Tech-Exec Issue 2

SYLVAIN FILIPPI ON LIFE IN MOTORSPORT AND RACING AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE

“IT'S THE ULTIMATE WAY TO PUSH BOUNDARIES”

There’s something so captivating about motorsport, Formula E even more so. The cars – a cross between a space-age Formula 1 design and something I may have conjured up with pen and paper as a kid – the intensity of the racing, the spectacle of such speed with such little noise.

It’s the racing of the future, and for very good reason. Because, behind the spectacle is a cause as good as any: to bring the fight against climate change to the masses, and pioneer the latest and most innovative electric vehicle technology while at it. In this issue Sylvain Filippi, MD and CTO of Envision Virgin Racing and Chairman of the Formula E Teams’ and Manufacturers’ Association joins us to discuss this and more.

Filippi has been in the sport since the beginning – such is his passion for EV technology that he was even hard at work developing his own electric racing series before Formula E came calling – and his passion for sustainability and pushing the boundaries through competitive sport shines through.

Passion unites all those in this issue. Whether it’s The Open University’s CDO David Hayes, who is as much a technologist as he is an advocate for the power of education, or The CIO Circle’s Brad Dowden, who established the group as a trusted environment for other leaders. A reminder that the best work comes from following what you truly enjoy and believe in.

Matt High.

Content Director

Matt High

Creative Directors

Daniel Crawford

Steve Shipley

Marketing Director

Jack Pascall

Project Director

Manuel Navarro

Managing Director

James Pepper

80

72 | ENTREPRENEUR VAL MIFTAKHOV

Pioneering sustainable aviation

74 | TECHNOLOGY DISTRIBUTED CLOUD

The future of enterprise cloud strategy?

80 | INNOVATOR

SOPHI HORNE

World-first electric boat racing

82 | LEADERSHIP BRAD DOWDEN

The CIO Circle and technology leaders

90 | PERSPECTIVE NEIL BARUA

On diversity and inclusion in the 21st century

94 | CITY GUIDE

48 HRS: NEW YORK

Business and pleasure in the city that never sleeps

102 | CALENDAR EVENTS

It had to happen. Even as COVID restrictions are gingerly lifted in countries around the world. Yes, the fashion face mask is here, in this instance courtesy of Black Eyed Peas founder Will.i.am. Fad it may be, but the ‘Xupermask’ [pronounced super mask] also packs some innovative technology thanks to collaboration with Honeywell, including noise cancellation headphones, bluetooth connectivity and earbud docking system. You just need $299…

www. honeywell.com

MIND CONTROL

‘Watch a monkey equipped with Elon Musk’s Neuralink device play Pong with its brain’. As far as headlines go, it’s up there. But, as he has previously asserted, Musk’s brain implant company has released a video of Pager [a nine-yearold macaque] using its wireless skull implants to play video games with its mind. Musk has previously described the sensors as “a FitBit in your skull with tiny wires”; the ultimate aim is to create a brain-computer interface to help people with paralysis or paraplegia.

www.neuralink.com

Engineers at Georgia Tech have developed a way to harness the energy in the air from 5G signals and turn them into a power source that could power wearable devices and IoT-based tech. rh.gatech.edu

8.4% Worldwide IT spending is projected to increase by 8.4% to total $4.1trn in 2021. Spend on enterprise software is expected to grow by 10.8%.

www.gartner.com

The future of remote work reseach

40% of employees say they’ve yet to hear about any post-pandemic work vision from their companies.

52% of workers hope for a more flexible working model post-COVID.

30% of employees would consider changing jobs should their organisation return to fully on-site work.

<25% Nearly a quarter expect greater use of virtual collaboration tools and digital technology training. Read more

THE FUTURE, ACCORDING TO INTEL

Intel’s Executive Vice President and General Manager Mobile Client Platforms, Navin Shenoy was speaking at the launch of the company’s latest third generation Xeon scalable processor when he set out four critical inflection points:

> The proliferation of hybrid cloud and its democratising access to high performance computing

> Rapid adoption of 5G

> The distribution of computing to the edge of the network where data is generated

> How AI and ML are being infused into applications across edge, cloud and network

SO LONG, BIG DATA

We should accept that big data has limitations for future use and instead embrace the need for smart data. According to Forbes Technology Council Member Campbell Brown, data scientists spend a considerable amount of their time cleansing and preparing data (as much as 80%). Smart data is already cleaned, verified and can deliver value more quickly, thus bringing considerable opportunities to those organisations that embrace it.

www.forbes.com

GOING DEFENSIVE

96% of executives are adopting ‘defensive AI’ solutions such as self-learning algorithms that understand normal user and device behaviour, as well as system patterns to detect unusual activity in an organisation without having to rely on historical data. Research from MIT and Darktrace also found that ‘offensive AI’ poses a very real threat to the enterprise.

www.darktrace.com

A GENTLE HUM

Of course, our favourite feature of ‘the next all-electric supertruck’ – to quote Hummer – should be it’s battery-powered, environmentally friendly capabilities. And they are impressive. Sitting on top of GM’s advanced Ultium EV platform, it’s 20-cell, double stacked battery pack is capable of 800V charging at rates of up to 300kW, a range of more than 300 miles, maximum output of 819bhp and an enormous 11,500lb ft torque. It’s optional Power Station function can even be used to power other EVs. As we say, impressive. But then there’s its ‘Crabwalk’ capability, which lets you drive diagonally whenever you need to. Just because.

www.gmc.com

“AESTHETICS ARISE FROM EFFICIENCY”

TODAY’S TOPIC: REINFORCEMENT LEARNING

Pay attention at the back! It’s time for a valuable lesson: reinforcement learning. This advanced AI technique, which uses algorithms that learn like us through trial and error could have huge potential for those executives that get to the front of the class, including greater innovation and problem solving. Swat up below.

www.mckinsey.com

Head of Audi Design, Marc Lichte on the new all-electric Audi E-tron GT

A study by researchers at Stanford University concludes that wearable devices like the Apple Watch are reliable solutions for detecting cardiovascular diseases.

LG announces it is to end its smartphone business in July 2021 to focus on smart home products, robots, AI and other connected devices.

Tech billionaires are worth a combined $2.5trn according to Forbes’ 2021 World’s Billionaires List . Jeff Bezos remains top of the pile.

MIT Technology Review reveals its 10 Breakthrough Technologies 2021, including messenger RNA vaccines, lithium-metal batteries, multi-skilled AI and more.

Innovative startup Mictic launches a Kickstarter campaign for its wearable tech that turns movement into instruments sounds like electric guitar and more.

Honda and Verizon announce a partnership to research how 5G and mobile edge computing can improve safety for autonomous and connected vehicles.

Google launches Project Soil , new consumer sleep technology that can track and analyse sleep more effectively.

RACINg FOR OUR FUTURE

ENVISION VIRGIN RACING MD AND CTO SYLVAIN FILIPPI ON LIFE IN MOTORSPORT, RACING AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE AND WHY OUR FUTURE IS ELECTRIC

You always drive to win, that’s what racers do. Sylvain Filippi is no different. The Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer of Envision Virgin Racing is one of Formula E’s most renowned and respected figures having pioneered the sport since its inception – before even, if you count his devising his very own electric racing series for zero emission vehicles spurred by a growing excitement for e-mobility in the late 2000s.

