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23 December 2025 10:09:01 AM
13 min
Hello Octane clients, partners, and friends — and hello to our own Octane crew reading this too. As we wrap up 2025, we wanted to share a year-in-review that’s equal parts thank you, celebration, and “wait… did we really do all that?” 😄 This year was big. Big learning, big delivery, big growth, big laughs, and a few late nights fuelled by coffee, deadlines, and the occasional “just one more ...
Hello Octane clients, partners, and friends — and hello to our own Octane crew reading this too.
As we wrap up 2025, we wanted to share a year-in-review that’s equal parts thank you, celebration, and “wait… did we really do all that?” 😄
This year was big. Big learning, big delivery, big growth, big laughs, and a few late nights fuelled by coffee, deadlines, and the occasional “just one more slide” moment.
So here it is: the story of Octane 2025 — what we achieved, what we built, and why we’re genuinely pumped about what’s coming next.
Then we headed to Vietnam for IBM’s APAC ecosystem gathering and came home with another major win — the IBM Partner Plus Award for SaaS (APAC).
What we loved most about this one is that it recognised outcomes: real transformation work, real client results, and consistent execution.
And yes… Orlando too. At IBM TechXchange 2025, Octane was named Runner-Up in the IBM TechXchange Excellence Awards.
Runner-up might sound modest, but trust us: on a global stage with the best of the best, it’s a massive achievement. It’s one of those moments where you quietly sit back and go,
“Okay… we’re in the game globally.”
This wasn’t a fluffy “look at our product” session. It was a proper transformation story about how we modernised a complex IBM Planning Analytics (TM1) platform — including:
Modern architecture and platform uplift
Model refactoring and performance focus
A foundation that’s now AI-ready
Reducing technical debt and improving user experience
Making the planning platform faster, more scalable, and actually enjoyable to use (yes, that’s possible)
Presenting alongside a client is the best kind of proof. Anyone can claim value — it’s different when your client stands with you and says,
“Yep. They delivered.”
One Team, One Family: Our Bangalore all Octane Meetup (and Mini-Meets)
2025 wasn’t just about client delivery and awards — it was also about us investing in the thing that makes Octane work: our people.
We held an All-Octane Meetup in Bangalore, bringing team members together from different cities and countries. For a globally distributed team, this stuff matters. It turns “workmates on Teams” into “people you can actually laugh with in real life”.
The week was a mix of:
Strategy sessions
Training and capability building
Sharing wins and lessons from the trenches
And a healthy amount of good food, banter, and team energy
We also had smaller mini-meets in Sydney, Mumbai, Gurugram and Hyderabad throughout the year — quick catch-ups, planning sessions, hiring and training meetups — the kind of moments that keep a team connected even as we grow.
If 2025 had a theme in the market, it was this:
CFOs are done with hype. They want what works.
So we leaned in — showing finance leaders how to modernise planning, reduce manual work, and actually take advantage of AI without risking governance, security, or sanity.
Across Melbourne, Sydney, and Mumbai, we participated in and hosted CFO-focused events, roundtables, and conference sessions where we covered topics like:
Modern FP&A and scenario modelling
Planning Analytics as a modern platform (not a “legacy TM1 box”)
AI for finance that’s practical, safe, and measurable
Agentic AI / orchestration and “digital labour”
Improving month-end processes and board reporting
What we loved most: the conversations were real. No buzzword bingo. Just finance leaders asking,
“How do we do this properly?”
…and Octane being able to answer with real experience and real examples.
We onboarded new clients this year and kicked off major transformation programs — across multiple industries and multiple countries.
Some of the work our team has been delivering:
Modernising IBM Planning Analytics platforms (on-prem → cloud / SaaS)
Rebuilding planning models to reduce complexity and improve adoption
Improving performance and governance for enterprise TM1 estates
Automating finance workflows and reporting
Building AI-ready foundations so clients can scale innovation safely
The common thread across these programs was simple:
Less manual work, faster insight, better decisions.
And as always, we aim for outcomes clients can feel — not just “a system upgrade”, but a real change in how finance operates day to day.
2025 was also the year our AI practice really took shape.
We’ve been talking about AI for a while (like everyone), but this year we focused on turning AI into:
Usable workflows
Secure and governed solutions
Real productivity improvements
Practical agents that operate inside enterprise environments
We built capability, grew the team, and expanded how we deliver solutions across IBM’s AI stack — especially around orchestration and automation.
For clients, this means AI that supports finance teams without creating chaos. And for our own internal team, it means we’re building a long-term competitive advantage — not chasing trends.
Our Octane Blue TM1 support services also grew significantly in 2025.
Support isn’t glamorous… until you realise what it really means for clients:
Your planning platform stays stable
Your users get answers quickly
Your changes don’t break everything
Your month-end isn’t derailed by a mystery data issue
You don’t have to scramble for talent every time something needs fixing
Octane Blue has become a key part of how we help clients keep their platforms healthy and continuously improving — not just “keeping the lights on”, but actively modernising over time.
If 2025 proved anything, it’s this: great support is a growth strategy, not an afterthought.
Now for the section we love because it shows who we are outside of spreadsheets and cloud architecture 😄
In 2025, Octane also sponsored and supported:
We also sponsored the WRX Car Club Junior Series, supporting young drivers and helping build confidence, skills, and community. It’s a big deal seeing juniors step up and improve — and it aligns perfectly with how we think about growth (in sport and in careers).
