This Q&A blog post explores the fascinating career trajectory of Ian Heath, a Transformation Director who has navigated the ever-evolving world of IT for over three decades.
What began as a search for a computer science-related job in a recessionary market ultimately transformed into a diverse and fulfilling career path. Through continuous learning – from an MBA to a professional doctorate – Ian has transitioned from technical roles like project management to consulting and even exploring the world of higher education.
Read on to find out how lifelong learning has shaped Ian's journey in the ever-growing landscape of IT jobs and higher education.
How has your career developed over time?
I originally graduated in Computer Studies and set about finding a job related to IT. The market in 1991 was in recession, so I took anything I could find and ended up doing a bit of everything for a small software house. While I did operations, sales support, networking, customer support and some coding, I was better at organising and settled on Project Management.
I consolidated that in my second role but was then promoted to department head as a Systems Development Manager. I did more of this in my next role, and this then led to being Chief Information Officer in the world of advertising. I was CIO for nearly seven years over two roles, with the latter involving a lot of travel as I looked after Germany, Spain and some smaller European markets as well as the UK.
Have there been any significant turning points or decisions that have shaped your journey?
I was talented in Operations and Systems Development but wanted to develop more and decided to do an MBA, so I guess the MBA was the first real turning point beyond the normal flow of job changes and career progression.
I was pushed to understand Marketing, HR, Finance, Strategy and Business Operations in a different and more detailed way. I was encouraged to reflect and look at my leadership style and for the first time in 15 years I had to write a paper to prove I was listening and understanding each subject. Part-time it was a lot of work particularly as we accidentally on purpose had two children at the same time!
As I completed the MBA I felt I needed to make a decision – more of the same, more of the same somewhere else or something different. I decided on the latter and set up a couple of companies. One washed its face but wasn’t going to make my fortune, the second was consulting and has lasted over 15 years. I suppose the MBA was a catalyst – perhaps it just gave me the confidence to try something different.
While consulting, I did some work for The Open University and encountered the phrase ‘Life Long Learning’. It chimed with me, and I realised how much I had not really embraced education aside from a few certificates and seminars.
I set about renewing various certifications and had a think. Eventually, I took a step back from what I was doing to think about what was next. I don’t want to retire fully, but neither do I want to work full-time later in life. So, anticipating a time when I’ll have to make my mind up about that, I decided to study for a professional doctorate with a view to becoming more advisory and perhaps even academic in my later years.
To your question – I suppose I’ve been creating my next turning point in the future rather than just arriving at pension time with no real plan.
Postgraduate Learning: Can you provide a couple of examples of how your postgraduate learning has directly benefited your work?
An MBA is a post-experience qualification. You need to have done things before it makes sense. For me, it filled in the blanks for departments I worked alongside, but not really worked in – Marketing and HR, also aspects of Operations and Finance. Learning the theory and doing some case studies gave me extended rapport with colleagues.
HR knowledge proved invaluable during business transformation work. Insights into workplace psychology, tools for understanding why different people approach things in distinctive ways – I had glanced off some of this, but studying it made all the difference. On a few occasions, I have applied Belbin’s Team Roles methodology. Similar in its approach to Myers-Briggs, it has a team focus defined over nine different characteristics. By identifying the dominant characteristics of team members, it is possible to help get some insight into team performance and potentially adjust teams in a way that plays to individual strengths.
See https://www.belbin.com/about/belbin-team-roles if you’re interested (I’m not on commission).
My doctoral thesis will be on vision formation and consensus building. To pass the Qualifying Report at the end of year 2, I needed to read a lot, produce a 12,000-word report and defend it in a viva voce. That level of intensity forces you to think. Writing the arguments and defending them to experts makes you think harder. All of that process and the substance of many articles in that aspect of business is instantly useful as I work in that space all the time.
How do you balance continuous learning with practical experience? What strategies do you use to stay updated with industry trends and technological advancements?
These last 15 years or so I have read a lot. Textbooks, articles, journals. I subscribe to a few papers and being a part-time student gives me access to pretty much every academic text on the planet via the University systems.
I also use a few online tools, including the AI tool Consensus (within ChatGPT) to help sift and find things. My daughter is doing A-levels and an EPQ so she has now latched on to this for her research, although her topics are substantially different to mine.
My education choices have always leaned to the vocational. Computer Studies rather than Mathematics. MBA rather than MSc and now a DBA rather than a PhD. I suppose I engage better with a practical application – thinking with an outcome rather than pondering life’s larger questions.
How do you maintain a healthy work-life balance?
As my daughters entered GCSE and now A-Levels, the house has become quieter. They are both quite studious and do a couple of hours every night, so I tend to do the same. You can get a lot done with ten hours a week and (broadly) leave your weekend free.
I exercise a fair amount – circuits, martial arts and mountain biking mostly – and that helps with a clear head. I suppose I should thank the dog for two walks a day…
