Mark Mamone

A self-proclaimed geek, Mark’s love for technology started when he was ten. After perusing through a computer book at the library (he has since bought it), Mark was left with the impression that, equipped with the right computer and technology, only his imagination could limit his capability. From then on, his life and his career path has been grounded in technology and computers. With a career spanning over three decades, Mark Mamone sits at the helm of GBG’s technology office. Speaking of the role of the CIO on a executive level, Mamone says "Many years ago, technology often felt as a second class citizen, the silent enabler behind the business, whereas nowadays, and especially with the barriers to entry being lowered for our customers, technology becomes a first class citizen and it's the first conversation we have". The role of the CIO has taken a centre stage in business over the years – whether it's the CTOs who are driving the technology strategies and keeping organisations abreast with the latest techniques, to engineering teams who build the products and eventually the cyber security teams that ensure consumer data remains safe and secure. And all of this comes down to starting the conversation at the CIO level, where Mamone feels right at home having loved technology from a young age and having lost none of his enthusiasm, but instantly recognises the accountability that's required to make decisions that affect the use and control of data mindfully. 

Mamone's leadership style is that of the 'Participative Leadership', meaning he recognises the value in working together to arrive at solutions and make decisions, ensuring he has the right team supporting him and ensuring that they have the right collective capability. A respectful challenge is another one of Mamone's values, encouraging a sense of healthy and empowering challenge within his team whenever he can. The key to a successful leadership is autonomy, and Mamone believes that as a leader, his role in mentoring his team starts and stops at providing the right guidance. A motivational leader and technical visionary, Mamone has spearheaded the data and tech strategy for change at GBG, firstly to cope with the pandemic and in the long term, leading to an effective business strategy that keeps data at its core. 

Mark still codes and loves retro computing, setting some time aside each week to learn something new. This is a practice he also encourages his team to take up, as there is always something new to learn. Over thirty years later, Mark hasn’t quite lost the thirst for exploring what technology can do and stays current with the latest and greatest.

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