I recently caught with someone who used to work for me during my MSP days. When I worked for Lyndentac, I contracted him to a customer, just supporting hand-and-legs for a 30-person Perth office.
Rapidly 20 years forward, and it is now responsible for one-third of the IT function in the same global oil and gas services, but now he has 28 direct reports in 10 countries, as a migrant on the way in Malaysia with a few years.
Quite travel.
But here I was most impressed: he never stopped learning and certifying.
Now, despite being strong in the field of people-deserted, he has continued to build his technical knowledge. This year? He is doing his CISSP.
And I have seen it in many strong IT leaders:
🪛 When they go “away from” equipment, they do not just leave the technique behind.
🪛 They remain beyond this. They keep learning.
🪛 They maintain enough depth to ask the correct question – even if they are not working.
This reminded me of a story of former PepsiCo CEO Indra Nuoi. Before greenlitting the Global SAP rollout, he spent six weeks, to find out what questions he needs to ask – and to ensure that he gets enough answers from SAP and his colleagues to ensure that he would ensure a successful project.
Whether it is technology, business, or recruitment – everything can change with the correct questions and continuously.
This is a leadership skill that we do not talk enough.
Keep people out there and keep asking the right questions until you get the correct answer.