By Saroj Pathirana  

 “When there is chaos, there will always be opportunities,” is Nava Ramanan’s advice for Sri Lankan youth desperate to leave the country due to economic hardships.

“So look out for those opportunities. I think that’s where you need to start. Grass is not always greener on the other side, first look at what you have.”

His words aren’t mere rhetoric.  Look at what Nava has done! As a teenager, he looked for such opportunities and made the most of them.

Born into a Tamil family in Jaffna, Nava’s early exposure to computers sparked a lifelong fascination with technology and its transformative potential. This early passion laid the foundation for a remarkable journey marked by innovation and achievement.

Inspired by the achievements of Bill Gates, Nava’s childhood icon, he established his own web designing and hosting company at 17. Soon his company would manage the websites of over 2000 Sri Lankan companies, including the government of Sri Lanka and some of the top firms in the country.

Several decades on, Nava is an innovative leader in the technology sector in Great Britain whose talent embodies a rare blend of technical prowess, visionary insight, and an unwavering commitment to fostering positive change.

Nava is currently a Senior Civil Servant in Britain working as the Deputy Director of Digital Infrastructure and Cyber Security at the Ministry of Justice. With a career spanning over two decades, he has consequently pushed the boundaries of what’s possible in the realm of technology, leaving an indelible mark on the industry. He directs a department of 22 multi-disciplinary product teams.

“My team is about 230 civil servants and my annual budget is approximately £110 million with nearly £500 million contracts,” Nava Ramanan told the ‘Sandeshaya by Saroj’ YouTube channel.

His current portfolio consists of Networks, Voice, Video and Hybrid Cloud covering users in MoJ operations including UK Prisons, Courts, Probation, and digital services to the citizens of the UK. He oversees the digital infrastructure of nearly 1100 sites throughout the UK.

When he first launched his web-hosting company in 2003, he never thought it would pave the way for a distinguished career in the UK Civil Service. His career trajectory is a testament to his visionary leadership and ability to navigate complex technological landscapes.

After receiving his primary education at Vaddukoddai Jaffna College and secondary education at Colombo Hindu College, Nava pursued an International Diploma in Network and Computer Engineering at Singapore Informatics followed by a Bachelor of Science Degree at the University of Northwest. Subsequently, he relocated to the UK in his 20s and then pursued an MBA with Buckinghamshire New University.

With a continuous commitment to professional development, Nava has obtained 19 professional certifications in the technology arena, including TOGAF, Oracle, Microsoft, Citrix, and EC-Council. He is a Fellow of the British Computer Society, a Member of The Institute of Engineering and Technology, and an Honorary Member of the National Security and Resilience Consortium.

Before becoming a Civil Servant, Nava held key leadership positions in leading UK telecom and financial companies where he has consistently delivered results. His keen understanding of emerging technologies and his visionary leadership style have enabled him to stay ahead of the curve in an ever-evolving industry and land in the British Civil Service.

Since 2017, Nava served as the Lead Technical Architect for the UK Government for over four years, where he orchestrated complex, high-profile programs including designing Cloud First Workplace Computing at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and implementing In-Cell Technology for the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), and modernizing prisoner-facing services.

“It was a journey where I started as an engineer and then became a lead architect designing IT systems before becoming a Senior Civil Servant. There I got a great opportunity to showcase my skills and talent in large-scale complex government environments,” Nava explains.

As the Deputy Director in charge of Digital Services and Cyber Security Operations at MoJ, Nava’s team plays a crucial role in ensuring seamless connectivity and accessibility to critical data and resources and driving continuous digital improvements.

By continuously evaluating modern technologies and exploring innovative solutions, Nava and his team are committed to realizing their vision of making user experiences simpler, faster, and better within the MoJ ecosystem.

Additionally, Nava is deeply committed to leveraging technology for social good. Before becoming a senior Civil Servant, he spearheaded numerous initiatives aimed at harnessing the power of technology to address pressing societal challenges, including the project that offered WiFi-enabled laptops to 15000 prison inmates in the UK where the program continues to roll out to more prisons.

“They have laptops within their prison cells, 24 hours, that’s with WiFi connectivity, but the access to the internet is filtered with, you know, only the allowed content. Cyber Security has been the top priority,” he notes, adding that this had enabled the digitalization of the prison and easy access to services including educational and well-being content.

Nava considers himself privileged to design the project as the lead technical architect, deeming it one of the biggest programs with the Ministry of Justice, with the real benefit being, that it stops reoffending.

“So people who come into the prisons stop reoffending because they learn new skills from that system and when they go back to the society, they have new skills or find a new skill and move on with their lives,” he says with understandable pride.

Outside of work, Nava is a serving Captain in the British Army 13th Signal Regiment (The British Army’s Cyber Regiment) as a Specialist Reserve Officer and has received his commission at the Royal Military Academy of Sandhurst. He is attached to the Specialist Group Information Services (SGIS), a dedicated unit charged with providing expertise across the spectrum of Digital to the wider Defence to enable success on current and future operational commitments. He has also recently been appointed as Aide de Camp (ADC) to the Assistant Chief of Defence Staff.

“I regard it as my second job and sometimes it is like my hobby because of the technology in the defence, you won’t see it anywhere else. You’ll get the latest and the greatest technology,” he says.

If that is not enough, he also writes blogs for the MoJ website and is a co-founder of a charity called Child Sparks, a parental support group that empowers parents to help their children with neuro-developmental disorders live full, active, independent lives by promoting self-care and resilience. The charity has made a significant impact on the Sri Lankan community.

Nava’s ambition is to use his skills and experience to enhance the security, efficiency, and innovation of public sector organizations, and to inspire the next generation of leaders and changemakers.

His word of advice for fellow Sri Lankan youth, who are currently facing a lot of hardships due to the unprecedented economic crisis, is “Find where your strengths are, and continue to improve your strengths. Find your stand and look for opportunities wherever you can.”

Wherever you are, says the Sri Lankan-born Senior Civil Servant in the UK, continuous learning is the key to success.

“Build up your skills and don’t limit yourself. People aren’t born with leadership skills so don’t limit yourself; you can learn leadership skills.

“Continue learning and continue your work. Never give up.”

-Saroj Pathirana is an internationally experienced Journalist, Broadcaster, Editor, Mentor, and Communication Consultant who spent 25 years with the BBC World Service based in London covering socio-political issues related to Sri Lanka, UK, and South Asia, working across both Sinhala and English languages. He is currently based in Sri Lanka, freelances for several international media and runs a current affairs YouTube channel ‘Sandeshaya by Saroj” continuing BBC-style public service journalism. His interview with Nava Ramanan can be viewed on ‘Sandeshaya by Saroj’ – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWKXSzOmOKs&t=640s