CIO at Alive Credit Union
Can you please provide a little introduction about yourself
Based in Jacksonville, FL since 1995. Have a wonderful wife Prachi and two daughters Isha and Shailee. We own three businesses Prism Consulting Services, Prism Lighting Services and Prism Health Services. I was fortunate enough to be the CIO at Jax Federal Credit Union for 15+ years and now I am the Fractional CIO at Alive Credit Union since Jan 2023.
What has your journey to your position been like? What path have you taken?
As always for any newcomer to this country, path is difficult and hard work, good networking and luck (+ God's grace) brought me to the position where I am today.
My background was in Electrical Engineering with an MBA in Marketing. In India my experience was Sales, Marketing, Manufacturing etc. in lighting industry and when I came to USA in Dec 1995, I had to start from the ground level again. I went back to India in Apr 1996 and took courses in IT and networking and passed my CNE certification. I came back to USA in Oct 1996 and finally got my first break at a local VAR in May 1997 as a PC tech and Jr Network Engr. From there, moved to sales, moved to a different company and then started on my own in 2000 (Prism Consulting Services). I was lucky to secure some good contracts locally with healthcare companies, Jax Zoo, education institutes, financial institutes, medical offices, legal offices etc. and started expanding. In 2006, I was hired as an Acting CIO at Jax Federal Credit Union, since they had lost their VP of IT. In May 2007 I joined them full time and rest is history for the next 15 years. I resigned from Jax Federal CU in Oct 2022 and took some time off, then joined Alive CU as a Fractional CIO in Jan 2023.
Has it always been your vision to reach the position you’re at? Was your current role part of your vision to become a tech leader?
Absolutely....I was fascinated with the use of new technologies from day one. How to be more efficient and how to remove the mundane repetitive tasks with simple technical advancements (hardware, software, workflows etc.) Looking back, I was always questioning the status quo, why can't we do it other way? To learn and implement and see the benefits (smile on the end user's face was my reward) was the best part. To make it happen for any organization in the future, I had to be on the top level to design, collaborate and hence became my vision.
Have you had a role model or mentor that has helped you on your journey?
Gerri Sexsion was the CEO at Jax Federal CU and we always had a great discussion/debate on many tech topics. She used to tell me - Manish, I am glad to see you bring your "business mentality" to the table, but sometimes you have to understand the corporate environment, understand their needs, empathize and then show them what you can do. They will listen. I made it my mantra, since then - LISTEN, OBSERVE, UNDERSTAND...go back to the drawing board, design, test, verify, and then explain to the end users. Success was 100% guaranteed.
How do you see the role of the technology leader evolving over the next 5 years?
1) Good understanding of impact of technology on business
2) Well-versed in cybersecurity, risk assessments, and overall information security
3) Great team to work and mentor, who are involved in AI, ML, IoT, Data Science
4) Be a good teacher: stop talking tech jargon, and explain how that helps the end users' work
What skills do you think leaders of the future will need in order to thrive?
Managing a tech team (help them see the vision, develop and grow)
Aligning expectations with upper management and board
Quick turnaround in bringing "new stuff" to market
Be a tech visionary and plan 3 years out
How do you keep current with new skills, technologies and personal development?
Networking with peers, am a voracious reader (tech articles, journals), involved with CU-related groups, and constantly learning new things. Many vendors also send good information to read. LinkedIn is a great source for daily nuggets.
What do you see as the next leap in technology that will impact your business or industry in particular?
In Financial Industry (Credit Unions) - ML, Chatbots, Conversational AI, Digital Transformation, seamless way of doing business (online, mobile, in person, contact center) and provide information at the customers' fingertips efficiently.
"Timing is the key to successful launches."
If you were mentoring a leader of the future, what advice or guidance would you give to help them on their way?
Listen, listen, listen: Every end user says or does something that gives you an opportunity to learn and make it better.
Be open to change and ensure upper management buys into the change you are going to propose
Always ask questions (sometimes tough questions)
Network amongst peers - they have done it too and can share experiences. Timing is the key to successful launches
Is there anything in particular that you would still like to achieve in your career or what is the next step on your journey?
I have been the CIO of a mid-size institution, and now for a small institution.
I have founded an IT, Lighting and Healthcare company
I have multiple patents in my name
I travel all over the world (dream job)
Next step would be to involved with an organization who is bringing something unique to the market, or join an FI, who is looking to grow and merge.
If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?
Education: provide basic level education (Free) to every person who has the ability to learn. The next step to that would be much easier and crime would go down significantly.
A big thank you to Manish Kothari from Alive Credit Union for sharing his journey to date.
If you would like to gain more perspective from Tech Leaders and CIOs you can read some of our other interviews here.
