AI-driven intelligence and high-performing teams: Mangirdas Vičius’ vision for his role as Head of Data & Automation
Mangirdas Vičius’ newly created position, Head of Data & Automation, has a clear purpose – to help Staticus continue its evolution into a data-driven, AI-enabled organisation. With almost 15 years’ experience in Staticus’ Commercial department, including heading up this department for the past 2 years, he has a deep understanding of our industry and practices to draw on. Furthermore, he has a background in Information Systems and first-hand experience working with a range of AI tools. This makes him the right person to lead Staticus’ ongoing data and AI development. In this interview, Mangirdas shares his goals for this new position and reflects on the importance of AI and data-based decision-making.
What excites you the most about your new role?
In general, I see AI as the future, so when this opportunity came up, I grabbed it with both hands. Our sector has a reputation for being slow to adopt new technologies, so I am excited to help Staticus become an industry leader in AI and data transformation.
I will be responsible for the integration of data and AI automation into the company. What really excites me about this position is being able to turn business needs into AI and data-driven solutions. We can unlock new business opportunities, because Staticus as an organisation is at the stage where deploying the right data infrastructure and AI systems can elevate our decision-making. It can also enhance operational efficiency through better process automation.
One aspect of the job I am especially looking forward to is working across our departments. The topics of data and AI impact all of us, and I look forward to enabling data-based decision-making and cross-department alignment with Staticus’ strategic goals via AI. I also see that the initiatives we work on will lead to stronger integration across our organisation.
Fundamentally, this role is about combining my commercial knowledge with my understanding of AI systems.
What is the state of play in terms of AI and data in the industry, and what position is Staticus in?
I truly believe that now is the moment to go in full power with these technologies. They are continually evolving, and in the near future you could find yourself playing catch up. So, it is very important to be decisive, move quickly, and be fully committed.
Within construction and architecture, the use of AI tools is accelerating in some areas such as for generating renders. However, there are areas like estimation that do not yet have suitable AI tools.
Furthermore, individual organisations need highly tailored systems. At Staticus, we have already developed our first AI tool, which helps concept designers to automatically collect data from project documentation. It allows them to ask broad questions, which the AI interprets and then responds intelligently based on the available data. This tool is already popular, and I am working on something similar for Estimators and Bid Managers.
What opportunities do you envision for your role?
AI can be a driver of transformation, and I see this role as enabling that transformation through careful structuring of data and smart deployment of AI tools.
So, the first major opportunity is to build a data foundation for our whole organisation. This will entail creating clear data governance and quality standards and then building stable data architecture. This is an essential first step because it ensures any outputs from AI systems are based on accurate and substantive data.
The opportunity that comes once the data foundation is established is AI-driven intelligence. This means using AI and advanced analytics to anticipate trends and optimise and automate processes. One of my main tasks will be to identify AI use cases and then ensure we build AI systems and practices that deliver a real impact. Naturally, these systems will need to be ethical and explainable and they must comply with specific data safety requirements. Overall, the process will be to identify where to prioritise and then to scale solutions in this area.
A third opportunity relates to the culture of our organisation. Of course, I want data and AI to empower our teams, including by automating processes that are repetitive. It will also be important to further strengthen data-literacy within Staticus and build high-performing data teams that can maximise the value we gain from our investments into these technologies. We are a large international organisation and people will be coming from different starting points in terms of their knowledge of AI. My goal is to encourage everyone to work more closely with these technologies to understand the value they can bring. It is about establishing a positive mindset that encourages exploration.
In summary, my overall goal is to help our company evolve into a data-driven, AI-enabled organisation.
What personal aspirations do you have as you take on this new role?
Technology has always been close to my heart. I actually hold a Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems. So, although I have worked as a Head of Commercial Division and previously as an Estimator, my background has always been in technology. I am genuinely happy to be returning to this focus.
Outside of my work at Staticus, I have already completed several training programmes on the use of AI agents and automation. Using these skills, I have built several chatbots and autonomous AI agents by connecting different systems, and I have experience with tools like Flowise, Vectorshift, N8N, and Voiceflow.
At Staticus, I have already been actively involved in one AI initiative. We are now developing a solution for estimators and bid managers, and the plan is to roll it out across the entire organisation. And my new role will be one of continual learning. I want to deepen my technical expertise in data infrastructure and AI project delivery.
My personal aspiration is to grow into a strategic AI, automation, and data leader. I want to build a team that is collaborative and accountable, and to provide a connection between the latest technologies and concrete value for our teams and the whole organisation.
What strikes you about Staticus as a place to work, including its approach to technology?
There are not many companies in our field that invest so much at such an early stage in such innovative technologies. I put this down to Staticus’ culture of continuous improvement. This continuous improvement is not only related to façade engineering, but also to how we work internally, and to topics like sustainability, transparent partnership, and technology. Staticus is a company that is clearly open to digital transformation.
This innovative approach is definitely helped by the fact Staticus is a major international company, and also that it is family run. This means there is a lot of reinvestment and a commitment to long-term thinking.
Finally, I would say that the people at Staticus make a difference too. My colleagues here are friendly and supportive, and there is an atmosphere of encouragement to try out new approaches. I am sure this culture will help us during our digital transformation.
Tell us a bit about your life outside of work.
I am an active person. I previously played tennis a lot, but since a back injury I have had to hang up my racket. Instead, I do a lot of swimming and cycling, which I both really enjoy. Another outdoor activity I enjoy is fishing.
Outside of sports, my main passions are spending time with my family and friends, and technology. I pursue my interest in AI in my free time. I also like to stay up to date on current affairs. I also enjoy gaming to relax, especially first-person shooters.