are a relatively flat organization of very bright people who are encouraged to look for opportunities to excel and given sponsorship to work outside their comfort zone. You’ll find working at Alliant to be both challenging but rewarding. After over a decade of working at Alliant, I still enjoy coming to work in the morning. Not many people have that luxury.
Q: What’s the best aspect of your job as CTO?
A: The customer interactions are some of the most fulfilling parts of my job. I get the opportunity on a daily basis to understand a variety of business challenges, industry specific issues, and what keeps people up at night. I feel blessed to be able to interact with so many thought leaders and be a student of technology.
Q: You recently completed a 10 month Regional Leadership Forum (RLF) with Society for Information Management (SIM). With this new leadership opportunity, what learning’s from your recent class are you going to apply at Alliant?
A: I would characterize my experience at RLF to really be more of self discovery then any particular skill set development. The program really highlighted some key elements that will hold true for the rest of my personal and professional life. What I took from the program was comfort in my own skin to understand my strengths as well as my weaknesses; to try to listen and understand before you teach; to cherish feedback. Ultimately, to remember why I come to work in the morning and why the people that enable me to be successful do the same.
