Thentia’s leadership team is a diverse and exceptional group of professionals who have brought major influence to not only the company’s direction, but to their own teams. Those teams make up Thentia’s structure, functionality, and culture and contribute to our success. In our Leadership Spotlight series, we sit down with members of our leadership team to discuss everything from the importance of powerful leadership influence in the tech industry to of course, the path that led them to Thentia.
This month, we spoke with Bochi Tao, Thentia’s Manager, Platform Technology.
Holding a degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Toronto, Bochi started his journey at Thentia in February 2017 as a Software Developer. Over the past six years, he has helped play a key role in shaping the platform into what it is today and continues to help drive success by overseeing the Platform Technology team at Thentia.
In his spare time, Bochi enjoys staying updated with the latest trends in tech and experimenting with new technologies. He is a proud dad of a one-year-old son and is having a great time experiencing the adventure of parenthood.
As someone who has been with Thentia for many years, what do you think makes us stand out in the GovTech/SaaS industry?
In my time here, I’ve seen many factors that set our company apart, but one element I’ve consistently seen resonate is our absolute dedication and focus on the regulatory industry.
A significant factor in our unique positioning is the composition of our team. Many of our key roles are held by former regulators, bringing a level of practical understanding and insight into our operations that sets us apart from our competitors. Moreover, we have a dedicated Regulatory Excellence Department, which acts as our knowledge hub. It not only equips our entire organization with regulatory insights but also generates content on industry news and fosters connections with industry leaders, driving regulatory transformation. Additionally, we strongly emphasize promoting regulatory knowledge across all employees by conducting internal training and seminars.
This dedication to the regulatory industry also permeates our engineering team. Our resources are committed to addressing regulatory challenges. We create solutions to automate, simplify, and expand regulatory processes to bolster regulatory agencies’ efforts to protect and serve.
Our engineering team takes on the rewarding challenge of building a product dedicated to the regulatory industry. This task is complex, given the distinct needs of regulators across different professions and jurisdictions. However, this complexity also drives us to continually innovate, leading to the rollout of new, configurable features that cater to our diverse client base.
What do you enjoy most about being on the platform side of the company?
Being part of the Platform team is a uniquely rewarding experience as it sits at the heart of Thentia Cloud. The sense of responsibility and opportunity to shape the core aspects of our services is exhilarating.
One aspect I appreciate is the emphasis on security and high availability, which are paramount given the high volume and importance of requests and data we handle. Collaborating with our Information Security, Quality Assurance, and Cloud Engineering teams, we aim to go above and beyond industry standards to deliver secure and highly reliable services to our clients.
Working with our fantastic Product and User Experience teams, we’re continuously implementing new features tailored to the needs of our diverse customer base. The objective here is to provide solutions and ensure a great user experience.
Last but not least, if I were to pinpoint what I find most exciting about being part of the Platform team, it would have to be the innovation. We’re constantly exploring new approaches and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in our products. While I cannot disclose details just yet, I can say we have some pretty exciting new features in the pipeline. I cannot wait to share them with everyone soon.
Who has inspired you most in your career? How did they inspire you?
The person who has inspired me most in my career is undoubtedly our CEO, Julian Cardarelli, the driving force behind the remarkable growth of Thentia.
One of the things that I truly admire about Julian is his deep engineering knowledge, coupled with his ability to stay on top of the latest tech trends. Combined with his regulatory expertise and customer-centric mindset, he guided the company’s trajectory and ensured we’re always on the right path. He’s helped me develop my professional mindset in the tech industry and shaped how I approach my work.
Perhaps equally important is Julian’s knack for attracting and retaining talent. I am immensely grateful and honored to work alongside my incredible colleagues, whom I learn from daily.
What is one piece of advice you would give your younger self about entering the tech industry?
First and foremost, don’t lose sight of the fundamentals while keeping up with the latest technology trends. Even when “deep in the weeds,” it’s essential to continually refresh and acquire new knowledge. This is particularly important in the tech industry, especially for developers. After all, engineering is often referred to as ‘applied science’ — if we lose the ‘science,’ there’s nothing left to apply.
Secondly, it’s vital to embrace human interactions. Growing up, I was not necessarily a ‘people person.’ Sometimes I wished to be left alone with my coding. But I’ve learned that no significant engineering wonder was ever a one-person job. Engage with colleagues, clients, users, and other stakeholders to develop products responsibly. One of the first books I read in engineering school was ‘Human Factors’ by Kim Vicente, and its message resonates more profoundly with each passing year in the industry.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, remember to prioritize your health and spend quality time with your family.
Bonus question: What is your all-time favourite app?
It’s hard to pick one, but I would go with Notion. From a web developer’s perspective, I appreciate the thoughtfulness that has gone into building Notion. It stands out for its excellent software design and equally commendable execution.
