Interview: Amrita Kooner, DevOps Leader of the Year finalist, IBM UK
"Among the most pressing challenges facing our society today is closing the STEM skills gap, which holds back both technological and socioeconomic progress"
The DevOps Excellence Awards recognise and celebrate the best of every organisation, teams, individuals, products and tools.
IBM is a finalist in six categories this year: Best Implementation of DevSecOps; Best Use of Microservices/Containers; Best DevOps Team; DevOps Professional of the Year; DevOps Rising Star of the Year; and DevOps Leader of the Year.
We talked to Amrita Kooner from IBM UK, who is in the running for DevOps Leader of the Year.
Amrita is a Senior Managing Consultant in IBM's DevSecOps practice, specialising in delivering digital change for financial services clients. She also built and led the IBM Engine Room, now leading it as Director. She is passionate about using technology to tackle real-world scenarios. She led the team responsible for developing both the application and underlying cloud platform of an IBM Digital Health Pass, which was a Covid-19 health passport solution designed to aid the return to work, travel and entertainment. In her free time, she also volunteers at a not-for-profit advocating for women within the UK.
Computing: Please provide some background on your company for our readers.
Amrita Kooner: IBM is the global leader in business transformation through an open hybrid cloud platform and AI, and is committed to being a responsible innovator and a force for good in the world. We believe in progress—that the application of intelligence, reason and science can improve business, society and the human condition. IBM accelerates the client's journey to long-lasting value, as a catalyst to digital transformation.
What makes you different from other technology companies?
AK: We are a leader across products and solutions, and we want to empower the entire company to demonstrate this with easy access to our most compelling proof points about what makes our technology the best.
With over 100 years of experience in the market, IBM has built a first-rate reputation as an employer. This is due to its culture of innovation and research, which drives it to deliver advanced technology solutions to our clients continuously. Moreover, IBM holds many patents for products and technologies that remain cutting edge even decades after their invention. IBM has topped the US Patent List for the 28th consecutive year with most recent innovations in artificial intelligence, hybrid cloud, quantum computing and cyber security.
What one company achievement in the last 12 months are you most proud of?
AK: We have always understood that our responsibilities extend far beyond the bottom line. That is why we embrace our leadership role in defining good tech in the digital age. Among the most pressing challenges facing our society today is closing the STEM skills gap, which holds back both technological and socioeconomic progress. To address this issue, IBM regularly engages at the highest levels of government to improve access to the education and skills needed for modern, rewarding jobs. In addition, IBM has committed to providing 30 million people of all ages with critical skills by 2030, by fostering more than 50 new partnerships for the IBM SkillsBuild programme.
We also continue to make progress on diversity and inclusion, which we believe is imperative for the health of our business and our society. The Human Rights Campaign Foundation designated IBM as a 'Best Place to Work for LGBTQ+ Equality' with a 100 per cent rating. These efforts—and others—were recently recognised by JUST Capital, which named IBM ' the most just company' in our industry.
What are you working on this year?
AK: I'm a co-founder and director of the IBM Engine Room, which is a centre for learning, innovation and technical excellence within our company. Through the IBM Engine Room, our DevOps engineers work across IBM Cloud, Microsoft Azure, AWS and Google Cloud Platform, as well as Red Hat Openshift, and many more. We have led in the completion of over 130 proofs of concept (PoCs), working with clients across all sectors to demonstrate the power of cloud. These PoCs range across use cases, such as: DevSecOps, integration, application modernisation and migration, cloud portability, and automation, and often result in wider adoption by our clients. Through this initiative, we have also helped over 130 IBMers to become technical and up-skill as cloud engineers, which we're incredibly proud of!
Why are events like the DevOps Excellence Awards important to the IT industry?
AK: The awards provide a platform for like-minded individuals to come together and recognise DevOps talent across all levels of the business, ranging from our early professionals to industry leaders. It is a fantastic opportunity to network, learn from one another and share expertise across our industry.
The DevOps Excellence Awards will take place on the 23rd March 2022 at The Montcalm, Marble Arch. Finalists can click here to book a table.