How do you lead an IT organization within one of the world’s largest healthcare groups? What does a typical day look like when your work spans strategic vision, hands-on collaboration, and cross-functional innovation? In this interview, we talk to Jimmy Jagwani, Head of Information Technology at Fresenius Health Services (FHS), to learn more about his role, what motivates him, and what makes his team stand out.

I am Head of Information Technology at Fresenius Health Services, a unit within the Fresenius Group. In this role, I am responsible for delivering technological solutions that support hospital operations and the services we provide to them. My work spans strategic planning and team development, and enables business units and client hospitals to overcome operational challenges through digital tools and platforms.

We have three main tasks: First, we provide the infrastructure, bring in new systems when required and make sure that all systems run in a stable and cost-effective way. This is the responsibility of our core IT team, which is based in Vienna. Second, we provide data services and digital services that enable us to increase revenue and improve internal operations. Members of this team are based in different locations including Berlin, the UK and Italy. And the third task is to provide IT infrastructure and services to the portfolio companies of the legacy Vamed organization, which have been divested over recent years. This is also handled by a team based in Vienna. I lead around 100 people across these different locations. We have strong working relationships, especially with Kabi and Helios, with whom we work closely as we tend to face quite similar challenges. We are also well-connected to corporate functions.

One project focuses on digitizing the process for field technicians servicing machines in hospitals. They perform maintenance for a large variety of machines from different manufacturers. As such, it is crucial they get the right information and spare parts fast. By digitizing that process, we save them a considerable amount of time and massively reduce the paperwork involved, from incident to invoice. We also deal with the provision of software solutions that have been developed for internal use to external clients. By doing this, we enable them to digitize their entire operations. Small hospitals in particular do not have the capability to develop their own solutions, so we allow them to license ours.

I am based in Cologne and travel a lot to the other locations. I enjoy this side of my work, as I find meeting people very stimulating. It is quite difficult to describe a typical day, however, so instead I will explain how I spend my time. Around a quarter of my time goes into working sessions with my teams, identifying how technology can bring real value and eliminate bottlenecks. Another quarter is spent with my business counterparts, helping uncover the root causes of challenges and co-developing new business models. During the third quarter of my time, I work on creating better solutions for FHS with my counterparts from Kabi or Helios, or colleagues in infrastructure and security. I try to keep the last quarter to myself for reflection, leadership and similar tasks.

One major special aspect about my team is that we all work with a shared purpose, we all take ownership and have a mindset of continuous improvement; there is a lot of trust and mutual respect. As I said, we work across several locations, which makes it even more important to have a strong culture of collaboration and transparency. I make it a priority to be accessible to the teams. This fosters trust and, in my experience, brings out the best ideas.

As to new team members, we mainly look for two characteristics: the first is a willingness to learn. We operate in a rapidly evolving environment with the most advanced technology. We need to see failures as opportunities to learn and move forward. What we use today will be obsolete in a few years. The second quality is being able to focus on the outcome, as this creates value for the organization.

It’s the people: I primarily understand my role as providing a clear vision and then articulating this ambition to the team. I want to make sure that we not only meet the goals of the business but also personal development goals. I would like to emphasize the importance of reflection in leadership. It is something I consciously make time for. Whether it is stepping back to reassess a challenge or considering long-term strategy – this practice helps ensure that we don’t just react but thoughtfully move forward. It is this balance between action and reflection that I believe makes our work sustainable and impactful.

My background has always been at the intersection of technology and business: I have a university degree in Engineering and sailed on a cargo ship as a marine engineer, mostly in the eastern parts of the world. After that I added an MBA, during which I did an internship at the World Bank. This was when I first came into contact with the healthcare sector. I developed a fondness for the industry and tackled it from various angles – first at a venture capital firm and later at the consulting company McKinsey. After that, I spent 10 years at Bayer, working in strategy and information technology. I then moved to Fresenius at the beginning of 2025. Over the years, I have gravitated towards roles that have allowed me to drive transformation and align IT with strategic business outcomes. Fresenius offered the perfect platform to do exactly that at scale.

I would tell them that it is a place where you can truly make a difference. At Fresenius, we are not just ticking boxes – we solve real problems that impact patient well-being and hospital operations. You are surrounded by passionate professionals, and if you are someone who values purpose, innovation, and a collaborative culture, this is the right place for you. I have not been part of the organization for long, but I have appreciated the clarity and focus with which everyone works here from the very start.