But speak to Filippi for any length of time, as we were fortunate to, and you understand very quickly that his passion for racing – as strong as it is – is a pretext for an issue of far greater importance: climate change and sustainability.

life in Formula E, how racing and competition is fast-tracking electric vehicle innovation and why automotive manufacturers look to the sport as a testbed for the latest technologies that will power our collective futures.

To hear Filippi champion those concerns, and the mass adoption of electric vehicles and renewable energy, is a lesson in how combining your work with your passion can be a powerful driving force. Over the course of a fascinating hour, he discusses

“I was blown away. The performance, how much fun it was to drive…”

But first, that early foray into electric racing. “I got so excited I just started my own company called EV Cup, which was basically a mini Formula E… with

SYLVAIN FILIPPI

a lot of tech,” he explains, giving some insight into how long his passion for electric vehicles has been a driver in his life. As a self-professed automotive fan, it should come as little surprise that Filippi was among the early proponents of electric cars, working in a consulting capacity with several manufacturers in the late 2000s.

“It’s probably a bit of a cliche now,” he says, “but my first real experience with an EV was driving one of the very first Tesla Roadsters in the UK. I was absolutely blown away. The performance, how much fun it was to drive, it just opened my eyes to how incredible the technology really was. I’ve always had a real love for

engineering and very pure, elegant solutions and I remember thinking if we can solve the challenges around batteries and energy density – remember, this was 10 years ago now – then an electric motor is just a vastly better way to move a car.”

“It’s the ultimate way to push boundaries…”

For Filippi, motorsport has always been the ideal forum to demonstrate this sentiment, both to viewers and the wider automotive world. Formula E started in 2014 – a matter of perfect timing, he says, in terms of appetite and a growing appreciation for electric vehicles – giving Filippi the perfect opportunity. “It’s the ultimate way to push boundaries for automotive applications, mobility… anything

on wheels. I don’t think anyone has found anything better. It’s a very pure sport, man and machine seeing how fast they can go, and that’s the reason we’ve driven so much innovation in electric mobility over the last seven years. Everyone is competitive, everyone wants to win and the technology benefits from that spirit.

“When Formula E happened, it made perfect sense – despite some people thinking we were crazy at the time,” he jokes. “Really, it was inevitable that motorsport and electric technology would meet.

There’s no better way to develop really advanced, crazy tech, than to put it on a racing car, show it works then adapt it for the road. You can see that in the way the biggest manufacturers have joined the sport. What’s really exciting is that we’re only at the beginning. There’s so much more we can do.”

This desire to address climate change and to push for more sustainable ways to travel is as inherent in the team as it is Filippi himself. Envision Virgin Racing was part of the series’ inaugural races in Beijing in

“IT’S A VERY PURE SPORT, MAN AND MACHINE SEEING HOW FAST THEY CAN GO, AND THAT’S THE REASON WE’VE DRIVEN SO MUCH INNOVATION IN ELECTRIC MOBILITY OVER THE LAST SEVEN YEARS”

“THERE’S NO BETTER WAY TO DEVELOP REALLY ADVANCED, CRAZY TECH, THAN TO PUT IT ON A RACING CAR, SHOW IT WORKS THEN ADAPT IT FOR THE ROAD”

2014 and has gone on to compete in all races to date. The self-confessed ‘Greenest Team on the Greenest Grid’ has been certified carbon neutral and has signed up to the UNFCCC Sports for Climate Action Framework. It’s Race Against Climate Change initiative is focused on accelerating the transition to clean, secure and affordable renewable energy and the mass adoption of e-mobility.

“I love the purity of renewable energy…”

“It’s been there from the outset,” Filippi states. “Our core DNA is not to make cars, it’s to talk about climate change. Of course we work closely with manufacturers like Audi because we love the tech angle and we love to win races, but we’ve always wanted to use the Formula E platform to talk about these issues. The future isn’t bleak. We have an enormous challenge in reducing emissions and moving to a netzero world, but the technology is there; I love the purity of renewable energy, there’s nothing more beautiful than harnessing and storing that energy to power electric cars. And that’s it – zero emission transport. If someone wants to explain to me how burning fossil fuels is more efficient, then good luck. We’ll have some good arguments.”

“The next decade is going to be really exciting…”

In the seven seasons it’s been active the pace of technological innovation in Formula E has been vast. For the first two generations of car, the core objective

was to showcase the rapid advances in energy density in batteries and the efficiency of powertrains, says Filippi. The leap between the two was significant, from a driver needing two Gen 1 cars to complete a 45 minute race to a Gen 2 car that is faster, has more power and can compete for the full race length.

“We de facto doubled the amount of energy in the car to 200kW-250kW,” he says. “And we did that while still being hugely efficient. Through the whole powertrain – the battery, inverter, motor, gearbox,

driveshaft and wheel – the entire energy loss is less than 10%, which is incredible. It’s what I love about electric cars, and what we are trying to show people, that regardless of the energy source if you put ‘100 units’ of energy in, more than 90% of that goes to the wheels. In a petrol or diesel car, you put the same 100 units in and that figure drops to about 35%; you’re wasting 60-70% through heat and friction. Once you know that, it just becomes impossible to drive a petrol car any longer. I get it: not everyone cares about diffs and powertrains as much as

I do, but as soon as you get down to cost, people take note.”

For Filippi, achieving cost parity with commercial electric vehicles is the tipping point. When the innovation seen in Formula E, and the efficiency that comes with it, is available at scale in our equivalent road cars we reach a point where petrol and diesel-powered vehicles effectively become redundant. “All of the technology we’re constantly improving like energy density of batteries, software, efficiency and so on, correlates directly to cars,” he comments. “Powertrain and

software developments, for example, make you more efficient, which means you need fewer batteries so the car is lighter and cheaper. All these things are happening at a really rapid pace.

“Once all of the components are cheap and reliable we’re there, we hit cost parity,” Filippi adds. “Most estimates predict that by 2025 – which is really tomorrow in engineering terms – it will cost the same to manufacture an electric car than a petrol car. Let’s not forget too that the latter is just getting more

“OUR CORE DNA IS NOT TO MAKE CARS, IT’S TO TALK ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE”

expensive because of increasing emissions regulations and more. Electric cars will also cost a fraction of the cost of petrol or diesel cars to run so that’s effectively game over in terms of a massive shift to electric. The next decade is going to be really exciting, we’re seeing the foundations for an enormous change.”

“100 kilos is a ridiculous amount to shave off a car…”

Formula E will continue to drive that momentum. The sport is currently developing its latest Gen 3 iteration of cars, planned to be introduced for the 2022-23 season and focused, says Filippi, on weight reduction among other innovations.

“IF SOMEONE WANTS TO EXPLAIN TO ME HOW BURNING FOSSIL FUELS IS MORE EFFICIENT, THEN GOOD LUCK. WE’LL HAVE SOME GOOD ARGUMENTS”

“We’re talking 100 kilos lighter,” he elaborates. “In motor sports terms that’s tons – normally we chase grams to win races so 100 kilos is a ridiculous amount to shave off a car.” The reason behind that mammoth weight saving, he continues, comes from improvements to powertrain efficiency and battery density meaning that, while teams can save weight, they’ll also gain as much as 100kW of power.

