Utility Week

19 ISSUE 01 OCT/2018 Because while it encompasses information technology, it also recognises the need for digital – which is how do we drive things like distributed energy using technology, better customer experience and customer enablement, frictionless working, frictionless employee and digital asset management. All of those things are under the umbrella of digital, and IT is core to all of that. So the recognition that those two things are partners and come together into one role was very exciting for me." e post itself, with oversight in both regions, sees Karaboutis working very closely with her executive direct reports in the UK and US. It's a technological realm that incorporates everything from running the corporate systems, to the company's cyber-security and physical security. Safety and reliability of service are naturally paramount, ensuring 'seamless capability' in a 24/7 company she deftly characterises as being "always up and always on". "We have a strategy that encompasses everything, so yes my role and remit are big. But that strategy involves a significant and heavy partnership between the UK and US business units, which talks about what needs to be done and how well we need it done. " e role I have is to ensure we have an IT and digital organisation that executes on it and gets it done to the region specificity – and brings new technologies to the table. So when you think about blockchain, analytics, machine learning, all of those things, I feel accountability with my colleagues in the business to see how we leverage those." A "huge focus", she adds, is on the customer, "delivering energy when needed, where needed and in the quantities that are needed". Yet neither the job's breadth, nor its being within a publicly traded utility, holds any concern for Karaboutis – quite the opposite. "I think it's very exciting that this huge British multinational is able to do great work on both sides of the Atlantic, and that just added to the attraction for me. Because you're dealing with two sets of regulators, two sets of legal formats, WHO KNEW? What was your first computer? A 286 IBM PC, and when the 386 came out it was pretty exciting. Is there one piece of tech you can't live without? Can I choose two? My phone and my car. Who is your technology hero? ere's two again. Obviously, Bill Gates. Also, Michael Dell – a brilliant man who knows how to sniff out a way to bring technologies and companies together. Did you have a technology mentor? e Group CIO at General Motors, Ralph Szygenda. He mentored me not only on technology but on leadership. And he did not mince his words. He constantly challenged me and called me out. And in this world being honest with each other, calling each other out, is really important. Where is your favourite place in the world? I'm Greek, I was born in the US but my family are first- generation immigrants, and so I love to go back. at's where my roots are. Both my parents are from Cephalonia. Do you have a favourite film? I feel I should really say something like War and Peace. But it's actually Pretty Woman, because the underdog won. you're dealing with opportunity. ere are some very advanced stories in the UK, and in the US. In many ways that just adds to the intrigue. And I'm also very interested in the global aspect of energy and what can be done." Critical to driving technological change at National Grid, says Karaboutis, has been the openness of the executive committee, led by CEO John Pettigrew – its willingness to look ahead, albeit "with huge respect for its separate entities and regulators". Particularly notable has been a commitment to recently setting up its venture capital team in California's Silicon Valley, as well as two digital innovation labs, one on either side of the pond, at Warwick and in Massachusetts. e digital labs are charged with bringing in new technology and working on use cases identified by the business, to see if they can answer questions or provide fresh insights on issues such as customer engagement, asset management and distributed energy services. Additionally, the venture capital team brings innovation to existing components of the business, such as engineering. It looks into new ideas, for example around battery technology or new opportunities for the cloud. A lot of this Californian activity can then land in the US and UK digital labs, which monitor and apply it to business problems. It all adds up to a compelling partnership, says Karaboutis, and one that is already paying dividends. Yet being agile enough to innovate and embrace constantly changing opportunities and needs can be extremely demanding when combined with running any utility, let alone a gargantuan, global one. Karaboutis' answer is: "You never lose sight of the basics – the 360° view of the business and the needs and the opportunities. "We start from a position of safety, safety, safety, never-to-be-compromised security, and not interrupting what we need to do for our consumers. at is the cornerstone. " en we look at the next thing we need to do to drive more of that, and efficiency and customer satisfaction. And then we take a very measured approach – and it's never IT's or the digital team's alone – it's always with the business in mind, it's always a partnership. "I always say you have to have a North Star. And then you say 'where are we today, what is the right path, and at what pace?'. You need to ensure that you're taking the right amount of risk – and never too much." // e role I have is to ensure we have an IT and digital organisation, that executes on it and gets it done to the region specificity - and brings new technologies to the table // &a Q

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