A recipe for success: Shanthi Chandrasekar

The speed at which digital innovation is progressing seems faster than light. Keeping pace with this change and being ahead of the curve is something Bahwan CyberTek’s Executive Vice President for Asia–Pacific, Shanthi Chandrasekar, is keenly aware of.

"Something we’ve done over the last decade, and which we’ll be doing more of, is customer-centricity," she tells The CEO Magazine.

"We’re an innovation-focused company and we generate value by forging deep relationships and actively listening to our customers’ problems."

"I found that even though customers might have initial resistance, once they see that you deliver value and bring business model innovation to the table, they’ll trust you."

Companies striving for a digital transformation are spoiled for choice when it comes to solutions providers. Going digital is the way to stay agile and navigate the disruptive nature of today’s business landscape as well as futureproof your business, but the path forward isn’t always clear. There is no one-size-fits-all solution.

Seeking progress

This is where Bahwan CyberTek comes in. Since 1999, the company has been at the forefront of digital transformation and technology solutions for clients all over the world. Through extensive expertise, specialized technology and innovative practices, it has helped businesses of all kinds prepare for the future, while simultaneously becoming a transformative industry leader.

This pioneering quality is exemplified by Shanthi, who’s the first to admit reaching her current position was not easy.

"Looking back, I still don’t believe it," she admits. "I come from a conservative south Indian family. There was a big push for women to become doctors at that time, but my father supported me in my pursuit of my passion, an engineering degree. However, I was not encouraged to take up a job."

Once she was married, Shanthi and her husband moved to Bahrain, where the challenges continued due to work regulations for a dependent spouse.

"Despite my qualification, there were many rejections," she says. "But I didn’t give up. I got my first breakthrough at Unisys as a software quality analyst."

Within a couple of years, the software quality analyst had made the jump to KPMG as a Technical Associate.

"I fought my way in and there was no looking back," she says. "You can’t wait for the right opportunity."

Eventually, Shanthi moved to management consulting, where she spent 14 years directly interacting with clients in the capacity of Strategic Advisor.

"I found that even though customers might have initial resistance to change, once they see that you deliver value and bring business model innovation to the table, they’ll trust you," she adds.

When the opportunity to be a part of Bahwan CyberTek arose, Shanthi saw it as an opportunity to apply her wealth of experience to a blossoming sector in the Asia–Pacific region.

"At some stage in your career, we need challenges to thrive," she says. "This felt very challenging, but it also gave me plenty of opportunities for growth and satisfaction."

Sharing innovation

In 10 years, Shanthi has grown the two-person Singapore arm of Bahwan CyberTek into its Asia–Pacific division, which spans six countries and employs more than 550 staff.

"Revenue has now more than tripled and we’re adding value for customers all the time," she says. "Most of our clients have been with us for more than five years."

The company has a strong focus on innovation, with AI and sustainability playing significant roles in the future of business.

"We started our organization as an IP product company and have since expanded into IT services," Shanthi says.

"If you’re enabling business transformation through a hybrid model of IP products and IT services, you need to be innovative, invest in domain expertise and be open to risk taking."

Bahwan CyberTek is one of the few companies who invest in co-innovation with its customers and partners. "Through collaboration, both the parties realize value," she says.

"We forge deep client relationships, we prioritize customer-centricity and we invest in innovative solutions to address their specific problems. Being mid-sized, we’re nimble and agile enough to be able to do this. It’s our secret to success."

"We forge deep client relationships, we prioritize customer-centricity and we invest in innovative solutions to address their specific problems."

Joint innovation is a concept Bahwan CyberTek has pushed to its limits. A partnership with eSiPADU Systems, a fully owned subsidiary of Darussalam Assets, Brunei, led to the creation of a joint venture company, Comquest, which specializes in end-to-end outsourcing of digital transformations for customers in Brunei.

"Partnerships have to be either strategic or exclusive in order to be successful and long lasting," she says.

Trust is the lubricant that keeps these relationships running smoothly. "You’re building a resilient partner ecosystem based on trust," she says.

Leadership in this rapidly changing IT field requires innovation, passion, laser focused vision, integrity, humility and empathy, according to Shanthi.

"When you collaborate with partners, trust is gained when the parties involved are totally invested in each other’s interest," she says.

"There’s something you can learn from everybody you meet. I always observe the positive traits in other people and try to inculcate the same in me; this is my recipe for success."