The CEO of Planview charts a bold course in strategic portfolio management and digital product development, positioning the company as a trusted partner for global enterprises and innovators in the Middle East.
US-headquartered, Planview is reshaping how organisations connect strategy with execution, with a mission to empower leaders to deliver projects and products seamlessly in a world defined by constant change. For Razat Gaurav, Chief Executive Officer and Member of the Board of Directors at Planview, this mission has found a natural extension in the Middle East, with the company’s newly opened regional headquarters in the UAE.
“Our mission is to build the digital future of connected work. We work with over 3,000 customers and 3.1 million users globally across industries, helping organisations transform how they plan and deliver projects and product initiatives. The Middle East region stood out for us because transformations are happening here at a turbocharged pace,” said Razat.
Even before setting up a local presence, the global brand had strong inbound interest and was already supporting major customers like Emirates Airlines through their European teams.
“With more than 35 customers across the Middle East, we felt this was the right time to establish a presence, strengthen relationships, and double down on opportunities in the region,” said Razat.
Razat has over 25 years of experience in enterprise software, with a proven track record of driving innovation-based growth and scaling up technology businesses. He is a trusted advisor to leading global executives, boards, and investors on topics related to digital transformation and supply chain initiatives.
“My supply chain background taught me that everything is interconnected. Using principles like Eli Goldratt’s Theory of Constraints, I learned to identify bottlenecks and unlock efficiencies—principles we now apply at Planview to organisational work and transformation. This experience also gave me a global perspective on resilience and growth, which I bring into how we help enterprises structure their transformation journeys today,” said Razat.
Strategy to execution
Strategy to execution remains a recurring theme at Planview, and Razat mentioned Planview Copilot, an AI-powered assistant designed to transform work management by enhancing productivity and improving decision-making across enterprises.
Leaders in the region are highly ambitious and aspirational, but operationalising those ambitions requires a clear connection between strategy and execution. “Our platform provides that link by aligning leadership priorities with work done across different organisational layers. AI now plays a crucial role here,” said Razat.
Planview Copilot leverages data from over $400 billion worth of planned and delivered initiatives, combined with advanced LLMs from partners like Anthropic, AWS, and OpenAI. This helps the brand to build intelligent, persona-based agents—whether for a CIO, PMO Head and Strategy Leaders —that support decision-making, automate workflows, and eventually take on repetitive tasks. This AI-driven approach significantly reduces risk, increases productivity, and ensures seamless execution.
Three Vectors
Connected platforms are becoming the backbone of modern enterprises, and what helps Planview differentiate itself is based on its vision, which is anchored on three vectors. First, connecting strategic aspirations of leadership to execution on the ground, and second, bridging handoffs from ideation through planning and delivery to outcomes. And third, supporting both projects and products—whether waterfall-style projects with start and end dates, or agile, iterative product initiatives.
“We don’t dictate a single way of working; instead, our platform supports all approaches within one connected work graph, strengthened by AI. This makes us uniquely positioned to integrate strategy, portfolio management, and product development across stakeholders,” said Razat, who Goldman Sachs recognised as one of the 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs of 2020, and by The Software Report as one of the Top 50 SaaS CEOs in the world in 2023. Razat has also been selected to be a member of the CNBC and Wall Street Journal CEO Councils and is a Member of the Board of Directors for SPS Commerce.
“My leadership ethos is simple: employee success plus customer success equals business success. We live this daily by embedding core values into hiring, recognition, promotions, and retention. We maintain a flat culture—my “Slack door” is always open, and I commit to responding to employees within 24 hours. This transparency, combined with a passion for innovation and customer value, allows us to scale while staying true to our mission of building the digital future of connected work,” said Razat.
With rapid digital transformation in the region, leaders today face challenges in aligning execution with vision while dealing with constant change — technological, regulatory, business model, or geopolitical. Change is exponential, not linear, and many organisations struggle with inertia.
Razat said: “Transformation must become a lifestyle change, not a one-off project. Our platform helps organisations build this ‘muscle for change’ by aligning incentives, breaking silos, embedding frameworks like Objectives and Key Results(OKRs), and providing data-driven insights. This enables leaders to make decisions based on outcomes, not hierarchy or loudest voices. For the Middle East, where transformation is accelerating, this muscle is critical.”
Data-driven decision
Planview has helped enterprises make faster, more confident decisions based on its data-driven approach. The brand worked with a global bank investing over $1 billion in technology to restructure and deliver portfolio initiatives that improved digital offerings and accelerated product launches. Using the flow velocity framework, the bank increased efficiency by 25–30%. Another example Razat shared is a high-tech consumer electronics company with hundreds of millions invested in R&D. “We enabled scenario planning for portfolio allocation across physical and software products, helping them gain significant efficiencies. In both cases, we brought together projects, resources, and financials into a single, agile framework that aligned decisions with outcomes,” adds Razat.
The UAE, Saudi Arabia, and other Middle East countries are ramping up innovation and Planview is committed to make its presence in the region, Razat, said: “The UAE is diverse in industries and includes both private enterprises and government-led initiatives. We’re aligning our go-to-market strategy with key sectors such as aviation, retail, banking, and public sector. Our work with Emirates Airlines is a great example—helping them allocate resources effectively and deliver digital initiatives with impact. We see similar opportunities across industries, especially as governments focus on digital transformation, data residency, and smart services.”
Middle East remains a growth driver
The Middle East is accelerating into a future shaped by ambitious projects and investments. Planview is positioning itself as a strategic partner to ensure those ambitions become reality. Razat closed with a clear commitment: “The region is experiencing an unprecedented wave of projects and investments, and we aim to ensure those are executed efficiently, aligned with strategic outcomes.”
From strategy to execution, from AI-driven insights to cultural transparency, Razat is steering Planview towards redefining how global enterprises embrace change and build the digital future of connected work. The brand is currently gearing up for its launch event in October.
“We already have a strong customer base in the region, but now we’re focused on scaling with them and expanding our presence further. We’ve mobilised a UAE-based team and are working closely with partners like AWS, Accenture, and EY to support implementation and change management. The region is experiencing an unprecedented wave of projects and investments, and we aim to ensure those are executed efficiently and aligned with strategic outcomes. Our goal is for the Middle East to become a significant part of Planview’s global business footprint,” concluded Razat.