And yes — we also sponsored a squash tournament this year. Different arena, same energy. We love supporting community sport because it’s about participation, discipline, health, and momentum.
These sponsorships aren’t just marketing. They’re personal. They reflect our culture:
teamwork, improvement, friendly competition, and backing good people doing good things.
If we zoom out, 2025 wasn’t about one award or one project. It was about momentum.
It showed that Octane is:
Building global credibility (India, Boston, Vietnam, Orlando)
Delivering real transformation outcomes (not just implementations)
Expanding capability into AI and automation
Growing managed services (Octane Blue) with real depth
Investing in culture, team connection, and community
In simple terms:
we’re growing up — but we’re keeping our personality.
Now the fun part: what’s next.
In 2026, the market will shift from “AI curiosity” to AI accountability. People won’t ask “what can it do?” — they’ll ask:
“What results did it deliver?”
Our focus for 2026 is clear:
More measurable outcomes: less talk, more value
More AI that’s safe and practical: governed, secure, enterprise-ready
More platform modernisation: moving legacy environments to modern architectures
More client enablement: helping teams adopt and sustain change
More investment in our people: training, growth paths, and more meetups
We’re entering 2026 with confidence, momentum, and a bigger mission:
help finance teams run faster, smarter, and with less friction.
To our clients and partners: thank you for trusting Octane in 2025. Whether it was a major transformation program, support partnership, or a new engagement — we truly appreciate the opportunity.
To our team: thank you for the energy, the resilience, the late nights, the laughs, and the care you bring to every client outcome.
2025 was a massive year.
2026 is going to be even bigger.
From all of us at Octane — have an awesome holiday season, stay safe, recharge properly… and we’ll see you in 2026 ready to hit the ground running. 🎉
– Amendra & the Octane Team
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2 August 2021 8:17:48 AM
8 min
It’s an amazing feeling as we gear up to celebrate Octane’s 5th anniversary. What started as an idea and nurtured by me and my senior leaders is fast transforming into an established and growing enterprise.
Five years is usually a significant milestone in a startup’s life as it pushes you into a grown-up zone. It’s been an exciting journey and the pandemic indeed threw some curveballs at us.
I am often asked about the motivation to resign from Macquarie Group to start Octane.
Macquarie was an excellent learning ground to nurture one’s entrepreneurial fire. I found a gap in the market to provide the latest AI-based technology to the Office of Finance. Some existing suppliers were either too expensive that meant the projects did not stack up against a cost/benefit analysis. Others simply did not have the skills or expertise to deliver complex Financial Projects.
My vision was to establish Octane as a specialist provider of Finance technology at a price point that allows for a wider adaptation. This was to be achieved using a hybrid onshore/offshore delivery and support.
I think we are keeping true to the vision and adjust and adapt due to market demands.
I must admit that the pandemic has validated our business model as the whole world adapted to remote working and sought out to optimise how they operate and a rapidly volatile environment.
Octane timeline over the last five years.
The biggest shoutout goes to the team we have at Octane, who are absolute champions and masters of their domain.
We have always sought to foster and build up the skills of our people. While Covid has put a stop to our legendary quarterly team get-togethers in different locations, we have slowly started planning to work towards our next get-together in Goa when restrictions lift and we are all able to travel.
It was amazing how our team got together as the effects of the pandemic were starting to be felt around the world. Being in a situation where we had our staff deployed to Dubai and Fiji, it was a mammoth effort and patience required to manoeuvre through lockdowns, quarantine and travel arrangements to get everyone back home safely.
As always, our main concern was the safety and welfare of our staff. During the pandemic, we have to provide different levels of support to our staff and their family as some of them were affected by the virus which has brought us closer together as a tight-knit team.
Work from home office became the norm in 2020.
Over the last five years, we have had the opportunity to work with clients of sizes and shapes. It’s pleasing to note that the vast majority of them are with us for the long haul, and we have an ongoing relationship with them. We have always sought to ensure that my team and I go above and beyond to ensure client satisfaction.
It has become our DNA.
Our get together with the Sydney Team before the pandemic.
I am also appreciative of my family and their patience. Starting out and building something like Octane requires immense time, effort and energy. There have been almost monthly travels (pre-pandemic) and lots of late-night calls.
The silver lining in the last 18 months was that I was able to spend a lot more time at home, and we managed to get some long-standing projects off the ground. It also allowed me to compete and win the NSW WRX Motorkhana championship, spend more time with kids and helped in their driving competitions. We have also started building a race car for my daughter.
My eldest daughter, Risha at her debut race at 14 - Wakefield Park Raceway.
In the last 18 months, we had a lot of time looking inwards and reflecting and adjusting our priorities. We, as Octane, has partnered with the charity B1G1. This allows us to support many charitable projects. We already have workshopped many creative ways to integrate our clients and tribe of followers to be part of our giving philosophy - i.e. provide a specific charitable project linked to each training or webinar you attend or when a client signs up for our Managed Services.
We have partnered with B1G1 during the pandemic.
The last five years have been exciting and did not follow the script. But we have adapted and evolved. It would be impossible for me to predict what the next five years would look like. One certain thing is that we will be strengthening our base in our core area of providing the best and latest technology to Finance teams.
We allow them to spend more time analysing and less time producing reports. The other strong theme emerging has been the signing up of clients in new markets like the USA and Europe.
With Covid taking away the barriers to remote work and most enterprises realising the value of having market insights in a timely manner could provide a significant competitive advantage.
Our Octane team looking forward to serving you for the coming years.
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