“It’s gigantic steps,” says Filippi. “At the same time we’re looking at a smaller

240KMH

MAXIMUM SPEED 0-100KMH

250KW MAXIMUM POWER

900KG

MINIMUM WEIGHT

overall footprint, which is good for both race and road cars, the ability to have 600kW of regenerative braking on both axles which is a huge amount of braking force, and rapid charging of up to 600kw. To give you an idea of how big a change that is, when I was talking about the EV Cup 10 years ago, we were charging at 7kW.”

“They’ll never go back…”

The potential of such technology in road cars is significant. Fast charging, which

Filippi says will reduce charging times to sub 15 minutes, would dispel any remaining concerns over range anxiety, for example. So too will other technologies like the software used to gain a competitive advantage and the ability to run the car at voltages of 700 change the playing field for consumer e-mobility. “The software is where it gets really incredible,” Filippie enthuses. “Every day of the week we can make the car go faster without changing a single thing on it, it’s

all software mapping. It’s based on very pure mathematical equations on how we can use the energy in the most effec tive way at a given track.

“On a road car, you’ll be looking at regular updates that improve the vehicle, make it faster and more efficient while removing the need for maintenance. It won’t see the inside of a garage because everything else on electric cars is

“WE ARE COLLECTIVELY ACCELERATING ELECTRIC VEHICLE R&D SO MUCH FASTER THAN ANY OTHER SITUATION”

effectively zero-maintenance: batteries, inverters and so on will need nothing more than a check once in a while, the rest of it will be software updates. You get people used to that level of convenience and they’ll never go back.”

The typical cycle between innovations seen in Formula E and their appearance on road-going cars is relatively short compared to other motorsport such as Formula 1, meaning that the tipping point Filippi highlights is tantalisingly close.

The beauty of that journey returns us to the premise of racing: we all benefit from the competitive spirit at the heart of Formula E teams; bringing sustainable solutions to the masses is a very fortunate by-product. “We don’t even think about it,” says Filippi. “The reason it works so well is that it’s very natural. As racers we’re all super competitive – that can be good and bad, but it’s the way we are. Because every single team constantly works on finding new ways to win and improve, we are collectively accelerating

“The result of that is that between now and the next five years, you’ll have solutions coming to market that are highly competitive, whether you want an electric SUV, city car or sports car. Then it comes down to simple economics. Our job is to make people want to buy and drive electric cars and when they see they’re faster, smoother, more reliable and cheaper to buy and run, it’ll be a no brainer. It’s an exciting prospect.”

www.envisionvirginracing.com

PORTFOLIO

I NNOVATIVE AND INSPIRED ITEMS FOR WORK , LEISURE AND THE ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS

MERCEDES EQS

The electric flagship of MercedesBenz’ future EV range, the S-Class EQS sees innovative technologies wrapped in luxury. Two electric motors, fed by a 100kWh battery give 469 horsepower and 560 lb-ft of torque; fast-charging capability can bring that battery from zero to 80kWh in less than 20 minutes.

‘Level 3 autonomy’ lets the car drive long distances by itself, while the futuristic cabin includes a headliner made from recycled plastic and a suitably space-age sounding ‘MBUX Hyperscreen’.

www.mercedes-benz.com

PORTFOLIO

I NNOVATIVE AND INSPIRED ITEMS FOR WORK , LEISURE AND THE ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS

O’NEILL ‘WOVE’ SUNGLASSES

There are few greater environmental challenges than the threat of plastic waste to our oceans. O’Neill’s WOVE sunglasses tackle this head on using repurposed sea and land waste such as abandoned fishing nets that pose a danger to marine life, rubber tyres, plastic bottles and even metals. Recyclable materials are used too, including mineral glass in the lenses and packaging made from a biodegradable plastic and paper – even the cleaning cloth had a former life as a plastic bottle.

www.oneill.com

PORTFOLIO

I NNOVATIVE AND INSPIRED ITEMS FOR WORK , LEISURE AND THE ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS

LEICA Q2 DANIEL CRAIG X GREG WILLIAMS

When a company only makes 750 of a certain product, you know it’s special. Leica’s latest iteration of its iconic Q2 is both special and inspired by James Bond. The Q2 Daniel Craig x Greg Williams, to use its full title, is the incredible result of a shared love for photography between Craig and English photographer Williams, cemented during work on Casino Royale. Subtle flashes of luxury, such as gold-paint engraved inlays and an exclusive diamond pattern grip conceal state-of-the-art camera technology in an elegant design.

www.leica-camera.com

PORTFOLIO

I NNOVATIVE AND INSPIRED ITEMS FOR WORK , LEISURE AND THE ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS

A GOOD MOBILE CASE

The ‘Good Mobile Case’ is the brainchild of A Good Company, which believes there should be no compromise between design and sustainability. In this instance, it has created the world’s first climatepositive mobile case made from the byproduct of organic linseed farming and entirely biodegradable. Indeed, should you choose to not take advantage of the company’s swap policy, whereby you return your case and it is promptly recycled, you can take a more direct route: plant it in your garden and give something back to the earth.

www.agood.com

PORTFOLIO

I NNOVATIVE AND INSPIRED ITEMS FOR WORK , LEISURE AND THE ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS

FLARE AUDIO ZERO

Tell someone you use recycled loudspeakers and it’s likely they won’t think of Zero. Designed by innovative audio firm Flare, Zero is the world’s first speaker to use recycled paper in the fabrication of its exterior and clamped together with such force that it becomes as rigid as concrete. The use of paper, while environmentally friendly, also serves a practical purpose by forming hundreds of vortices that aid air movement and give crystal clear sound reproduction. Or, as Flare more simply puts it: ‘highend audio with a conscience’.

www.flareaudio.com

JANTHANA KAENPRAKHAMROY

Janthana Kaenprakhamroy is the CEO and Founder of comprehensive insurtech Tapoly. She is also Forbes’ number six of the Top 100 Women Founders To Watch, among the top 10 insurtech female influencers according to The Insurance Institute, and was highly commended in the Trailblazer of the Year category at the 2020 Women in Insurance Awards.

CEO AND FOUNDER, TAPOLY

Kaenprakhamroy founded Tapoly, which provides on-demand flexible insurance for SMEs, freelancers and the gig economy, after a moment of inspiration. She explains: “It was 2016, I was looking to let out my flat on AirBnB but couldn’t find insurance cover with enough flexibility to protect myself and my guests. With that in mind, I created Tapoly.

“Our overarching mission is to be active contributors to the digitalisation of a traditional industry,” she continues, “and lead the way as an innovative disruptor demonstrating the power of AI, ML and big data in improving the customer experience and the resilience of insurers.”

www. tapoly.com

“ OUR ULTIMATE GOAL WOULD BE TO BE A KEY FACILITATOR AND TRAILBLAZER IN INSURTECH”

DRIVINg AMBITION THROUgH INNOVATION

DAVID HAYES,

CHIEF

DATA OFFICER AT THE OPEN UNIVERSITY ON HOW DATA AND DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY ARE DRIVING EDUCATION AND STUDENT EXPERIENCE

Not all of us are fortunate enough to be in a position where we can combine our work with a subject matter we’re passionate about. Even fewer can do so while giving others the opportunity to achieve. Fortunately for David Hayes, Chief Data Officer at The Open University (OU), this isn’t the case. Hayes joined the OU close to two years ago – the organisation was in the midst of a major technology transformation programme, including a focus on data. It was, he explains, a fortuitous move.

