A tête-à-tête with Sabyasachi Das (Saby), Senior Director, Mobility & Workplace Services, Enterprise Services Global Design & Engineering on his long HPE career, the motivation, the culture and the opportunities
Can you tell us more about your journey with HPE?
Fifteen years spent fairly evenly between Applications and Infrastructure outsourcing. I’ve also sold a business process outsourcing deal to cover all three services segments. I have worked in Sales, Account Management, Marketing, Communications, Business Operations, Delivery – pretty much everything other than HR and Finance! And in the process, I had the opportunity to live and experience different cultures in the USA and the Philippines, other than India. It’s been one heck of a ride!
What about your current role? What excites you the most in the role?
I am the Enterprise Services Global Design & Engineering leader for Mobility & Workplace. There is never a dull moment in this job. Every day presents itself with new challenges, opportunities to transform customer environments and I have the chance to do stuff that have been never been done before. To work on technologies – Cloud, Mobility, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence for instance – that are transforming the way service is delivered and consumed is extremely exciting and enriching.
What is the scope of work and what are the opportunities available in ES Global Design and Engineering team?
In Global Design & Engineering, we help develop new offerings, architect and design transformation solutions for our clients, consult customers on technology roadmap, define methods & standards for the entire delivery organization and build global communities. The roles in Global Design and Engineering are at the apex of the skill pyramid. The deliverables from this team ensure that the customers maximize the value from their engagement with HPE.
We’re aggressively hiring Chief Engineers, Consultants, Architects and Design Engineers across the technology spectrum as we look to make India the Global Design and Engineering Center of Excellence.
Having spent 15+ years in HPE, what motivates you to come to work every day?
When I walk into the office every morning, knowing that I will be working with a fabulous team sets the stage for the day. The talent and the energy in the team is exciting and contagious. To help turn around a multi-billion dollar business is a once in a lifetime opportunity. HPE’s transformation journey has been a challenging, but an extremely rewarding one. It is a little like playing cricket for India - you don’t need additional motivation; the cause itself is big enough.
What are the best moments in your HPE career so far?
The list will be long if I start counting them all. The most memorable ones are those that have touched a chord in my heart. The surprise celebration to mark my 10 years with the company is unforgettable. The grand birthday celebration by my team in the Philippines was perhaps my best ever, albeit without my family. On the professional front, being chosen to lead Mobility & Workplace delivery for HPE – a level of responsibility not hitherto discharged from India – would rate as the most proud moment in my career. There was also this instance early in career with HPE, where I snatched an about-to-be-signed deal from a competitor over lunch with my customer! That was pure thrill. Of all the awards I have received, the most gratifying one was being chosen as one of the ten ‘You-on-HP’ ambassadors from among 150,000+ employees in the company.
What can you tell us about the culture of HPE?
Well, our HPE culture is the best. Employees stay in HPE because of its culture. Trust and respect for people is fundamental. When I was interviewing with HPE, I had a 30-minute discussion on integrity alone! That was years ago, but we still hold ourselves to those high levels of ethical standards. Our attrition rates have always been several points below the industry average because of the culture and the people.
What are your hobbies? What interests you outside work?
I used to be an avid sportsperson (a cricketer and an athlete) and a violinist. Now, I keep myself busy with my work and my family. I practice Taekwondo and do a bit of running to keep myself fit. Travel, movies and exploring different cuisines complete the picture outside work.
Anything you would like to share with aspiring candidates?
Hewlett Packard has been in the innovation business for 75 years. Today, as Hewlett Packard Enterprise, we are transforming industries, markets and lives by leveraging technology to quickly turn ideas into values. You can be a part of this exciting journey. Imagine powering a sci-fi cult movie like Star Trek. Imagine developing high velocity analytics for a racing team. Imagine giving an IT makeover to a FIFA world cup venue. YOU could be doing all this and more!
About the author
Sabyasachi Das (Saby) has 20+ years of IT industry experience. Currently, he is the Enterprise Services Global Design & Engineering leader for Mobility & Workplace at HPE. Prior to that, he was the worldwide leader for Mobility & Workplace Services (MWS) Global Delivery.
In his previous roles at HPE, Saby was the Delivery Enablement leader for MWS and also managed the Global Service Desk operations in the Asia Pacific and Japan region, based out of Manila in the Philippines.
Saby has spent the last 15+ years with HPE. He joined the company in 2001 as a Business Manager in California, USA selling offshore services and managing accounts for customers in North America. Saby relocated back to India in 2005 and provided leadership to global functions like Customer Operations and Marketing & Communications for Applications Global Delivery. After 8 years in the applications services segment, Saby moved to Infrastructure Technology Outsourcing (ITO) in early 2009 to run Business Operations for ITO Global Delivery India Center. In parallel, Saby set up and ran WW Communications for the ITO Global Delivery organization, a role he relinquished to focus on India center operations and manage the growth. Subsequently, he added large account delivery to his scope of responsibilities.
Prior to HPE, Saby worked with IBM, Microland and HCL in various functions like Sales, Marketing, Sales Support and Customer Support.
Saby has a bachelor’s degree in Electronics Engineering from NIT, Allahabad and a master’s degree in Business Management from XIM, Bhubaneswar.
