Speakers:
Elena Overchuk, COO, Kyndryl
Krishna Hari, CEO, BizTech Solutions Inc.

From Siberia to Dubai: Elena’s Playbook for Global Leadership and Transformation

When you think of a global COO, the story often begins in a corporate hub — New York, London, Dubai. But for Elena, Chief Operating Officer at Kyndryl Middle East, the journey started in a small town in Siberia.

Two decades later, she has led finance and operations across 50+ countries, transitioned from CFO to COO, and is now helping scale a $3.5B tech services company in some of the world’s fastest-changing markets. On The BizTech Pulse Podcast with Hari, Elena shared her remarkable journey, her philosophy on leadership, and her hard-won lessons on transformation.

🌍 Following Opportunity Across Borders

For Elena, building an international career was less about a rigid plan and more about saying “yes” to opportunity.

“I just basically went with the flow. Where opportunity has been, there I was.”

From IBM Moscow to London, to leading a joint venture in Azerbaijan with one of the largest oil and gas companies, Elena took bold leaps — sometimes with only hours to decide. Each role expanded her perspective and reinforced her advice: find mentors, embrace mobility, and don’t be afraid to start over.

🔄 From CFO to COO: Numbers to Operations

After 18 years in finance, Elena made the leap to operations — a move she credits to the trust of her GM and the depth of her financial grounding.

“Finances are still my heart, but now I think of the company’s P&L as a whole — bookings, deals, operations, costs. It helps me connect every decision back to financial impact.”

That financial fluency, combined with a people-first approach, has made her a bridge between strategy and execution.

📊 Technology as a Growth Backbone

Whether it’s SAP transformations or Power BI dashboards, Elena sees technology not as an add-on, but as core to growth.

She’s led multiple SAP rollouts, including Kyndryl’s S/4HANA deployment, emphasizing the importance of clear planning, rapid problem-solving, and cross-team drills to ensure success.

On Power BI, she is an unapologetic ambassador:

“Excels bring a lot of possibilities for human mistakes. With Power BI, you get actionable insights at your fingertips — the outliers, the patterns, what you need to act on.”

For a company operating at global scale, these tools have cut errors, improved forecasting, and enabled faster, more confident decisions.

👩‍💼 Leading as a Woman in Male-Dominated Rooms

In markets like Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, Elena has often been the only woman at the table. Rather than seeing this as a setback, she has turned it into a platform for change.

“I did a roundtable in Riyadh for women in banking to show them the possibilities of career growth. I tell them: take your place at the table. Don’t be shy, don’t be afraid.”

Her message is clear: respect cultural choices, but also create space for women who want to step into leadership.

📌 Advice for Aspiring Global Leaders

Elena closed the conversation with three pieces of advice for anyone — especially women — looking to build an international career:

  1. Build your brand. Be visible at conferences and industry forums, inside and outside your region.
  2. Find mentors and sponsors. The right guidance can accelerate your path.
  3. Go beyond your job description. Transformation projects and cross-functional initiatives can open doors you never expected.

“We’re often afraid to speak up, thinking we’re not smart enough. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, and don’t be afraid to use your voice.”

✨ Final Word

Elena’s story — from Siberia to Dubai, from finance to operations — is a testament to resilience, adaptability, and bold decision-making. Her playbook combines financial rigor, operational agility, and human empathy, making her a role model for leaders navigating complexity in a rapidly shifting world.