“I’ve always had a passion for education, being able to impart knowledge or helping others to do something for themselves, it’s just something that really resonates with me,” says Hayes. “When the opportunity to become part of the OU came about – at the point where it was really making some significant steps in understanding the importance of data as part of its broader transformation – it was an obvious way for me to enter somewhere with a really strong and purposeful mission, something I could feel personally connected to.”

For the OU, the mission is a simple one: to use technology and distance learning to provide educational opportunity and social justice to anyone wanting to realise their ambitions. Because the OU’s students typically cover a broader age range and demographic than other institutions, the organisation’s technology programmes are essential in delivering first-class products and the highest levels of student experience.

says, from a time some 20 years ago where it was viewed as something more akin to a ‘problem to be dealt with so a new system or technology could be implemented’ to the data-first and data-centric strategies we see in successful organisations today.

“We exist to give people opportunities, and that’s a really important thing for me on a personal level,” Hayes adds. “Where the OU is different is that we’re all about helping people who otherwise may not be in the position to take advantage of higher education thanks to our open entry standards. I’m proud to bring my experience and skills to a job and an organisation that delivers something of real value to society.”

MAJOR TECHNOLOGY TRANSFORMATION

Hayes joined the organisation at the end of 2017, having previously worked as UK Chief Data Officer and Head of Data Services at Santander UK. His career has followed the exponential growth and greater analysis and use of data across organisations, he

“It’s been a huge shift to a place where data now underpins everything,” he states. “A lot of my role is about making change happen. But you sometimes see that ‘change’ focuses on people, processes and technology and forgets data. It has to be thought of as an equal partner – without technology, data isn’t really very much, but without data technology is nothing. And that data will outlive technology too; our student record is a great example.

“I’VE ALWAYS HAD A PASSION FOR EDUCATION, BEING ABLE TO IMPART KNOWLEDGE OR HELPING OTHERS TO DO SOMETHING FOR THEMSELVES, IT’S JUST SOMETHING THAT REALLY RESONATES WITH ME”

DAVID HAYES, GLOBAL CDO, THE OPEN UNIVERSITY

We’ve some 50 years’ worth of data on students studying with us. Over that time think of the innovation: the smartphone is now a central part of our lives, cloud computing and other enterprise technologies play a crucial role, but all that data is still the glue that binds everything together. Whatever you choose to do with it, it’s absolutely transformative.”

THE IMPORTANCE OF DATA

Prioritising the analysis and use of data at the OU was a vital step, to move from an environment where data capability was typically siloed and unit-specific to one

validate what the team was originally doing. I look at it from two sides: we’re creating capability, which is where my experience comes in, and then we’re looking at the end-to-end use of the data with the principle purpose of helping students succeed. That revolves around understanding the student and what they’re doing at any given time, and applying technology – whether that’s basic analytics through to advanced AI – and we’re really just scratching the surface of that this trimester.” On using data effectively, Hayes has a three-word strategy: trust, derive and use. The former, he

where it was used across the student experience. A centralised team was built and established, including the newly created Chief Data Officer role that would head the team, drive enthusiasm and support across the university and deliver the benefits of data.

“Before starting in the role I knew that data had the power to be a real enabler of change,” says Hayes. “The work prior to my arrival had been good; the OU had built a great team, centralised data in a Microsoft Azure data hub and so on. I’ve really been able to just build on that and

explains, is essential in verifying that data is of good quality. “That’s focused on some of the core foundational things like managing data quality, having good metadata and more, which allows you to derive meaning from it. ‘Use’ then is more about how we partner with teams around the university to build out use cases that will deliver on the strategic goals.”

COMPLEXITY, INNOVATION AND DRIVING EDUCATION

For any technology leader, managing the complexity inherent in greater volumes of data and the adoption of new

“DATA IS THE GLUE THAT BINDS EVERYTHING TOGETHER. WHATEVER YOU CHOOSE TO DO WITH IT, IT’S ABSOLUTELY TRANSFORMATIVE”

technologies is crucial. Hayes and his team are no different. The OU works with close to 200,000 students who participate in online and distance learning programmes that, by their very nature,

generate vast amounts of data. “We’re very rich in data, we’re not quite as rich in fully understanding that data just yet,” Hayes concedes. “It’s a challenge, but it’s the golden ticket to real

“THE GOAL IS TO AUGMENT THE DECISION MAKING TO MAKE THE JOB EASIER FOR OUR COLLEAGUES – YOU CAN’T REPLACE 50 YEARS OF PEDAGOGY WITH AN ALGORITHM”

flexibility here. We’re on the journey towards achieving that.”

That journey revolves around a use-case driven programme of improvement, based on those stakeholders that consume data: marketing and operational teams, faculties, HR, and financial departments. Hayes offers the OU’s marketing function as an example. “In this case, we’d want to intervene in the student onboarding or retention journey and trace the data right back through the system,” he explains. “It’s a real data engineering capability: are we capturing the data properly and do we need to change that, should we refer to a third party or ask different questions, do we need new controls in place to ensure we get the information and how does it funnel through the decision making process? It goes on. The goal is to augment the decision making to make the job easier for our colleagues – you can’t replace 50 years of pedagogy with an algorithm.”

Welcome

Let’s unleash the power of data and use it in a positive and collaborative way. As practitioners in business, and as an analytics consultancy with people at its core, our approach and frameworks deliver real clarity and business value.

Our ambition and clear approach enables more people to use, access and understand data. We’re on a mission to contribute to a better future for all through the positive and open use of data. Are you with us?

For more leading edge thought leadership on data follow here

We’re a people led data and analytics strategy consultancy, that creates data guided organisations

COVID AND THE FUTURE OF DISTANCE LEARNING

The COVID-19 pandemic has taught us many important lessons, including the importance of digital technologies and their relevance in whatever ‘new normal’ we ultimately settle on. Unsurprisingly, the transformation programme at the OU stood it in good stead from an operational point of view to deal with any disruption such as moving to remote working. “We do distance taught higher education, and we’re experts on that,” says Hayes, “so switching to slightly more of that hasn’t been a significant burden.

“From a team perspective, it’s been incredible to watch people adapt and flourish despite the disruption,” he continues. “From a leadership perspective across the entire CIO portfolio we’ve focused on being ultra-flexible; working from home means you’re faced with a new set of challenges including balancing home and work life.”

Disruption aside, COVID has brought some unexpected consequences such as a rapid rise in student numbers. While not surprising considering the shift to remote working and learning over the last

“IF EVERYBODY CAN DO SOME FORM OF WHAT WE’RE DOING, THEN WHY GO TO THE OU? IT’S A QUESTION WE’RE CONSIDERING NOW”

THE OPEN UNIVERSITY AT 50

12 months across the country, it raises the question of how the OU maintains its competitive advantage.

“We live in a digital age,” says Hayes. “Education will follow, which is a real prompt for us because if everybody can do some form of what we’re doing, then why go to the OU? It’s a question we’re considering now in terms of how we can put our resources and our ethos in the right place to provide the best service to students. What that looks like for the future can be broken broadly into two things. First, we continue to build the foundations, starting with data management to show people that by looking at quality data and managing a single version of the truth we can make a real difference.

