Insight announcements Insight Unveils Global Team of Distinguished Technologists at Mastery Conference
By Phil Hawkshaw / 16 Aug 2024
At Insight, we understand the importance of elevating the expertise of the most accomplished experts within our own technical community. We believe in celebrating the depth of our solutions expertise, crafted by the technologists who are fostering Insight’s team culture, diversity of thought, leadership excellence, and innovation overall.
As a member of our global CTO team, my focus is on nurturing and empowering our technical talent, accelerating their growth as visionaries in the ever-evolving technology landscape. One answer to meeting this expectation is the globalization of our Distinguished Technologists program, and I’m very proud to salute the eight newest members of this select group, announced today at our Mastery technical conference in Phoenix.
By prioritizing the development and recognition of our technologists through this program, we ensure that our solutions are not just built for clients, but also by and for the very experts who drive novel ideas and excellence within our organization. Please join us in congratulating these new Distinguished Technologists, as we continue to champion Insight’s technical community:
In APAC:
- John Jones, Australia national practice manager, business apps
- Paul Smithdale, principal architect
- Stephen Tulp, APAC tech strategist
In EMEA:
- Santo Orlando, EMEA practice director, modern apps and data services
- Iain Smith, EMEA practice director, unified communications
- Lee Wilkinson, technology lead, cloud, data and intelligent edge
In North America:
- Dean Chyla, principal architect
- Meagan Gentry, U.S. national practice lead, AI
At last year’s Mastery, we introduced our first class of Distinguished Technologists, all based in North America: Juan Orlandini, North America CTO; Carm Taglienti, chief data officer; Joe Flynn, director, digital workplace services; Jeff Bozic, principal architect; and Michael Nardone, U.S. national cloud practice lead.
All of these teammates demonstrate exceptional leadership abilities, embodying our core values of Hunger, Heart, and Harmony and standing out as role models for our community of 6,500+ technologists worldwide. Committed to sharing our expertise on the evolving technology landscape and assisting businesses in future readiness, we will soon feature their insightful perspectives and tech predictions on insight.com. By elevating their thought-leadership platforms as Distinguished Technologists, we aim to provide the broader community with valuable insights from Insight’s brightest minds.
The Distinguished Technologist program nurtures our own company’s strategic direction and enriches our offerings. Let me give you an idea of how our Distinguished Technologists regularly help our clients redefine how they work.
Meagan Gentry has been instrumental in helping luxury appliance manufacturer Sub-Zero Group adopt an advanced AI strategy. With 12 plant locations and growing, Sub-Zero required improved resource allocation processes and a skilled partner to handle various initiatives, from app development to cloud integration.
Megan's team crafted a customized AI strategy involving consulting, managed services, UX design, Microsoft Azure integration, and data analytics to enhance customer experiences and enable data-driven decision-making. This partnership aims to establish a lasting strategic alliance, positioning Sub-Zero as a market leader by leveraging AI for innovation and operational efficiency.
Our Distinguished Technologists ensure that Insight stays at the forefront of technological advancements and continues to deliver cutting-edge solutions to clients like this. The program also plays a vital role in promoting diversity and inclusion within Insight. By acknowledging the accomplishments of thought leaders from diverse backgrounds, we aim to inspire a wide range of perspectives that drive innovation reflecting the multiplicity of our clients' businesses and the challenges we collaboratively address.
This approach also allows individuals to advance in their careers by highlighting their experiential knowledge and mastery of contemporary technologies and tools, rather than solely on their team management skills. Insight's dedication to providing fair and equal career growth opportunities helps us attract and keep top talent. This ensures that we continue to deliver world-class solutions and services to our clients by highly motivated and caring people.
At its core, the Distinguished Technologists program embodies Insight's commitment to empowering people and technology on a grand scale. It honors and supports experts who are leaders in their technical domains and have made substantial contributions to transformative projects within the company and the industry at large. We are providing our IT professionals a unique career advancement opportunity centered on pioneering technological excellence.
Looking ahead, the program will continue to evolve with a focus on global reach and inclusivity. Our Distinguished Technologists are expected to provide guidance to Insight’s executive leadership on the future of technology and running a modern business.
I couldn’t be more excited about where these bright minds will take us — and you – in the future.
To learn more about Insight’s Distinguished Technologists program, visit our new thought-leader hub at: insight.com/DistinguishedTechnologists
Phil Hawkshaw
CTO and Director of Technology, Insight EMEA
Phil leads the development of business-driven solutions that enable Insight's clients to thrive on innovation in the fast-paced world of technology, data and end-user experience. His team develops Insight EMEA's solutions portfolio, including complex solution design, enterprise architecture, technology strategy, and digital transformation roadmapping services for our clients.
