An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis
The key to successfully managing a large team is to put people in charge who are experts in the specific area the team supports — whether it’s business, administration, finance, sales, marketing, engineering, etc. When experts are in charge, they can strategically drive their departments, solve problems and utilize technology to achieve results.
As a part of our series about “How Diversity Can Increase a Company’s Bottom Line”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Melarka Williams.
Melarka Williams is an electrical engineer and digital transformation expert with over two decades’ experience in business transformation and engineering in the technology, financial services and utilities sector across three continents. He has worked with some of the largest and most respected companies in the world such as Nestle, Digicel and Ericsson. A graduate of the University of Technology, Jamaica, Melarka achieved a Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering with a minor in Communications and Electronics. He graduated in the top one percent of his engineering class and is recognized across the Caribbean as a thought leader. Melarka is a proven leader who provides innovative solutions to problems.
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Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive into the main part of our interview, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit more. Can you share a bit of your “backstory” with us?
In 2012, I led and championed the team which built the first bespoke Mobile Banking Solution in the Caribbean: Ingenuity Proprietary Mobile Banking Solution. In 2016, my company, Ingenuity Technologies, was the recipient of a multi-million-dollar innovation award from the Development Bank of Jamaica for my creation of a revolutionizing proprietary mobile survey and business analytics tool: iSurvey.
I founded Ingenuity Technologies Limited in 2014 and spent five to six years helping companies digitize, which we learned involved having access to the right people — professionals offering tech talent. This eventually led to the ideation of TheHive, a Freelance Services Marketspace. I wanted to diversity not only the Caribbean economy but also the workforce of the companies looking to digitize.
In 2020, I founded TheHive to help connect Caribbean professionals with global businesses seeking tech talent. Many companies that want to digitize need the appropriate talent to achieve digitization. TheHive helps companies diversify their workforce with both temporary and permanent freelance professionals located in the Caribbean. The Caribbean economy is mostly known for tourism, and we are working to shift that paradigm so businesses around the world view our economy as one for procuring tech talent.
Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? Can you tell us the lesson or take away you took out of that story?
During a business trip, Ericsson sent me to Montreal to work on a project. The company was looking to cut costs, so they booked my travel on a Friday to save money. Knowing my meeting was on Monday, I used the weekend to figure out the best route to get to the research and development center. I mapped it out and took the subway on Sunday so I would be prepared and know my route for Monday morning. It is professional to show up early to be on time, and this trip taught me to be prepared and exercise a no excuse mentality.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you tell us a story about how that was relevant in your own life?
One of my favorite life lessons is presented in the book The Compound Effect, which is based on the principle that decisions shape your destiny. The idea is that little, everyday decisions will either take you to the life you desire or to disaster by default. Darren Hardy, the publisher of Success Magazine, is the author and he presents The Compound Effect as a distillation of the fundamental principles that have guided the most phenomenal achievements in business, relationships, and beyond.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are?
Royston Howell is a Mechanical Engineer who has guided me as a mentor since high school. I am grateful for his guidance and leadership.
What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?
At TheHive, we believe in having a diverse work culture. People from different backgrounds bring fresh and unique perspectives to company teams. When we collaborate, we can solve problems much faster, promote innovation and inspire transformation. We are working on more than transforming businesses, we are transforming as a company. We are innovating. We are practicing what we preach. We are leading by example.
Are you working on any new or exciting projects now? How do you think that might help people?
TheHive is the new and exciting project of Ingenuity Technologies Limited. Freelancers found on our Freelance Services Marketspace platform bring the ideas of entrepreneurs to life. By providing business leaders and companies with technical experts, we help them complete projects requiring tech talent. On the other side, we connect Caribbean technology professionals with global businesses to help them land new projects and facilitate career growth.
How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?
I am bringing goodness to the world in support of the Caribbean people by providing mentorship and guidance in the community. My goal is to improve their lives and provide a platform that creates opportunities for jobs so they can provide for themselves and their families. When COVID-19 caused a global pandemic, many people lost their jobs because they were affiliated with tourism. The tourism industry proved to be vulnerable during this time and employees found themselves in unsustainable positions. TheHive creates opportunities for employment and career growth.
