Could you please share your business direction globally, in particular investment and strategy plans in Thailand?

Since 1993, ThoughtWorks has partnered with enterprise organizations and leaders around the world to transform their businesses through technology. The one constant over the years is our commitment to software engineering excellence. We focus on working with clients seeking to become data-led digital organizations where technology is core to their business.

We have been working with clients in Thailand since 2016, but decided to invest and establish an office in Bangkok in 2017. Now, that we have a team on board, the focus for 2018 and 2019 is three-pronged: expanding our relationships with existing clients, becoming a destination employer for passionate technologists, and engaging with the local technology community.

How do you see opportunities in the Thailand market and why?

We see huge potential in the Thai market in multiple areas. Companies in Thailand, particularly in the FSI industry, are leading the market in digital innovation. The executives we are partnering with have begun to move away from looking at technology purely as a way to increase operational efficiency, but rather, how it can have directly impact business strategies, thus impacting the bottom line. Organizations we are working with are looking to leapfrog their competitors by focusing on the areas of user experience, to be responsive to the voice of the customer and becoming data-driven businesses. We see a growing number of courageous executives who are ambitious in their visions and are looking to innovate and invest in new areas of technology like robo-advisory and conversational commerce.

How do you see technology trends in the next 2 years?

Almost every industry is undergoing a wave of transformation fueled by algorithms, automation, and digital platforms. From reading X-Ray machines to augmenting financial trades, machine learning has leapfrogged our cognitive abilities. Despite the fear of replacement, humanity has a unique opportunity to embrace this new era, creating imaginative solutions to some of our biggest challenges.

The speed at which technology is being adopted is happening at an exponential rate, businesses probably have even less time to digitize than they think they do. CEOs need to become technologists- they need to know about tech trends so that they can look at the business through a ‘tech lens’, and become believers in tech and what it can, and should do.

How can ThoughtWorks help business organizations in Thailand drive digital transformation?

As a digital transformation consultancy, ThoughtWorks works with organizations to identify, and validate business problems and goals. A key difference is that while IT may be driving the initiative, we get business and tech to collaborate in designing the transformation roadmap. Technology is no longer just an enabler, but is core to business strategy. We have worked successfully with many companies to bring true transformation across organizations and build solutions that bring immediate business value.

At ThoughtWorks we take a holistic approach to digital transformation. Quite often, companies are inhibited by their legacy technology, skill-sets, processes, and culture. Years of investment have resulted in valuable business assets – brand, loyalty, customer, and intelligence. ThoughtWorks helps enterprise organizations unlock these assets to create a competitive advantage. Experimentation and getting ideas in the hands of customers allows us to move fast and create solutions in weeks, not years.

What sectors do you plan on prioritising locally?

Currently our clients are all in the banking and finance sector, however, we see significant potential in the retail and telecoms industries. For 2018 and the next year, however, our focus is more broad as we are focusing heavily on engaging with Thai practitioners. For example, we have launched a series of monthly tech talks called ThoughtWorks Talks Tech, to build a community of passionate technologists who want to learn and share. At ThoughtWorks, we believe in looking beyond the company to play a role in building and supporting the local community. As we continue to grow our team, our goals encompass a wide number of areas including supporting the growth and development of a gender diverse community, universities and graduates, as well as startups and innovators. I am very excited by the opportunities we have in Thailand and the impact we can have on the industry.