This marks 300 episodes of the Software People Stories. The journey has been very enriching. But more of that, in a few weeks, when we complete six years of the podcast.
In addition, the guest today is a person who has been a mentor to me and whose qualities technically and as a leader, I admire.
I continue my conversation with Gunaseelan Narayanan, known as Guna. Guna is an executive coach with a long career in IT before that.
In this conversation, he talks about
- Transition from Project Leader to Delivery Excellence Leader, initial challenges with management style to embracing new technologies and effectively leading high-performing engineering teams.
- He also emphasizes the difference in project timelines between internal R&D and global customer
- The importance of empathy, communication, and tailored processes in effectively aligning different divisions or lines of business within an organization, especially in a complex matrix organizational structure.
- How his career was marked by diverse opportunities across different sectors , each offering valuable learning experiences and professional development.
- His journey into coaching and leadership development, emphasizing the shift from directive management to coaching and the importance of continuous learning and adaptation in his career.
- His Career Advice, and explanation of ethics in Technology
Guna has over three decades of experience in the Information Technology industry. Currently he is an Executive Coach, helping senior executives enhance their leadership capabilities.
He started his career as a software engineer in R&D department of Hindustan Computers Limited in 1979. He held various technical and managerial roles in HCL R&D and HCL-HP R&D before transitioning to HCL Technologies. In HCL Technologies he was in key delivery and business leadership roles including head of Engineering and R&D Services Line of Business and head of Delivery Excellence.
Guna holds M.Tech. degree in Computer Science and B.Tech. in Electrical Engineering, both from IIT Madras. He is a certified Executive Coach from Coaching Foundation India.