I am vastly passionate about the development of the Caribbean people. I envision a world where Caribbean professionals will be creators of technology in lieu of being merely consumers of technology. We have many brilliant minds in the Caribbean, and if given the proper ecosystem to succeed, can firmly position the Caribbean as the ultimate information technology outsourcing destination. Freelancers on TheHive platform are providing higher-valued information technology services and helping shift the paradigm so we are not just known for our sun, sand and sea.
Ok. Thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the main part of our interview. This may be obvious to you, but it is not intuitive to many people. Can you articulate to our readers five ways that increased diversity can help a company’s bottom line.
Diversity and inclusion in the workplace will lead to better decision-making and greater innovation which will improve a company’s performance. I experienced this firsthand while working as an engineer for Ericsson with teams from the Caribbean, South America, North America Europe and Asia. TheHive helps employers and businesses throughout the world promote diversity and inclusion in the workplace, as the platform connects recruiters with diverse tech talent from the Caribbean. We are deploying a global workforce to quickly solve problems for our customers and partners.
According to recent research, diversity and inclusion leads to higher profitability. Here are five ways that diversity and inclusion can improve a company’s bottom line:
1. Increased Profits
Diversity brings people with multiple different viewpoints together. The collaboration of a diverse workforce will lead to better ideation and implementation of business strategy.
2. Greater Innovation and Transformation
For companies to innovate and transform, it requires them to identify and solve problems quickly so that they can develop a competitive edge or they will need to deploy a new product or service to market before their competitors. When people from different backgrounds work together to analyze and solve problems, their varying perspectives and experiences lead to greater innovation and transformation.
3. Supports a Positive Company Reputation
Companies with a diverse workforce are seen as inclusive and will be attractive for investors, partners and customers.
4. Attract and Retain the Best and Brightest Talent
The best and brightest people in the world are not concentrated in one geographical region but are dispersed all over the world. With a diverse workforce, you can recruit and retain the best talent. Potential candidates will see how your company promotes diversity and inclusion and will want to join your company.
5. Better Employee Engagement
People take pride in working for companies that make a positive impact in their communities and solve problems stemming from inequalities.
What advice would you give to other business leaders to help their employees to thrive?
As a business leader, you need to understand the personal goals, personalities and strengths of each team member. Ask yourself questions such as — “What is the team trying to achieve? How can this employee contribute? Are they an extrovert or introvert? How do they work with fellow team members?” Once you have an understanding of the team objections and the employee, you can work with them consistently to achieve the determined goals.
What advice would you give to other business leaders about how to manage a large team?
The key to successfully managing a large team is to put people in charge who are experts in the specific area the team supports — whether it’s business, administration, finance, sales, marketing, engineering, etc. When experts are in charge, they can strategically drive their departments, solve problems and utilize technology to achieve results.
The other key to managing large teams is to promote collaboration and idea-sharing. By giving people the freedom to share their perspectives you open the door for unique and innovative solutions and ideas.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this
I would invite Elon Musk to breakfast or lunch, as I have always found his work inspirational. He’s working on many innovative projects, and he’s solving problems before other experts even realize there are problems. His contributions to Tesla and SpaceX showcase his ability to think creatively and scientifically about extraordinary possibilities and execute them.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
I encourage people to connect with me on my personal LinkedIn page, as I post many updates and share information via that social channel. For more information on TheHive and Ingenuity Technologies, I invite you to check out each company’s respective website and social media channels — Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Thank you for these excellent insights. We wish you continued success in your great work.
Georgiadis, Fotis. “Melarka Williams Of TheHive: How Diversity Can Increase A Company’s Bottom Line”. Medium, 2021, https://medium.com/authority-magazine/melarka-williams-of-thhive-how-diversity-can-increase-a-companys-bottom-line-11a83b426948. Accessed 30 Aug 2021.