Intelligent CIO Europe Issue 19 | Page 81

GET TO KNOW... On the lighter side of things, we ask the industry experts what makes them tick. . . . Jason Wells, VP and GM EMEA at Cradlepoint What would you describe as your most memorable achievement? Personally, fathering two children. Professionally, setting up the EMEA-geo for a global SD-WAN vendor from scratch and taking it to a multi-million dollar business unit inside of three quarters. Seeing my team fulfil their potential, crush their goals and over achieve gives me a huge sense of achievement, particularly when we are working towards challenging objectives. What first made you think of a career in technology? I have not always been in the industry. In the early 1990s you would have found me working as a resort representative for Club 18-30, or as a Butlins Red Coat. I stumbled upon my ability to sell in the mid-90s by accident while selling ‘holiday-ownership’ properties in the Mediterranean. Upon returning home, I received some extremely wise advice that set me on the path to where I am today – IT and technology is where I should focus my future. I took this advice on board and luckily, in 1999, a small VAR took a chance on me and I became immersed in the IT/network security industry. Very soon I was working on projects in areas as diverse as education, finance, retail and the MOD. www.intelligentcio.com What style of management philosophy do you employ with your current position? Everyone is under a huge amount of pressure to succeed. Over-achieving against ever expanding quota numbers and managing our partner/customer environment is complex and challenging. My philosophy is to hire really smart people and give them clear direction. Most importantly, I believe you need to empower your team to define their own path to success and constantly work to help them achieve this. If your team is ambitious and successful, then you have done your job. What do you think will emerge as the technology trend of 2019 and why? I think 2019 is the year we will really see the Wireless Internet becoming the primary connectivity for businesses. Research suggests adoption of LTE by businesses is “ I RECEIVED SOME EXTREMELY WISE ADVICE THAT SET ME ON THE PATH TO WHERE I AM TODAY. INTELLIGENTCIO 81