Most of our day to day things like working, shopping and learning are now being done virtually. Therefore, the rules for a business to succeed have changed, and are ever more reliant on harnessing the power of digital models to create new experiences with a collaborative leadership. However, digital transformation is not a new need for businesses across the globe, instead sustainability through digital transformation is the new trend.

To explore and discuss what’s new in the wake of sustainable digital transformation and the rise of collaborative leadership, Convo proudly hosted the monthly CXO Global Forum Meetup at their Islamabad Office on 27th October, 2020.

The meetup started with the host inviting Noshad Minhas, Chief Product Officer-Convo to inform the attendees about Convo and share what it does. He began by thanking the panelist, Abdul Rahim Ahmad, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) & Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)-SECP, Osman Nasir, Chairman-Pakistan Software Export Board, Fatima Mazhar, General Manager-Keep Truckin and Dr. Sahibzada Ali Mahmud, Managing Director-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Technology Board for being a part of the meetup. He informs that “the slogan for Convo is Unify your workforce and collectively we should be unifying our workforces for a common goal which should be Digital Pakistan”.

The host continues “many people talk about when will the moment for Pakistan happen. The moment for transformative leadership, digital disruption and also the moment for collaborative leadership”. He added “we are almost there, but that does not mean that we are there yet”

He invites Osman Rashid, CEO & Chairman-Convo for his key note on what is it that the modern leader of today should be looking at. Osman Rashid began by focusing on his journey of two years and how he has been lucky enough to work with some of the best people. He also adds that the people of Pakistan have a lot of potential and what people at managerial positions should do to push forward, because our moment is almost there, but is taking a while.

Further, he continues “companies are built by teams underneath and not just the founder alone. However, it’s just that we do not aim high which is not okay. Because the spark that comes from some of the team members is the magic for the company to do great”.

By sharing examples of some of the successful entrepreneurs, likewise some of the individuals at Convo succeeded by taking a step forward, resulting in the recognition of Convo worldwide. Also, adding that Convo has opened up schools in Lahore with an idea to introduce concept based learning with the notion that if the generation does not step forward, we as a nation cannot move forward. 
He encouraged the executives present at the meetup to find brilliant people and cultivate them to take the business to the next level.

The session went ahead with a panel talk on “Sustainable digital transformation and the rise of collaborative leadership” with panelist sharing their experiences of working as C-suite executives and the challenges they foresee. The host invited the four panelists; Abdul Rahim Ahmad, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) & Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)-SECP, Osman Nasir, Chairman-Pakistan Software Export Board, Fatima Mazhar, General Manager-Keep Truckin and Dr. Sahibzada Ali Mahmud, Managing Director-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Technology Board to share their stories and perspectives.

The host began by appreciating the initiatives of Mr. Abdul Rahim Ahmad- SECP for the online registration of new corporations within a day, most of which were IT companies from Islamabad. The host asked “how does he ensure whether the companies that are coming into Pakistan for registration processes, filing, returns, etc., through the digital platform is a sustainable transformation?”

Mr. Abdul Rahim Ahmad responded “The number of companies getting registered in Pakistan is increasing due to firstly, the boom of entrepreneurship and secondly, even today, billions of companies are undocumented.”

He also mentioned that the idea behind digital registration was to simplify the process for companies starting up in Pakistan. On being asked whether the collaborative trait was easy to implement in a government organization, he responded “The idea was to talk about collaborative leadership, not only within the organization across horizontally and vertically but by engaging citizen and public as well. As a result, we saw engagement not only with the NIC but also with different sectors/industries.”

Next Mr. Osman Nasir, Chairman-Pakistan Software Export Board, commented “If we try and train most of our human resource into emerging tech, the value we will build for the rest of the world as an HR or a company will be immense. Nobody will be able to rule us out.” To which the host added that with the right people at the right job, things do happen.

With KPT being a huge challenge in terms of culture, language, academia and industry collaborations but huge opportunities, the host moved to speak to its Managing Director, Dr. Sahibzada Ali Mahmud. He began by asking “What are the few things you see that you want to work on, despite the challenges?”

“Regarding digital transformation, the two main areas I would like to focus on are digital governance and digital economy.” responded Dr. Ali Mahmud.

He also added “The biggest challenge of driving digital transformation is the change management and the changing mindset. With the right kind of interventions, we will drive digital transformation across the organization.”

Lastly, Fatima Mazhar, GM-Keep Truckin shared her perspective being the only panelist from the private sector and the one to launch Careem Pakistan. On being asked that what is the core element to digital transformation, she responded “There are four things which are very important for digital transformation to be sustainable; your customers, your own employees, your country and most importantly, somebody who thinks the core of digital transformation lies in processes.”

The Forum meetup ended with how Convo is seizing the opportunity to advance a new path for sustainable digital transformation by developing the capability of resources and their technical understanding to succeed in the digital world.

For the complete session be sure to view the recording of the meetup available on our Facebook page and let us know whether collaborative leadership is the heart of sustainable digital transformation.