Katrina is the Co-Founder of HIT Global where Humanising IT™ applies human-centred design principles to the world of IT service management. Katrina is recognised as leading global expert in ITSM field, she trains and advises international and publicly listed institutions.

Katrina is an ITIL Master, former ITIL Global Ambassador, and was a contributing author to all ITIL 4 official publications. She is an award-winning author of her book “Humanising IT”

She is the creator of the Humanising IT™ podcasts where she interviews the most influential and powerful business leaders across the globe.

Top 3 takeaways

1.     What is Humanising IT – 07:25

2.     Design thinking principles - 12:48

3.     Starting again as an entrepreneur – 22:15

Guest Website - https://hitglobal.services/

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/katrinamacdermid/

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Sean has spent the past 35 years working for BT in a variety of roles. Working his way up from a Customer Service Engineer to Head of Change Management, ITIL Specialist and now his current role as Senior Manager, Governance and Insights. He is ITIL 4 certified and is a Certified Scrum Master. Member chair at the ITSMF for London and South East region. 

Top 3 takeaways

1.     All about the right people 8:57

2.     Overcoming the stigma of mental health 13:47

3.     XLA’s 29:41

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sean-burkinshaw-b19a04204/

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Hear the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Jag Sohal is an experienced IT Business Relationship Manager working in Financial Services and reporting up to C suite level. She is a Certified Business Relationship Management professional, ITIL4, Prince 2 practitioner and Management of Portfolios. She is a volunteer for the British Computer Society and generated an 8 part series of IT webinars.

Top 3 takeaways

1.     Growing Business Relationship ManagementCommunity 6:35

2.     Early careers ambassador 18:15

3.     Apprenticeships 21:20

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jag-sohal

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Sara works for a software house as Head of Business Process & Intelligence. She discusses her varied career before entering the tech world. She is an American working in Spain and is passionate about work-life balance.

Top 3 takeaways

1.     Business Process Triangle 24:12

2.     Success of Work-Life Balance 34:21

3.     Working in another country 54:40

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarabeyer/

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Greg is an experienced IT Service Operations and IT Service Management Leader with certifications in ITIL and Prince2. He has worked in the MSP sector for 17 years however last year moved to a software house where he managed to refresh his career.

Top 3 takeaways

1.     Apprenticeships over a degree 19:25

2.     Recharging the batteries 41:58

3.     Frameworks that offer value 55:38

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-riddle-912a8524/

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Simon is an expert in IT Service Management and currently runs his practice with his wife and focuses on personal, business, and digital transformation.

He experienced a life-changing brain haemorrhage stroke in 2021 and wrote a book called ‘The Gift’ talking through his experience of stroke survival.

Top 3 takeaways

1.     The role of BRM 08:20

2.     Stroke survival 44:45

3.     Disability acceptance 01:16:20

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonkent2112/

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Patrycja is an award-winning Service Delivery Professional who thrives in highly pressurised situations and runs high-profile teams, projects and services.

Patrycja is currently the Global Vice President of Digital Workplace at Unisys and has certifications in ITIL, Price2 and Six Sigma.

Top 3 takeaways

1.     Leading by example 11:23

2.     The value that tech delivers 27:33

3.     Developing an experience management office 45:27

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrycjasobera/

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Megan is an ITILv4 Strategic Leader and currently working as Head of IT Operations at SoftCat, a leading IT infrastructure provider. She’s a rare breed loyal to SoftCat in various roles over the past 11 years. She is skilled in strategy development, vendor management,

budget control, and optimising IT operations for organisation success. She has exceptional communication skills, building strong partner relationships and leading teams.

Top 3 takeaways

1.     Care about the ‘why’ 12:09

2.     Chimp paradox – controlling your emotions 21:49

3.     Succeeding and failing in front of your team39:44

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/megan-leadbetter/

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Simon is an experienced IT Service Manager passionate about leadership and culture.

ITIL certified and led ITIL adoption within his previous businesses allowing IT services to be delivered consistently. A Lean Six-Sigma certification has allowed him to work on projects to drive efficiencies and cost savings to the business.

Top 3 takeaways

1.     Change of leadership style 16:43

2.     Values written by employees 25:45

3.     The impact of ITIL 37:58

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-gale-7a278453/

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Find the latest news – www.techlifestories.com

Iain is an experienced Tech Leader with over 20 years of experience in software and service delivery. He is passionate about mentoring high-performing teams which comes across passionately in this episode.

Iain holds multiple certifications including ITIL4, Lean, Scrum Master & Product Owner. Iain talks about the importance of building a tech network and how you can use personal hobbies to do this. He has a passion for martial arts and is a professional TTRPG Games Master.

Top 3 takeaways

1.     The importance of building a tech network 20:17

2.     Understanding contracting and IR35 31:05

3.     Value Stream Mapping 57:52

Guest LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/iain-russell-itsm/

Sponsored by Russell King Associates - https://www.russellkingassociates.com/

Find Kaan Azmi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaanazmi/

Hear the latest news – www.techlifestories.com