“Beyond that we’ll shift to a business-asusual approach, changing from a project team to a permanent team and embed the systems and operating models we have. From a use case perspective there’ll be a focus on partnering with internal teams on things like mapping out pathways for students, scenario planning and applying intelligence to those areas. It’s about scaling up the world of data to the rest of the university and encouraging everyone to be active with the data at our disposal so we’re shifting to a data-as-a-service model over the next 18 months.”

www.open.ac.uk

Adopting a low-code approach to application development can bring a raft of benefits to your organisation, says Nick Ford ----------------------------

nyone with an idea can build applications’. Imagine the power of that statement within the context of a modern enterprise facing an increasingly complex environment, siloed business and IT functions and the need for greater flexibility and agility. An enabler of that vision is low-code, a visual and simplified approach to application development that allows both professional and ‘citizen’ developers to rapidly deliver software solutions, and which Gartner predicts will be responsible for more than 65% of application development activity by 2024.

Gartner’s forecast is just one of many over the last years to recognise the growing adoption of low-code by organisations worldwide, and for good reason. Using low-code methodologies enables the fast delivery of apps with existing technology and can improve developer productivity, it contributes to faster strategic decision making and the creation of a host of solutions without incurring heavy costs, and it allows for the building of maintainable solutions that are easy to scale while remaining agile enough to respond to evolving market dynamics.

Beyond technology, the adoption of lowcode also drives broader cultural change within organisations, according to Nick Ford, Chief Technology Evangelist at Mendix, one of the world’s leading lowcode software platform companies. As his title suggests, Ford’s current role –he is a respected and recognised low-code veteran with an extensive software development background – is to evangelise low-code and Mendix’ work with enterprise customers. He joined us to do both.

MORE SOPHISTICATED SOLUTIONS, MORE QUICKLY

“Low-code, as we see it, effectively gives companies the ability to address several critical – and perennial – issues around the delivery of software,” he states. “Typically, this includes a lack of collaboration between business and IT functions that has existed for some time and leaves the latter decentralised and not always able to deliver on business requirements with speed or a more strategic focus.

“At the same time, the landscape has changed for everyone. It’s a bit of a cliche to say that every company is a software company today, but it’s not wrong,” Ford adds. “To do anything, transact with customers, provide experiences, build products or just be as efficient as possible, you need software but there’s also a lack of developers to do that. As a result CIOs and their companies have two problems meeting head on: what’s being built often doesn’t meet the business requirements

and there’s also not enough people to build it.”

A dynamic and rapidly evolving enterprise landscape over the last year to 18 months has further driven low-code adoption, Ford suggests. COVID has forced many organisations to rethink their existing IT strategies, to respond rapidly to fundamental changes to how they operate and focus on solving challenges that could previously be lower on the priority list. Externally, shifting consumer sentiment has played a role too, says Ford.

“Consumers are way more tech savvy now. You can’t just have an app that your customers interact with anymore, you’ve got to be driving the experiential side, which obviously has greater software demands and aligns with adjacent technologies like AI and ML. It’s pretty much a perfect storm of business dynamics, customer experience and new technologies and ways of engaging with software driving the need to build more sophisticated solutions more quickly.”

UNLEASHING IDEAS AND SKILLS

In such an environment the onus is on developing software that is built well, that delivers real business value in an efficient way, and that is delivered at speed. It is here that low-code excels. Mendix advocates the technology to solve the fundamental disconnect between business needs and software delivered across several core

“You can’t just have an app that your customers interact with anymore, you’ve got to be driving the experiential side” --------------

NICK FORD, CHIEF TECHNOLOGY EVANGELIST, MENDIX

application development pillars. These are: focusing on business impact, unleashing the skills and ideas of everyone across the enterprise while using existing technology assets, and allowing teams to build for the cloud and deploy swiftly and often.

“It’s a reality of modern business, organisations just have to be agile,” says Ford. “That agility has to be embedded into processes, which requires the bringing of IT and business together – real cultural change driven by a joint problem to be solved. Low-code delivers that agility through the ability to test and learn at a cost base that’s not prohibitive. Building software previously may have taken hundreds of thousands of pounds of man hours for something that may or may not work. If you can do that in a shorter period

of time, put it out to market and test it’s a viable solution then you can start generating revenue much faster.”

The beauty of low-code technology lies in its relative simplicity. Take the Mendix platform as an example. It offers a visual, model-driven approach to software development that abstracts and automates every step of the application lifecycle, thus accelerating development time and resulting in an end-product with greater relevance and quality.

But there’s a softer, human-centric side too. The genesis of Mendix’ model-driven approach lies as much in collaboration and communication as it does software, with it bridging the inherent language gap that exists between developers and

“ What’s being built often doesn’t meet the business requirements and there’s also not enough people to build it” ------------------------

business teams. The model gives a common, shared language that instead of complex code and rigid syntaxes uses building blocks or ‘pre-built application components’ that handle all the technical aspects of the application. Underneath this top layer of drag-and-drop-style development lies intelligent automation that takes care of processes such as configuration, testing and QA, integration and so on.

“It’s effectively a democratisation of software development,” Ford adds. “The greatest thing about low-code is that we can build anything but, when we’re working with customers, the process typically begins with defining certain business challenges or problems that they wish to solve. We then identify the key stake-

holders, so who from the business really understands that problem and is able to articulate it, before working through training exercises with citizen developers. We can build applications without writing a single line of code, but we also provide the ability to really leverage the organisation’s people, its infrastructure and existing technologies to change the way it builds software for a more productive future.”

DRIVING VALUE AND DIGITALISATION

Of course, that democratisation can drive value in other areas of the business. It’s no great secret that many IT teams permanently exist in firefighting mode, irrespective of the size of their organisation. Low-code can change that, says Ford by removing some of the pressure on IT to merely deliver, freeing their time and allowing them to be

solves the fundamental disconnect between business needs and software delivered. But only if used correctly and in line with the nine principles of low-code development, according to Mendix:

Low-code

a real partner to the business that drives strategic value. “It breaks down the barriers,” he states. “Low-code creates a new cultural environment where you move from a world where it’s very difficult to do something to one in which things can be done very effectively by more people. I love going to work with customers and seeing that moment really click for them, it’s often the catalyst for lasting cultural change.”

Use cases for low-code are vast, with Ford citing several examples ranging from internal process improvements and the launching of new products in legacy industries like insurance and finances, through to applications that feed directly into broader organisational digitalisation and the building of multi-experience technology.

On the latter, Ford discusses how low-code will contribute to the burgeoning concept of the ‘composable enterprise’, an organisation defined by Gartner as one that delivers business outcomes and can adapt to the pace of business change through the assembly and combination of packaged business capabilities, or application building blocks that are developed or purchased. “It’s the next level,” he says, “and is based on people composing solutions through multiple best-of-breed disciplines, some are already using lowcode to create these various templates and make them available for composable enterprises to choose from.

“It’s effectively a democratisation of software development”

“We’re working with Gartner on its multiexperience development platform quadrant, and that’s about looking at the world with an all-in-one low-code approach,” he continues. “That encompasses work around how we bring low-code to the world of data, pushing to the adjacent spaces of AI, running systems at the edge, using IoT, streaming data and analytics and the ability to support real-time decisioning from connected physical things. As low-code democratises all of these adjacent worlds we see it being part of the broader app development ecosystem.”

