Shining a Light on Female Leaders: An Interview with Ivana Bartoletti

Seeing is believing. Female role models matter and have a huge impact to inspire other women.

In this interview of Shining a Light on Female Leaders, Cat Callen, Associate Partner from our London office is speaking with the inspirational Ivana Bartoletti, Global Chief Privacy Officer at Wipro. Here we get an insight into Bartoletti's personal story and her leadership style that has allowed her to thrive in such a male-dominated industry.

Ivana Bartoletti is the Global Chief Privacy Officer at Wipro, a leading technology services and consulting company with over 250,000 employees serving clients across 66 countries.

As Global CPO, Ivana spearheads all privacy efforts, ensuring employee and customer data is safe and secure, and that privacy, ethics and data protection are embedded into all products and engagements with clients.

Cat Callen: Tell us about yourself…

Ivana Bartoletti: I grew up in Italy, where I got involved in politics very early on. I liked the idea of working to improve the world we live in, as I still do. This desire has driven me into the world of privacy.

After over a year in the USA, a Masters´ degree in Political Science from the University of Trieste (one of my favourite cities!), having my first child (who is now 17) and years working in Government and politics in Rome and around the world, I moved to the UK and made London my home. There, I took a second Masters´, in human rights law, and embraced the world of privacy and data protection. I worked for the National Health Service, SKY, Barclays Bank and headed up the privacy team at Gemserv. I then moved to Deloitte as a Technical Director with a focus on privacy in AI and ML. I now live in Frankfurt, where I work as Global Chief Privacy Officer for the tech giant, Wipro.

I met my husband in the UK, we had a daughter who is now 6. I danced flamenco and worked with the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. I also wrote my first book, An Artificial Revolution: on Power, Politics and AI - an exciting experience I will never forget.

I love running, especially long runs. They help me think and function better.

Callen: How would you describe your leadership style?

Bartoletti: My colleagues say I both give and demand a lot. I always start from a place of trust. I enjoy trusting people, but I can also be quite severe when that trust is broken. I hate micromanagement and love to nurture talent and autonomy. My profession world of privacy is about the common good and ensuring we bring innovation and human rights together, which I fervently believe is possible. Working in privacy is demanding, and these days it is harder than ever. In the EU, you need to understand not only the GDPR and member states´ legislation, but also keep a keen eye on incoming EU digital agenda laws such as the Data Governance Act, the Digital Services Act, the Digital Markets Act, the Artificial Intelligence Act and the Data Act; it requires a lot of work. I am ambitious: I want my organisation to keep privacy at the heart of what we do, proactively. We cannot afford not to.

I founded the Women Leading in AI Network because I want to walk the talk - we do need more diversity in AI and not just in technology: we need more women in policy and decision-making as we shape the future of AI, and of the world with it.

Callen: What inspired you to work in Privacy?

Bartoletti: I came into the world of privacy from a human rights and feminist background. My first privacy question is always: privacy for whom? For me, privacy is inextricably linked to equality. It is not just about individual self-sovereignty or the protection of my own personal information. It is an incredibly important social value that relates to justice and the distribution of power including digital dividends. For this reason, I am keen on privacy preserving technologies, but more importantly, I am keen to build a stronger link between the disciplines of privacy and equality, as they need to build on each other, especially in the world of data which we inhabit today.

Callen: How would you describe the culture at Wipro?

Bartoletti: Wipro is a global company with 250000 employees. It is a company with solid values, humble roots and a hunger for growth. As our Chairman Rishad Premji says, "Wipro's culture is changing but its values will not". This is why I joined - because it is a company that crosses new boundaries in technology every single day but wants to remain focused on its values of integrity and respect for the common good.

Callen: How does Wipro support LGBTQ+ rights?

Bartoletti: At Wipro, we are signed up and celebrate #PrideTodayandEveryday by creating a safe place where everyone can be themselves. This is something the company champions very concretely through events, safe spaces, mentoring, role models and support. We encourage our employees to become better allies.

Callen: What do you think are the most critical topics that companies are going to have to address over the next 5 years?

Bartoletti: First, a very complex political situation, a crisis of globalisation as we have known it and a drive to technological sovereignty. We are also looking at new geopolitical alignments coupled with the effects of global warming. Companies will need to navigate these uncertainties alongside rapid technological development. They will need to focus on a good and efficient use of technology (avoiding expensive technosolutionism!) and stay at the forefront of what is happening.

Callen: And finally, what is your go to motivational song?

Bartoletti: The song my Dad used to sing to me as I went to sleep, Questa di Marinella, from Italian songwriter Fabrizio De Andre´. It tells quite a sad story really, but a story of love and the enjoyment of life while it flowers. And of course, anything my father sings will always occupy a special place. My parents have been a springboard for me.