Doing business with Peter Chidiac of Avaya: ‘Dare to change’

Talk to young people that are finishing school and going on to higher education as they are the future of what we need to think about.Peter Chidiac, Avaya

Name: Peter Chidiac

Title: Managing director Australia and New Zealand, Avaya

Twitter handle: @PeterChidiacOz

How long have you been in your current role? Since the 1st of August 2016.

What business technology issue is your role focusing on? With customer experience transforming at the hands of advents like mobility and the Internet of Things, consumers expect a higher level of personalised and contextual engagement with brands. My focus is therefore on helping our customers manage and simplify their omnichannel communications with their own customers so they can effectively boost brand loyalty and reputation, resulting in improved revenue streams.

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We have a mantra, which is ‘Dare to Change’, and we are applying that to transforming the way we do business to meet the needs of our customers.Peter Chidiac, Avaya

What are your interests away from work? Reading, travel, rugby union, and theatre.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received? Live in the moment where there is no fear or regret.

Professionally, who do you admire most? Steve Chambers, former Nuance CEO and currently CEO at Jibo.

How long have you been working in your field? How did you get into your role? I’ve been working in the communications/service provider space for more than 25 years. I started in sales of small office phone systems and moved on to the early days of voicemail, PABX and ACD Systems, and then to speech recognition and back to unified communications.

If you weren’t working in your field, what would you be doing? I would be a hobby farmer in a beautiful part of Australia or New Zealand where I could grow some vegies, have some chooks, and manage a self-sufficient grid including power, water and other utilities.

Can you share one key pointer for keeping abreast of business technology trends?Talk to young people that are finishing school and going on to higher education as they are the future of what we need to think about.

Prepare to disrupt and be the disruptor – not the disrupted. How did you apply this insight to your organisation, or with a customer you have worked with?

I believe this comes from being brave, taking risks and following your instincts, so it can be applied to all aspects of business and life in general. At Avaya, we have a mantra, which is ‘Dare to Change’, and we are applying that to transforming the way we do business to meet the needs of our customers. This involves being brave, creative and bold enough to put things into practice that have never been done before.

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