What would you describe as your most memorable achievement in the data centre industry?
Successfully coordinating and completing an upgrade of our fifth facility in London Docklands last year, in less than 12 months. The 32-year-old historic building, now known as Telehouse South, will forever be classed as one of the biggest undertakings and milestones in our company’s three-decade-long history.
The project itself was the most ambitious infrastructural and aesthetic reconstruction and a great example of our commitment to enabling our customers to grow within the existing London Docklands campus. I am proud of everyone involved in the project, who despite the widespread disruption from the pandemic was able to support us in creating the most connected business community in Europe.
What first made you think of a career in technology/data centres?
After completing my degree in sociology, I began my career with Telehouse’s parent company, the telecoms operator, KDDI Corporation. I was taking care of major financial companies that had entered the Japanese market and required an international network. However, I was always drawn towards what’s challenging and dynamic, hence choosing the data centre space. With the constantly changing technological landscape, the industry will always bring exciting opportunities. Combined with my hunger for knowledge, I believe I picked the perfect career path.
Telecommunications itself is quite a dynamic industry, especially when I compared it with other industries. That was why I decided to join KDDI. I really enjoyed working in the telecoms industry and working closely with the multinational customers. I later realised that my customers in Europe or the US were familiar with the Telehouse name rather than KDDI. Therefore, I became interested in the data centre business and had a strong desire to work at Telehouse.
What style of management philosophy do you employ with your current position?
I firmly believe in the power of two-way, honest, interactive communication to create an engaging workplace environment. Keeping regular face-to-face communication with everyone in the business is an important element of my managerial position and one that brings me the most joy. I always look forward to hosting our quarterly in-person company meetings where I can address people directly and help bring us closer together.
What do you think is the current hot talking point within the data centre space?
Sustainability. Without doubt it has become the key driving force behind transformation in the data centre industry and has fast risen to the top of business agendas. Given the current energy market volatility, data centre operators like Telehouse are tasked with improving sustainability and minimising greenhouse gas emissions to address customer and stakeholder expectations, help them weather the storm and support innovation projects. At Telehouse, we’re proud to be at the forefront of leading this charge.
How do you deal with stress and unwind outside the office?
I’m very committed to achieving my 10,000 steps a day. A personal favourite of mine is unwinding on a walk through Hyde Park in London – I feel very fortunate to live in such a fantastic city.
What do you currently identify as the major areas of investment in your industry?
Customer demand for colocation space and higher power provisions has seen a steady increase in the last few years. As such, data centres have been investing in meeting these requirements, while ensuring high quality when it comes to connectivity. We’re also seeing investment increase in new technologies like robotics, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to help with energy and operational efficiencies.
What are the region-specific challenges you encounter in your role?
The volumes of data are ever-increasing both globally and within our specific regions in Europe, meaning we have to juggle the task of ensuring adequate space and power for our customers to handle these volumes while considering energy efficiency and unrivalled connectivity at the same time. It is a challenge, however, in my role as a managing director, I am looking at how we can expand within our existing campus and into new destinations to meet the demands of our customers.
What changes to your job role have you seen in the last year and how do you see these developing in the coming months?
I assumed my role as a managing director in October 2022, after a year of holding my position as a deputy managing director at Telehouse Europe. Since then, I have seen as many changes and challenges to my role as the broader industry has experienced, with the post-pandemic economic crisis, sky-high energy prices and supply chain issues, to name a few. It is the beauty of my role, however, to try and identify new growth opportunities, despite global disruptions.
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