That ecosystem represents one of opportunity for organisations. According to Ford, changes brought about by COVID will continue to drive low-code adoption at enterprise level, as will the development of the all-in-one low-code approach, with those businesses that take a strategic rather than tactical view likely reo reap the benefits. “It’ll be about a shift towards enabling an ecosystem around low-code as a parading rather than a technology. Companies should think of low-code in terms of ‘if we can create that level of acceleration here, what can we do to extrapolate that across the entire business’. It’s about that appetite for bringing real change, and that’s what low-code can deliver.” www.mendix.com

POWERING A SEAMLESS EXPERIENCE

GAMING INNOVATION GROUP’S CHRIS ARMES DISCUSSES HOW DATA IS TRANSFORMING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE, EFFECTIVE TECHNOLOGY LEADERSHIP AND THE FUTURE OF i GAMING

Such is the pace of digital innovation today that every company, irrespective of industry or services provided, has digital transformation at the heart of its technology strategy. Gaming Innovation Group (GiG), the Malta-based iGaming solutions provider is no different –the rapid growth of online gaming in recent years has placed the company on a path of constant technology refinement and improvement. But, due to the advanced casino platform it offers, GiG also acts as the foundation for the digital transformation of others, providing an end-to-end solution

with one simple premise: to deliver a seamless customer experience.

Chris Armes is responsible for driving the innovation behind that experience. A technology leader of considerable repute, Armes joined GiG in July 2019 bringing more than 30 years’ expertise in managing high performing teams across the full range of delivery experiences and covering hardware and software. He and his team are responsible for software development across all of the company’s main platforms and delivery areas including its player account management

(PAM) system, sports book and front-end website development, security and data, and a suite of DevOps-related services.

LEADERSHIP AND TECHNOLOGY TRANSFORMATION

“There’s the traditional CIO-type role in there,” he says, “but also acting in a project management or PMO capacity too, and that’s because that integration between the broader and more strategic project management work and the technology itself is absolutely crucial to what we do. That’s very much how I’ve seen the CIO role develop over my career. There’s still a necessity to ‘do’ the technology side of it, but for me as a leader it’s really about being

stack were older than others, but it was really important that we continued to innovate and evolve that stack as we progressed.

“A lot of that existing technology was a product of how GiG developed as a business,” says Armes. “It began as several siloed companies that were eventually brought together. Because of that, much of my early work revolved around ‘undoing’ some of that siloing and moving to a model where we have shared technology leadership instead of one business vertical independently developing technology. My main objective was really to bring that all together collectively, it’s crucial for the long term to have

a change agent and using technology strategically to enable business progression and maximise opportunities.”

Since joining GiG, Armes has done this to great effect. In the year and a half he has been at the company he has driven significant change, both in line with broader business-focused objectives and the technology at the heart of the company. He explains: “When I started, the core priority was around where to take the business forwards in terms of the next generation, some of the elements of the existing technology

one shared vision and governance structure to get economies of scale, efficiency across the organisation and make sure everyone is absolutely focused on the same agenda.”

To make any significant change in an organisation is always challenging. Armes approaches technology leadership with the similar open and shared vision as he does developing a solid technology infrastructure. Key to success, he says, is honesty and transparency: “To drive innovation you have to encourage people to make informed decisions. We mustn’t forget that as leaders it’s fine to not know something

“AS A LEADER IT’S REALLY ABOUT BEING A CHANGE AGENT AND USING TECHNOLOGY STRATEGICALLY TO ENABLE BUSINESS PROGRESSION AND MAXIMISE OPPORTUNITIES”

Your

are on

customers

a journey right now. Make sure that journey doesn’t lead to the competition...

or admit you don’t have the answers. I try to provide a framework within which people can have that honest, open and frank debate, not feel they have to agree with everything I or another manager says and be prepared to debate. A good technology team is all about diversity of opinions, skills and knowledge.”

DATA AND DRIVING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

The iGaming industry has changed significantly in recent years. This has been largely driven by a renewed focus by casino operators to deliver digital services, a scenario that has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and a greater attention to customer experience. GiG specialises in taking land-based operators online for the first time through an omnichannel approach

that encompasses single wallet, registration and loyalty systems across retail and online sites. This strategy lets players control how and where they play at their convenience, therefore improving both engagement and experience.

Understandably, the effective harnessing and analysis of data plays a significant role in achieving this. In order to hone this, GiG has adopted a data warehouse approach whereby everything is event driven and can be viewed in real time, says Armes. “You’re talking terabytes of data and billions of transactions that we need to analyse, which means that the compression algorithms and technology we use in that data warehouse were crucial at the development stage.

“IT’S CRUCIAL TO HAVE ONE SHARED VISION AND GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE TO GET ECONOMIES OF SCALE, EFFICIENCY ACROSS THE ORGANISATION AND MAKE SURE EVERYONE IS FOCUSED ON THE SAME AGENDA”

“With the data warehouse, every transaction that happens is recorded in the platform and the warehouse at the same time,” he adds. “It means that, whatever role you have across the entire business, you can view that transaction, look at the impact of it and what it means in terms of the player and make real-time decisions off the back of it. The implications of that are significant for things like responsible gambling. Traditionally it’s been quite reactive, but using data in this way lets us identify any potential issues with a player and take action immediately. Elsewhere, it helps us identify player journeys, understand how and what players are choosing to interact with

and then make recommendations or suggestions to improve engagement.”

Customer experience is at the heart of GiG’s offering, whether through its casino platform, sports book betting solutions or other products. In this regard, the company works with its customers to provide bespoke or tailored solutions, says Armes. “You have to be digital first. It’s all about understanding that it’s a lot easier to switch online than it is to leave a physical casino.

“If your UX isn’t the very best someone can just open another tab on their browser

“A GOOD TECHNOLOGY TEAM IS ALL ABOUT DIVERSITY OF OPINIONS, SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE”

and go somewhere else, that’s how our recommendation engine helps by letting us see that customer journey in real time,” he states. “We can understand what games people are interested in, we can change the front end to give personalised messages, we can highlight certain sports or teams that the player tends to focus on in sports betting and more. That personalisation and giving

people a connection to the business is really important, particularly as we’re seeing an acceleration of clients moving to digital gaming as a result of COVID.”

COVID AND TECHNOLOGY EVOLUTION

As with all industries, COVID has accelerated technology adoption and a general move towards digital application in the iGaming

“YOU HAVE TO BE DIGITAL FIRST”

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industry. It is, says Armes, a trend that is likely to continue for the foreseeable future particularly among those land-based casinos looking to maintain market share and a viable business model. “You need a digital presence,” he warns. “Technology plays a more significant role in all our lives after COVID and so I expect to see casinos really driving digital strategy over the next 3-5 years. There’ll always be those customers that want the ‘offline’ experience, which is why we’re driving an omnichannel strategy that allows connectivity between the landbased and online worlds, we see that as a key trend.”

Closer to home, GiG was remarkably stable during the disruption caused by the pandemic, a result of its technology-focused business model, says Armes. “We were already set up as a remote working business,

we work 24/7 so it’s the way we’ve always operated. We took the decision quite early to move to entirely working from home and it put us ahead of the curve. Initially we decided to slow some projects down and to prioritise key deployments but we were really surprised; there were no issues with working from home and it’s been really successful.”

