Global IT spending has surpassed $5 trillion – yet, according to Gartner and McKinsey, over 70% of large-scale digital transformation programs still fail to meet expectations. As AI-driven development and data-driven models transform healthcare, supply chains, and corporate operations, success is no longer defined simply by task completion but by measurable business value. It’s become clear that trust, clarity, and measurable assessable results are the key. Andrii Shaliev, Senior Delivery Director for Client Partnership and Growth, has built his career on this very idea – helping complex digital initiatives deliver real and lasting value.
This approach has also gained international recognition. In December 2023, Andrii was admitted to full membership in the International Association of IT Professionals (IAITP) for extraordinary achievements in IT – a distinction awarded to professionals with proven, measurable impact on the industry.
Starting Point
Andrii’s career began along a fairly standard trajectory: as a Senior Software Solution Engineer at Astelit (now Lifeсell), one of Ukraine’s major mobile operators. His responsibilities included L2 support, incident handling, and system uptime. But it was exactly there that he realized what truly interested him.
Shaliev says he was increasingly drawn not to routine support tasks, but to those rare instances when he needed to dig into the database – write a custom SQL query, find and fix a problem at the data level. It became clear that he wanted to not just solve user problems, but work with systems at a deeper level.
That systems-level mindset soon translated into bolder execution. One standout example was the launch and full ownership of oplata.life.ua – a proprietary, PCI DSS–compliant, commission-free platform for top-ups and service payments.
The platform didn’t just add another channel; it restructured Astelitl’s payment model. By moving top-ups from third-party aggregators into operator-controlled flows, it reduced external fees, expanded direct payment channels, and materially improved the unit economics of prepaid revenue.
A turning point came with an opening in the fledgling Software Development division – at a time when they were just building a development-focused L3 support department. He immediately recognized that as his opportunity to transition from reactive support to proactive solution creation. He applied, got interviewed, and from that moment on, his career took a turn toward software engineering and delivery management.
The Right Decision at the Right Time
One of the most difficult challenges in Andrey’s career came later, when he became labeled as a telecommunications specialist. Despite his extensive leadership experience and even greater ambitions, many doors remained closed simply because his experience didn’t match recruiters’ expectations.
Rejection after rejection left him with no choice but to take a step back, as it seemed at the time, accepting the offer and taking a position as a business analyst on software development projects.
“It wasn’t an easy decision,” Andrii admits. “But I realized that sometimes you have to step sideways – or even back – to move forward strategically.”
This move proved to be the right one. This position allowed him to gain a deep understanding of new industries. It also provided him with the opportunity to demonstrate leadership in project management. Consequently, he earned the trust of his clients. From there, he returned to project management, but this time with a broader understanding of the field and a stronger position. This experience taught him an important lesson: ambition without flexibility leads nowhere.
The Core Principles
Andrii formulates his approach to work succinctly and clearly: start with value. And no project should be started without a clear goal and honest intentions.
“I strongly believe that honesty and transparency are non-negotiable,” he says. “If people don’t clearly understand goals, risks, and responsibilities, the project is already in trouble.”
He pays special attention to areas that are often overlooked – non-functional requirements, edge cases, dependencies, and acceptance criteria – because it is these details that usually determine long-term success or failure.
This focus on disciplined, value-driven delivery has also positioned Andrii as a trusted evaluator of complex digital solutions beyond his own projects. In 2025, he served as a judge for the Trinetix xGames Hackathon and as a juror for The BrainTech Awards, where he assessed AI-driven and enterprise technology initiatives.
A Platform with Global Impact
According to Andrii, his most significant achievement is the development and scaling of a global digital platform that focuses on brand protection and food safety. The platform has become a unified hub for what used to be disparate data sources and manual quality checks.
It combines operational metrics, customer feedback, external signals, and KPIs into real-time dashboards, down to individual locations. It also includes evidence repositories with photo documentation and structured management action plans to ensure accountability and achievement of objectives.
Today, the platform is used by over 600,000 users, supports over 250 organizations, processes nearly a million inspections every month, and operates in over 110 countries. For Andrii, its real success lies in helping global companies reduce operational, regulatory, and reputational risks at scale.
At Trinetix, Andrii turned “value-first” from a slogan into a working model. By refining delivery processes and strengthening governance across client portfolios, he consistently drove 7–10% year-over-year profit growth. This growth fueled reinvestment in new products, modern practices, and deeper technical expertise, while a shift to outcome-based delivery made portfolios more resilient and aligned with real business impact. Between 2022 and 2025, projects were 25% less likely to be terminated due to insufficient return.
In 2025, Andrii’s contributions earned him a Council Member seat at The Association of Information Technology Experts and the Distinguished Excellence Designation. For him, these results show that clear expectations, disciplined execution, and value-driven decisions lead to sustainable growth.
Lessons, Trends, and Advice
Looking ahead, Shaliev sees AI-powered software development and value-driven, metric-based delivery as the most important trends shaping the industry.
At the same time, recurring mistakes are obvious to him. Teams often underestimate minor details that later turn into major problems, while clients sometimes believe that their internal processes are stronger than they actually are.
He shares real, down-to-earth tips for anyone starting their career:
“Don’t be afraid to make mistakes – but make them consciously. Test ideas, limit risk, measure results, and build on what works.”
Something to Look Forward To
Currently, Andrii is working on implementing AI-supported development practices in healthcare projects, with a strong focus on quality, productivity, security, and compliance. Over the next one to two years, his goal is to double portfolio profitability by expanding in healthcare while strengthening existing client partnerships through more outcome-focused delivery models.
Even outside the office, he chooses activities – hiking and kayaking – that challenge his ability to overcome challenges, maintain perseverance, and move forward step by step.
As Andrii puts it: “First agree on the expected result. Only then does it make sense to speed up execution.”
