Chandra Surbhat is a visionary digital leader with a passion for driving business impact through technology. His expertise lies in leveraging strategic alliances and cutting-edge technologies to drive AI-powered digital transformation for clients. Chandra has successfully managed billion-dollar P&L businesses, turned around underperforming units and unlocked efficiencies. His leadership has been instrumental in driving organizational transformations and aligning business strategies with emerging technologies like AI, Cloud, and Digital Experience.
As Chief AI and Digital Officer at SLK Software, Chandra leads the company’s digital and AI led transformation strategy, focusing on delivering business outcomes. He is focused on building IP/platforms, strategic partnerships with niche vendors to co-create value for customers.
Recently, in an exclusive interview with Digital First Magazine, Chandra shared insights into what drives his passion for digital transformation and innovation, significant career milestone, personal hobbies and interests, future plans, words of wisdom, and much more. The following excerpts are taken from the interview.
Hi Chandra. What drives your passion for digital transformation and innovation?
My drive for digital transformation comes from the opportunity to create meaningful change and enhance the way organizations connect with their users. The ability to leverage customer-centric strategies, design thinking, and a persona-based approach allows us to simplify, personalize, and deliver products and services through the channels users prefer.
What excites me most is how digital transformation enables organizations to rethink their business processes, launch innovative products, and blur the boundaries between industries. Digital and innovation go hand in hand, driving growth and new possibilities.
The emergence of the Metaverse is especially fascinating, as it bridges the gap between the physical and digital worlds. By bringing more digital into the physical space and enriching physical experiences through technology, we are on the brink of redefining how users interact with both realms. This constant evolution is what fuels my passion every day.
What do you love the most about your current role?
My role at SLK blends the best of technology to drive organizational transformation, integrating Data, Digital, and AI. At SLK, we believe that AI is the game changer, taking transformation to the next level. The ability to leverage cutting-edge technologies to help our customers navigate change and achieve their goals is the most rewarding part of my role.
SLK’s commitment to staying at the forefront of digital innovation ensures that we not only meet our clients’ current needs but also position them for long-term success in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.
What role do you believe innovation and experimentation play in driving business growth and transformation, and how do you encourage and support innovation within your organization?
Rapid prototypes, multi-disciplinary teams and fail-fast were the key requirements for digital transformation. With AI, the game changes to the next level. Innovation and experimentation, including building own products and frameworks, are crucial in AI. While AI’s benefits are real, the journey to achieve the goal depends on innovation in computing, models and data.
At SLK, we have a focused engineering team developing assets/IPs, driving internal adoption and contextualizing the innovation to meet customer needs. Our goal is to drive an AI-first mindset to transform the organization’s business model and go beyond the standard efficiency and cost game.
How do you stay ahead of emerging trends and developments in the digital landscape, and what resources do you rely on for professional development?
Interacting with customers, thought leaders, product vendors, and analysts provides different perspectives, including both long-term potential and short-term challenges. Co-innovation with product vendors and customers is another way to gain an early understanding of the emerging landscape. Resources are more accessible and available today like never before.
What has been your most career-defining moment that you are proud of?
Every time we have been able to resolve a seemingly difficult problem—whether related to customers, technology, or organizational challenge it has been incredibly fulfilling, as it not only strengthens our capabilities but also drives meaningful progress.
Who has been a significant influence or mentor in your career, and how have they helped shape your professional journey?
Complex problems have been my biggest mentors. It wouldn’t be fair to single out just one or two individuals, as there have been countless people I’ve had the privilege of interacting with and learning from. Both the challenges I’ve faced and the people I’ve learned from have played a significant role in shaping my career.
What are some of your passions outside of work? What do you like to do in your time off?
Outside of work, I spend time engaging in activities such as yoga, sports, and exploring different cultures.
Which technology are you investing in now to prepare for the future?
At SLK, AI, including generative AI, is a top priority for us. We are deeply focused on driving technological investments in digital, data, and model development, recognizing that these elements are crucial in unlocking the full potential of AI. By leveraging cutting-edge AI technologies, we are helping our customers transform their businesses, making processes more efficient, personalized, and innovative.
We are committed to staying at the forefront of AI advancements, ensuring that our solutions not only meet today’s needs but also prepare our clients for future success. AI is central to our vision of creating impactful, scalable solutions that drive meaningful change across industries.
What are your long-term career aspirations, and how do you see yourself evolving as a leader over the next five years?
AI will pervade our lives over the next five years in more ways than we can imagine. My aspiration is to play a pivotal role in harnessing the power of AI for the greater good, ensuring its development and application are both impactful and sustainable.
What advice would you give to aspiring digital leaders looking to develop their skills and expertise in driving business transformation?
Building technology should be driven both by passion and purpose. Business transformation demands a deeper understanding of the industry domain, strong consulting capabilities, and the ability to demonstrate measurable outcomes that create real impact.