For Mobolaji Akintokunbo, the value of technology is not determined by how sophisticated it sounds, but by whether it solves a genuine problem, works for the people using it and produces a better outcome.
With more than 20 years of experience across technology, finance and government, Mobolaji has led large scale programmes spanning digital transformation, compliance, cybersecurity and operational change. Today, as Founder and CEO of Twikkie and Co-Founder of VitalsConnect, he is applying those experiences to building technology that simplifies organisational processes and supports better decision-making.
In this Spotlight Interview with CA, Mobolaji discusses why successful transformation must begin with the problem rather than the technology, his practical approach to artificial intelligence, the thinking behind Twikkie and VitalsConnect, and why execution remains central to the way he builds and leads.
CA: After more than 20 years across technology, finance and government, what has most shaped the way you approach technology and business today?
Mobolaji: Working across different sectors has taught me that technology on its own rarely solves a problem. You can have a great system, but if it does not fit how people work, solve a genuine problem or deliver measurable value, it will struggle.
I have also seen large organisations spend significant amounts of money on transformation without necessarily making things simpler for the people using the technology.
That has shaped how I think today. I tend to start with the problem, the people affected by it and the outcome we are trying to achieve, rather than starting with the technology.
CA: You have led major programmes across digital transformation, compliance, cybersecurity and operational change. What have those experiences taught you about execution?
Mobolaji: Execution matters as much as strategy. I have seen very good strategies fail because the organisation underestimated implementation, people, governance or change.
One lesson I have carried with me is to break ambitious ideas into things that can actually be delivered and measured. You need to understand dependencies, risks and who is accountable, but you also need to keep asking a simple question: is this actually working for the people it was designed for?
I also believe change management needs to start much earlier. It should be part of recognising the problem and selecting the solution, not something introduced after the technology has already been chosen.
CA: What challenges convinced you there was a need for Twikkie?
Mobolaji: I kept seeing organisations using multiple disconnected systems to run what is essentially one business. HR might have one platform, payroll another, documents somewhere else, attendance in a spreadsheet, tasks in another application and communication happening across several channels.
For smaller organisations particularly, this creates cost and complexity. Information gets duplicated, processes become fragmented and leaders struggle to get a complete picture of what is happening.
That was one of the motivations behind Twikkie. I wanted to build something that allowed organisations to bring more of their people and operational processes together without needing an enterprise-sized technology budget or a complicated technology estate.
CA: Why was bringing HR, operations and collaboration together so important to Twikkie?
Mobolaji: Because in the real world they are already connected.
Attendance affects payroll. Performance connects to development. Onboarding creates documents, tasks and approvals. Managers need information across these areas to make decisions.
When technology separates everything, businesses end up manually putting it back together through spreadsheets, emails and human effort.
With Twikkie, the idea is not simply to put lots of features in one application. The value comes from allowing those areas to work together and share the right information while still giving organisations the flexibility to use the modules they actually need.
CA: AI is central to both Twikkie and VitalsConnect. What principles guide how you believe it should be used?
Mobolaji: I think businesses should start with the problem rather than with AI.
There is a temptation at the moment to add AI to everything because it is fashionable. I am more interested in where it removes friction, saves time, identifies something a human might miss or makes information easier to understand.
At Twikkie, that can mean helping an employee find an answer from company policies without searching through documents or helping managers understand workforce information.
With VitalsConnect, the principle is particularly important because healthcare decisions can have serious consequences. AI can process information quickly and help professionals identify patterns, but it does not replace the experience, context and accountability of a qualified healthcare professional.
The technology should support the clinician, not pretend to be the clinician.
CA: How has working within established institutions influenced the way you now build technology products?
Mobolaji: It has made me very conscious of what happens after a product is built.
In large transformation programmes, you learn quickly that technology has to operate within real organisations. There are existing processes, regulations, security requirements, different types of users and resistance to change.
So when I build products now, I think beyond whether a feature works technically. I think about implementation, adoption, compliance, auditability, integration and how an organisation will actually operate it.
At the same time, entrepreneurship has taught me to move faster. You cannot spend forever trying to design the perfect solution. You have to build, listen, learn and improve.
CA: As you continue building Twikkie and VitalsConnect, what impact do you ultimately want them to have?
Mobolaji: I want both businesses to demonstrate that sophisticated technology does not have to be complicated to use.
With Twikkie, I want organisations of different sizes to have access to technology that helps them manage their people and operations more effectively without having to stitch together numerous systems.
With VitalsConnect, I want to demonstrate how AI can support healthcare professionals responsibly while keeping human judgement and accountability where they belong.
More broadly, I would like our work to contribute to a more practical approach to technology and AI. The measure of success should not be how advanced the technology sounds. It should be whether it solves a real problem, whether people trust it and whether it produces a better outcome.
That is ultimately the type of technology I want to build.
