Absa group CITO Johnson Idesoh reflects on his triple wins and outlines how the recognition will drive his team’s next phase of digital and data innovation.
Walking away with the CIO of the Year, Smart Data and Digital Innovation award trophies, Absa group CITO Johnson Idesoh emerged as the biggest winner at the 2025 CIO Awards, held on 13 November at the Polo Room, Inanda Club. In this exclusive Q&A with CIO South Africa, Johnson reflects on what the wins mean to him and his team and how he celebrated the achievement.
Q: What does being recognised as 2025's CIO of the Year mean to you? And how do these wins change the way you see your role as a technology leader in South Africa?
A: This recognition as 2025's CIO of the Year is very humbling. It recognises the extraordinary team at Absa who have embraced our purpose, our vision and are delivering this for our customers and colleagues with unwavering commitment. It validates our belief that technology leadership in Africa is about much more than implementing systems but enabling millions across our continent to achieve their dreams; and this is why at Absa, ‘Your Story Matters’.
This award encourages us to push even harder on our mandate to leverage emerging technologies as powerful tools to drive financial inclusion, enhance customer experience and build resilient systems that serve our customers, colleagues and communities we serve.
Q: What impact do you believe these awards will have on your team and the broader business going forward?
A: These awards strongly affirm the contributions of every technologist, engineer and innovator at Absa who has played a role in our transformation journey. They demonstrate that their efforts are valued, recognised and help to set new standards of excellence in African financial services technology. It is a catalyst that propels us towards even greater ambitions, deeper collaboration and bolder innovation that will define the future of banking in South Africa and across the continent.
Q: How do you plan to build on this recognition to drive even stronger digital innovation in the coming year?
A: This recognition encourages us to double down on digital, data, artificial intelligence and machine learning to create leading customer experiences in banking, to expand the modernisation of our architecture for greater agility, and deepen partnerships that co-create solutions that address uniquely African challenges. Within Absa we will continue to invest heavily in skilling our technology team and building leading skills on the African continent.
Q: Which capabilities or skills will you focus on strengthening within the IT function next?
A: We will focus on equipping all our colleagues to be customer champions, to be empathetic and develop a deep understanding of the customer and client experience. Harnessing those skills will ensure that the solutions we deliver are increasingly relevant for our customers, clients and colleagues.
From a technical perspective, we are investing in our understanding of artificial intelligence including the cybersecurity space and solution engineering. In short, we will continue to invest in creative problem-solvers.
Q: And just for fun, if you weren’t leading digital innovation, what hobby or passion would you happily lose a whole weekend to?
A: As I wander through a huge vinyl store – something some readers may need to look up – I would find myself flipping through countless albums and listening to quite a few.
Q: And finally, after a night of wins, what’s the first non-work thing you plan to do to celebrate?
A: Maybe less exciting for others, but for me, going to my pilates class on Saturday morning provides me with an opportunity to reflect and recharge.
