Hanni Doch, VP of Digital Technology, joins Mudassar Malik on Behind the Growth to explore what enterprise transformation really looks like when it's done sustainably, incrementally, and with an eye toward value—not buzzwords. With experience spanning telecom, insurance, banking, and retail, Hanni brings a grounded view into why so many digital initiatives fall short and how leaders can avoid those traps.

He opens with a sharp critique of the “big bang” approach to transformation, arguing that long, all-encompassing projects often fail to deliver value. Instead, he lays out a case for incremental change, focusing on areas where the business will feel the impact early.

From there, the conversation moves into cloud strategy. Hanni explains how many organizations “lift and shift” their workloads without actually realizing the benefits of cloud—and offers a clear, cost-effective example of how to do it right, leveraging GPU-intensive workloads and cloud-native services.

On AI, Hanni discusses how his team used generative tools to accelerate software development and testing—while maintaining a strong role for human creativity and quality. He also shares lessons from leading high-scale teams, including his approach to hiring engineers from open-source communities and developer forums rather than traditional channels.

Throughout the conversation, Hanni emphasizes the importance of aligning people, processes, and tooling around meaningful outcomes. Whether he's talking about data governance, automation, or AI adoption, his focus remains on what drives results—and what slows them down—in large, complex environments.

Hanni shares his take on:

- Why “big bang” rollouts collapse
- Cloud migrations that don’t deliver
- AI’s role in accelerating development
- When data lakes become swamps
- Rethinking how great developers are hired

Visit mobilelive.ca/podcast to learn more about each guest and read key insights for every episode.

Charu Pujari, Vice President of Engineering and Data Science at Loblaw Digital, joins Imran Mian on Behind the Growth to break down what it really takes to architect enterprise systems that move fast, scale reliably, and stay relentlessly focused on the customer.

Opening the conversation with insights into his early shift from data science into engineering, Charu shares hard-won lessons on engineering for scale. Having learned the hard way that scale cannot be an afterthought, Charu emphasizes why performance and reliability can’t be added later, and how designing for agility up front enables real-time experimentation across digital platforms. He unpacks how his team replatformed critical systems to support modularity, faster decision-making, and direct user feedback loops.

Throughout the conversation, Charu emphasizes the operational choices behind building high-performing teams: trust first, reduce blockers, and align everyone around solving real problems. He discusses how personalization in retail is no longer a feature—it’s a foundation—and why merchandising, pricing, and promotion must now adapt dynamically to individual customer needs.

Drawing from his time at Loblaw leading his team through a full platform re-architecture, he explains why agility, not perfection, is the priority—and how customer feedback, not internal consensus, drives meaningful product decisions, enabling faster iteration and greater composability across digital experiences. From introducing new features in 72 hours to balancing autonomy with alignment across teams, Charu shares what it looks like to operationalize customer-centricity at scale.

The episode also dives into turns to the intersection of media, loyalty, and personalization in retail. From zero-time search to AI-native interfaces, Charu offers a candid, technical, and practical view into how enterprise platforms—and the teams behind them—can move with purpose to meet customers where they are—with the right product, at the right time, at the right value.

He explores topics like:
- Engineering platforms for real-time scale
- Re-platforming to unlock team agility
- Personalization as retail infrastructure
- Building autonomy into high-performing teams
- Rethinking media as part of CX

Visit mobilelive.ca/podcast to learn more about each guest and read key insights for every episode.

Akua Mensah, Senior Director of Process Engineering & Business Enablement at CIBC, joins host Mudassar Malik on this episode to explore the real drivers of transformation—and why soft skills aren’t just a “nice to have,” but a strategic necessity. Drawing from her work leading process design, service improvement, and enterprise change across banking and consulting, Akua brings a grounded perspective on how large organizations actually move forward.

The conversation begins with how Akua’s team centres the customer’s “why” in service design, data, and Lean Six Sigma programs across the bank. She shares how transformation work must balance operational logic with human insight—and how resilience, adaptability, and diplomacy serve as the glue that holds major initiatives together.

From there, Akua shares why communication is still the top failure point in large-scale projects—impacting timelines, budgets, and trust. She explains how leaders can set the tone through clarity, active listening, and confidence built through competence. The discussion also dives into conflict resolution, creative problem solving, and the importance of coaching that goes beyond instruction to true development.

The episode closes with Akua outlining the human success factors she sees as non-negotiable for the post-AGI enterprise: communication, coaching, problem-solving, meta-learning, and confidence built on real competence. For leaders navigating change, it’s a clear call to invest in what really drives outcomes—your people.

Akua explores topics like:
- Why poor communication still breaks projects
- Handling conflict in high-stakes teams
- Leading with customer-first design thinking
- Coaching beyond performance reviews
- Building confidence through competence

Visit mobilelive.ca/podcast to learn more about each guest and read key insights for every episode.