D E E P D I V E

WE ‘ DEEP DIVE ’ WITH

What would you describe as your most memorable achievement in the data centre industry ?

As with all my memorable achievements , this was a team effort and a relatively small project for one of my financial services clients . There were incredibly tight timescales as they needed to move some key servers from one data centre to another , requiring the construction of high-density computing space within an existing facility , against hard and challenging deadlines . We created a procurement route enabling a fast start on-site whilst retaining financial control and predictability of outturn cost . Thanks to the efforts of my team , the contractor , designers and client teams , the project was operational on time and within the sanctioned budget – but it was incredibly challenging .

What first made you think of a career in technology / data centres ?

With my engineering services core competency in the background , it was the obvious choice . It is a sector where I felt I could make a difference , be challenged and have stimulating and developmentally useful experiences – and I was right .

Over the past 20 years , I have been lucky to work on some amazing projects , delivering specialist mission-critical systems and data centre consultancy in developer , finance , defence , media and end-user environments . I have used my engineering background and technical skills in several techno-economic research projects for the UK government and policy influencers , shaping project delivery for pathfinder research in the lowcarbon arena .

What style of management philosophy do you employ in your current position ?

If you are leading people you need to adapt your style to suit the situation and team but always be authentic in how you go about it . I would prefer to coach wherever possible but in an industry that moves as quickly as ours that is not always possible . I value creativity , decisiveness , effective solutions and clear communication – but with respect for how people can be made to feel so that they give their best .

What do you think is the current hot talking point within the data centre space ?

There are several but the number one issue for our clients is power availability . Since we began the BCS biannual survey 15 years ago , the availability of power has been ranked consistently as the single most important factor in the choice of a new data centre . The results of our latest report ( July 24 ) suggest this firmly remains the case , with nearly four-fifths of respondents choosing the availability of power as their top influencing factor . In addition , around a similar amount of our

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