COVID or not, Armes is the first to admit that technology doesn’t stand still. The company is in an ongoing process of technology refreshing and evolution driven, in part, by natural obsolescence of existing systems and a systematic strategy of investing in future-proof innovation. “It’s never done,” he jokes. “We’re in the process of upgrading our iGaming Platform at the moment and focusing on

“USING DATA IN THIS WAY LETS US IDENTIFY ANY POTENTIAL ISSUES WITH A PLAYER AND TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY”

CHRIS ARMES

CHRIS ARMES

a microservices-based architecture so that it can scale moving forwards.

“I’ve learnt from experience that you don’t do this with a ‘big bang’ moment, you’d never deliver on the promises you make,” he continues. “Rather, you take specific elements of your technology and improve then deliver. We always try to maintain a good architecture and governance strategy to underpin

any new innovation because there are many drivers of change in the industry, including ongoing regulatory changes that we have to keep abreast of.”

When it comes to innovation, GiG often works with technology partners to aid a specific area of focus. Armes explains such an approach must be symbiotic, with both parties bringing certain attributes to the table: “From a technology perspective, we want any partner to be as innovative and creative as we are. What you’re always looking for in a partner is those that can deliver on a specific skill set but also have the same ethos as you and who can easily integrate with how you work. It’s about being a team.”

Over the next year and beyond, the technology evolution currently underway will continue at GiG. Armes points to several areas he intends to see accelerate in the immediate future, including integration, governance, the data warehouse and the greater use of AI to improve data analysis further. “We need to continue to maintain our culture of innovation at the same time as we scale, while never losing sight of things like building in simplicity to aid time to market and ensuring the highest standards of security. Longer term, iGaming and sports betting will continue to grow and over the next five years or so I see a lot of pressure to increase digital rollout and engagement. That’s where the technology we’re introducing will make a material difference.”

www.gig.com

VAL MIFTAKHOV FOUNDER AND CEO, ZEROAVIA

Val Miftakhov is going to decarbonise aviation. The serial tech entrepreneur intends to do it through his latest in a series of innovative, high-tech ventures, ZeroAvia. The company is developing the world’s first practical zero emission aviation powertrain capable of 300-500 mile zero emission flights in a 10-20 seat aircraft. Those figures, says Miftakhov, will increase to encompass full commercial flight with a projected timeline of 2035 for renewable-powered, hydrogen-electric aircraft of 200+ seats.

Such ambition should come as little surprise considering Miftakhov’s pedigree. His previous company, eMotorWerks developed the world’s leading platform for EV battery aggregation while, prior to that, he has had stints at Google as Head of R&D Google for Work Incubation, at McKinsey working with techfocused companies and at other technology businesses. He was also a nuclear researcher at Stanford Linear Accelerator and a two-time winner of Russian Nationwide Physics, for good measure.

www.zeroavia.com

“ACCELERATING THE WORLD’S TRANSITION TO SUSTAINABLE AVIATION”

ZeroAvia completes the first hydrogen-electric passenger plane flight

THE FUTURE OF CLOUD

IS DISTRIBUTED CLOUD THE FUTURE OF ENTERPRISE CLOUD AND HOW DOES AN EFFECTIVE CLOUD STRATEGY REFLECT THIS SHIFT?

INFORMATICA’S EMILIO VALDES EXPLAINS

Distributed cloud is the future, according to Gartner’s latest iteration of key enterprise technology trends. The model sees cloud services distributed to different physical locations but their operation and governance remain the responsibility of the public cloud provider, an approach that can extend the range and use cases for cloud in the enterprise, Gartner states.

It goes on to suggest that, by 2024, most cloud service platforms will provide at least some distributed cloud services. To discuss the advantages of distributed cloud to the modern enterprise, what an effective cloud strategy looks like and how,if at all, COVID has impacted that thinking we speak below with Emilio Valdes, Senior Vice President EMEA & Latam at Informatica.

A seasoned tech professional with more than 25 years’ experience in relevant enterprise tech, Valdes is responsible for

driving growth at Informatica and working collaboratively with customers with one key goal: accelerating a successful journey to the cloud. He tells us more...

Tech-Exec: Can you give a brief overview of your role at Informatica and expand on your background and experience?

Emilio Valdes: I’ve been involved in enterprise technology for over 25 years now. I’ve worked in multiple regions and with brands such as Salesforce and Microstrategy. In 2009 I joined Informatica as a regional director focused on the Spanish and Portuguese markets. Today, as Senior Vice President for Sales EMEA & Latam, I have responsibility for our sales teams across those regions. I am focused on driving growth for our business using direct sales and building new indirect routes – each day considering how can we better help our customers accelerate their journey to the cloud.

“CLOUD ENABLES BUSINESSES TO BE MORE AGILE AND FLEXIBLE — CRUCIAL ATTRIBUTES OVER THE LAST YEAR”

TE: How has cloud adoption and use in the enterprise evolved and what have been the key drivers behind cloud-centric technology strategies?

EV: The shift to the cloud was well underway in recent years. However, it was significantly accelerated by COVID as organisations looked to remain resilient in the face of uncertainty.

Cloud enables businesses to be more agile and flexible – in the past year, these have been the most crucial attributes. The ability to pivot and remain resilient, scaling operations up or down to meet customer demand, has enabled many organisations to weather the storm. We’ve been working with customers in every industry to speed up their transitions to the cloud.

TE: Has greater cloud adoption been necessary because of the pace of digitalisation and technology innovation

within organisations? If so, how does cloud enable that digitalisation?

EV: The future is cloud-first, cloud-native. Those organisations that don’t adopt cloud in some way or another won’t keep pace with the innovation of their competitors.

AI-powered intelligent data management in the cloud will power digital transformations. With trusted insights at an operational scale, business leaders can rely on the data to make decisions that shape the future of their organisations, develop new products and services and realise new business and operating models.

TE: Gartner describes distributed cloud as the future of cloud in the enterprise when discussing key trends, can you elaborate on the distributed cloud model and its benefits?

EV: Gartner describes the distributed cloud as the distribution of public cloud services

“Those organisations that don’t adopt cloud in some way or another won’t keep pace with the innovation of their competitors”

to different physical locations with the operation, governance, updates and evolution of the services the responsibility of the originating public cloud provider.

There’s many benefits to a distributed cloud model. From a regulatory standpoint, this model enables increased compliance with regulations that require data to be in a specific customer location. With data storage and transfer an increasingly hot topic, this can solve a significant challenge for multinational organisations.

It also improves reliability by offering immediate fail-overs thanks to replicas in varying locations. Finally, low-latency compute is available because the physical distance between the users and the data is reduced.

TE: Where is the advantage in distributing those cloud services to different locations?

How is that managed and do you see any potential issues or areas of concern?

EV: Distributed clouds can offer better bandwidth and less latency as the processing units are closer to the actual users. Alongside this, having the processing units in specific locations can help organisations remain compliant with data processing laws that require that customer data does not leave the home country.

There are no areas of concern. The cloud provider still retains control and manages the updates, governance, security and reliability just as they do their centralised cloud.

TE: What organisations or industry sectors would most suit a shift to distributed Cloud?

