On the lighter side of things, we ask Julian Critchlow, General Manager – ANZ, Extreme Networks, what makes him tick.
What would you describe as your most memorable achievement?
For me, it’s every time we get a great customer outcome. It’s easy to be dispassionate in our industry, to think of our remit as simply delivering products and services, but it can be much more than that. I like to think in terms of ‘what have I done and who have I helped?’ In sectors like education and healthcare, that can be obvious – our technology can provide a real benefit to students and help to save lives. To me, those are memorable achievements and they give me a great deal of job satisfaction.
What first made you think of a career in technology?
I hold a dual degree in business administration and ancient history so it was a logical choice – not! When I entered the jobs market after university, the dot.com boom was kicking off. It was clear to me it was something worth getting attached to – that the Internet was going to have a significant impact on all our lives – so when a job came up with a company called Cabletron Systems, taking it was a no-brainer. That was the start of my career in the ICT industry and, in retrospect, a pivotal moment in my life.
What style of management philosophy do you employ with your current position?
It’s about trusting and empowering the team. I see my task as lining up a roomful of experts and creating a setting that enables them to be their best. Ideally, the room should be vibrant and bouncing with ideas, with everyone feeling comfortable speaking their minds. If I can foster a culture that encourages and supports all contributors to deliver great outcomes, then it makes my job incredibly easy.
What do you think is the current hot technology talking point?
Looking at our lives right now we look at the transformations we are going through due to the Covid pandemic, what it’s done and how we’ll get on with organizing ourselves and our businesses. It’s heartening that technology has been at the forefront at dealing with Covid. However, those transformations have ushered in a new model of work, hybrid. Any technology powering that is hot. At Extreme Networks, we focus on enabling companies to deploy network infrastructure in a secure, scalable way to meet this challenge.
How do you deal with stress and unwind outside the office?
The wall in my home office is hung with a collection of guitars. When I get a couple of hours, nothing’s better than picking one of them up, sitting down and playing through something; getting hold of a solo that was previously unplayable, for example, and eventually just nailing it. The satisfaction of that…For me it comes down to betterment, the feeling that you’ve achieved something previously unachievable. My musical tastes are very unpalatable for most people, including my family – I’m a shredder with a soft spot for 90’s metal.
If you could go back and change one career decision, what would it be?
That’s a history question and I resolved long ago never to answer any more of those except in pub quizzes! I prefer to think about career decisions from the angle of what advice I’d give to my younger self. It would mostly be about seizing the opportunity in the moment. If I look back, I’d say be more adventurous, take the risks and push on. If you feel you have the skills and can add value, never be shy about speaking up and making yourself part of the conversation.
What do you currently identify as the major areas of investment in your industry?
Our industry is one that stands adjacent to many technologies, including cloud and security, and they’re going to dominate absolutely everything. When it comes to network infrastructure, which is what we do, we’ll see massive uptake of Wi-Fi transformation. There’ll be significant investment in 5G and we’ll see Wi-Fi and 5G coming together much more closely in most enterprise environments, with each technology requiring the support of the other.
What are the region specific challenges when implementing new technologies in APAC?
I don’t like that as a concept… I don’t believe in region specific challenges! If one of our reps said to me that there are region specific challenges why we can’t sell something, I’d lose my mind! I believe we have a portfolio of solutions that we bring to market and it’s for us to understand their value and position them effectively to our customers, in whatever territory it is that we’re addressing. It’s not that I’m doing a Monty Python, always looking on the bright side of life, but rather that, with technology, the flexibility you have is such that you should have seen something region specific and be working other avenues to achieve success.
What changes to your job role have you seen in the last year and how do you see these developing in the next 12 months?
Most people working in management have been in the same boat. The challenge we’ve faced has been trying to ensure our teams are happy and comfortable and fulfilling their roles, in a scenario which no one had ever anticipated. We all have stories of staff members who didn’t see a single colleague for months on end, and making sure outcomes are being delivered regardless has been tricky at times. In the next 12 months, we’ll need to learn to do things differently again as we settle into a heavily hybridized work environment. Adapting longer term strategies for this will be crucial.
What advice would you offer to someone aspiring to obtain a C-level position in your industry?
Whatever the conversation, find a way of adding value that’s truly genuine and personal to you. That will come across so powerfully when you’re engaging with senior executives and customers who are looking to technology to deliver an outcome for them. It’s helped me immensely through my career and it’s advice I’d offer to anyone looking to do likewise. Find yourself a good mentor, someone you respect and admire who’s tackled many of the challenges that will likely come your way; they can help you unlock the value in yourself. Other than that, work hard and eat your greens!
