Dylani Herath, a well known FinTech leader who has worked at organizations such as Greenwood, JP Morgan, and FIS sat down with Rob Ocel, Engineering Lead at This Dot Labs and shared some insight on how digital leaders can improve culture and lead successful transformations by balancing business objectives and engineering needs.
Dylani began her career with a scholarship that allowed her to work for an engineering company while studying. This experience laid the foundation for her future endeavors in consulting, where she focused on process improvement, quality assurance, automation, and optimization. Eventually, she found herself in the fintech industry, working with large organizations to transform and optimize their engineering processes.
Ways to be a Successful Transformative Leader
Creating a roadmap with measurable objectives
One key aspect of effective leadership is aligning the team's technological capabilities with the organization's transformation initiatives. This alignment ensures that the team is equipped to drive change and achieve the desired outcomes. She emphasizes the importance of tying transformation initiatives to measurable objectives, as this provides a clear roadmap for success.
Creating a relationship with your team
Another crucial factor in driving transformation is having the right people on board. Dylani highlights the significance of leaders building strong relationships with their staff to foster a collaborative and supportive environment. This enables the team to work together towards common goals and drive change effectively.
Building platforms to allow ideas and innovation
Creating forums for brainstorming and innovation is another strategy Dylani suggests for engineering leaders. These platforms allow team members to share ideas, think outside the box, and come up with innovative solutions to challenges. By encouraging creativity and collaboration, leaders can harness the full potential of their team.
Clear and transparent communication
Communication is also a vital aspect of effective leadership. Dylani advises leaders to clearly communicate the reasons behind unpopular decisions, ensuring that they align with the organization's long-term goals. This transparency helps build trust and understanding among team members, even in the face of difficult choices.
Incremental transformation, incremental wins
Taking innovative solutions such as new AI tools and harnessing the power of those tools, but implementing them incrementally as there are opportunities for transformation within an organization is the best approach versus investing in large initiatives that take a long time to see results. Done incrementally, organizations can gain valuable insights from their data and make informed decisions that drive transformation and optimize processes.
Dylani's insights on engineering leadership and championing change provide valuable guidance for leaders looking to drive transformation within their organizations. You can follow her on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/dylaniherath/.
You can listen to the podcast here: https://engineeringleadership.podbean.com/e/innovation-is-not-just-creating-something-new-dylani-herath-fintech-leader/
