Thomas Angelius
Global CIO
Rambøll Group
Thomas is currently the Group CIO of Ramboll Group, a global engineering, architecture, and consultancy company. Thomas has held this position since October 2018. He holds an MSc in Economics from the University of Copenhagen and has worked with IT and business transformation for more than 25 years. Prior to joining the Ramboll Group, Thomas held various leadership positions within business and IT in both the pharmaceutical and financial services industries.
Learn more about leaders in the Nordic CIO community here.
Give us a brief overview of the path that led to your current role.
The route to my current role has been long and winding. About 25 years ago, I took on my first IT Project Manager position, introducing a new process enabled by technology. Since then, all my positions have been focused on helping organisations and people to grow by creating new opportunities enabled by technology and data.
I took on my first senior leadership position in the research and development (R&D) organisation of a pharmaceutical company, working to grow and develop the organisation using opportunities created by technology. Subsequently, I joined the IT organisation, leveraging my previous experience as a customer to grow services and offerings. Eventually, I helped design a digitalisation strategy and built up a digital innovation unit, establishing a strong interplay between technology and business. This is also what drew me to my current position, since Ramboll Group is on a growth path while executing on an ambitious digital strategy.
What is one of your guiding leadership principles?
An important principle for me is openness. The most important thing I do is lead people. This involves fostering engagement and energy together with colleagues and stakeholders across the organisation, as well as understanding the needs and opportunities.
Having an open dialogue of opportunities is crucial; it is important that all key aspects are considered and that the ambition level is right. Nevertheless, it is equally important to enable an open dialogue of challenges and things that may not be easy.
Ultimately, I work a lot with change. While change is often difficult, I find that having an open dialogue is a key enabler of engagement and success.
Where do you see your role as a CIO going in the next 1-2 years?
The CIO role will continue to change towards one of a ‘business leader,’ having a key part in enabling commercial development and success. In the coming years, the ongoing move to hybrid work will increasingly involve the CIO, not only in organising IT services to be used from home, but also in enabling a wider people strategy.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out in the role as a CIO?
See yourself more as a ‘business leader’ than a ‘technology leader.’ Moreover, you should collaborate and build networks with your business colleagues. This will allow you to better understand them and guide them to make the right choices related to technology.
Tell us some fun facts about yourself.
- I am a coffee aficionado, owning multiple espresso machines and even a coffee roaster.
- I love Science-Fiction. During the Covid lockdown, I built several big Lego Star Wars sets.
What is the value of participating in a professional community through Evanta?
This network includes many peers with similar challenges and opportunities. I enjoy the knowledge sharing and discussions.
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