EV: Cloud, and a distributed cloud model, has applications and benefits across most industry sectors, but we will see a different pace of adoption. Those companies with

digital transformation projects already underway will likely look to the distributed model first; we know that the finance, consumer products and retail, technology and telecoms industries are all transforming at pace.

Consider sectors such as transport. As we see a rise in autonomous vehicles, those will require dispersed compute power and generate a massive amount of data. Distributed cloud will be one way to support this growing industry.

TE: How should tech leaders approach developing a cloud strategy and how should it reflect the broader objectives of the business?

EV: Cloud technologies meet the modern business needs for speed and flexibility and can underpin innovation and growth. However, when developing a cloud strategy, it’s essential to understand whether the

solutions being considered are tested for enterprise-class functionality and scale and comply with the relevant regulations to ensure robust protections for sensitive data.

Leaders should consider the whole gamut covering cloud data integration, application integration and API management. Does the architecture support integration patterns that allow the business to grow and evolve at its own speed? Then it’s crucial to plan for data quality and data governance. How will you ensure that it is trusted data at the core of every business process and that all necessary regulatory frameworks are complied with?

This is a significant project with many considerations, but when executed correctly, it will transform your business, laying the foundation for future agility, speed, and growth.

“Those companies with digital transformation projects already underway will likely look to the distributed model first ”

TE: How important is flexibility, particularly in light of how the working environment has changed as a result of COVID disruption?

EV: Flexibility has long been hailed as one of the significant benefits of cloud computing. However, COVID highlighted just how crucial this is to businesses and how many were not prepared. The ability to pivot, support remote workforces, scale operations up and down and meet customers where they are has been essential to organisations as they’ve adjusted to the new normal.

More than ever before, businesses are being challenged to innovate at scale and be flexible enough to continue driving growth while shaping the future industry. This requires intelligent data management in the cloud to glean the insights needed to create new products and services, build new customer engagement models, and implement new operating and business models.

TE: What does the future of cloud services look like? Where should a smart tech leader be looking, and what will be the key priorities or drivers when it comes to cloud adoption?

EV: Cloud is an enabler to every digital transformation, and we’re continuing to see an acceleration in adoption. Organisations must have a deliberate cloud strategy that prioritises investments based on business impact. As enterprises shift to a cloud-first, cloud-native approach, it opens up more flexibility, more agility and the ability to be truly-data led in making business decisions

that can drive critical innovation at scale. With intelligent, automated cloud-native data management, we’re seeing organisations shift from digital modernisation to undertaking genuine digital transformation projects that are not about maintaining the status quo but about innovating and shaping the industries of the future.

Emilio Valdes is Senior Vice President for Sales EMEA & Latam at Informatica and has more than 25 years’ experience in enterprise technology. At Informatica he is responsible for sales teams across EMEA and Latam and accelerating customers’ cloud journeys. informatica.com

ELECTRIFIED

That Sophi Horne’s incredible all-electric RaceBird racing boats are inspired by the Stormtrooper Speeder bikes from Star Wars is, if we’re honest, enough information. But scratch the surface and there’s a lot more.

SOPHI HORNE

FOUNDER & HEAD OF DESIGN SEABIRD TECHNOLOGIES

RaceBird is innovation with purpose. Designed for E1, the world’s first electric boating championship, it will be 100% carbon fiber, use innovative hydrofoil technology that increases efficiency, and enclose a 30kW per hour battery that gives a top speed of 60 knots for 40 minutes. It will also act as a testbed for

ELECTRIFIED

SeaBird, the commercial version in development by Horne.

She says: “I feel a strong responsibility to bring the future of sustainable boating to the here and now and I wanted to challenge the marine industry with creativity and innovative new thinking. Our electric boats will be cool to drive, have little sound or wake and be based around the idea of the ‘connected boat’.”

www.instagram.com/sophihorne www.e1series.com

“I STUDIED THE AERODYNAMICS OF BIRDS AND WAS INSPIRED BY THE ORGANIC, ALMOST SENSUOUS LINES OF THEIR WINGS”

THE POWER OF LEADERSHIP

WHAT MAKES AN EFFECTIVE TECH LEADER? THE CIO CIRCLE FOUNDER BRAD DOWDEN EXPLAINS

“As you climb the career ladder, you reach a level where you’re at the top of your game and it dawns on you it’s quite a lonely position to be in,” says Brad Dowden, discussing the genesis of the idea behind his founding of The CIO Circle. Dowden knows this only too well. A business leader, transformation specialist and entrepreneur, his journey through technology spans some 20 years and includes guiding the digital transformations of countless large organisations, many of which he went on to work for in a full-time capacity. Little wonder there’s a common thread underpinning all his work: a love for helping companies succeed.

It is that passion, and the hard-earned experience of the realities and complexities of modern technology leadership that saw the creation of The CIO Circle in 2018. The group, which is an open, shared and collaborative space for all technology and digital leaders, works to empower those executives to better serve the businesses and people around them through the realisation of technology as an enabler for good.

COMPLEXITY, STRATEGY AND DIGITAL FOCUS

The technology landscape has changed dramatically over the last years. Every company is now digitally focused, the adoption of innovative enterprise solutions has increased at great pace and – particularly in light of COVID – the ways in which we work present new demands on that technology. For the leaders tasked with driving this evolution, there is greater complexity and the requirement for a broader and more strategic set of skills, says Dowden. This is reflected in the work being carried out by The CIO Circle.

“As technology leaders, we’re a very small group of people globally that can have a massive impact,” he explains. “Everyone uses technology. It’s pervasive in every area of business and, when used correctly, has the ability to make those companies highly competitive. With that in mind, The CIO Circle is about arming leaders with the best tools and knowledge they can have, to take back into their own business and make that competitive impact. There’s

a really good way to do that: sharing. The whole concept for us is to act as a conduit that connects technology and digital leaders, and as a trusted environment to discuss ideas and concepts, talk through frustrations and challenges and develop themselves on a more personal level.”

CHANGE IS CONSTANT

Even before the disruption of the last 12 months, most organisations have been in a state of change with regards to their technology for some time. Dowden’s passion for the subject is evident, freely

conceding to finding the post-transformation moment dull, adding “I end up moving on to do things that are a bit more exciting”. Personal thrill seeking aside, he is acutely aware of the implications of significant change, and the management of that change required from leaders.

“Change is constant,” he notes, “it’s just that the terminology evolves. Today it’s digital transformation, but it’s been change based around the cloud and there’ll be a big focus on AI too. If you really peel it all back, it’s just a constant

state of transition. Where the big difference comes in is that it’s more mainstream now. Businesses across the board have woken up to the fact that digital is a business model that has to be adopted and so the concept of technology and the technology function has shifted. Gone are the days when you were left to your own devices sitting in back rooms and keeping PCs running. Technology leadership is now far more strategic, which requires a very different set of skills – it’s about moving from being viewed as IT folk to digital business enablers.”

CIO TO DIGITAL BUSINESS ENABLER

Those digital business enablers, says Dowden, need skills beyond technology. Central to being a successful leader is the ability to work across the organisation, to articulate and advocate for technology in a manner that everyone can understand – and which also motivates everyone within the business towards a common vision or objective. For some this can be a difficult transition Dowden explains, but it is one that being a part of The CIO Circle can assist with.

“You’ve got to become pretty multi-faceted,” he states. “It’s no longer enough to be the tech person, talking and running tech. Rather, you have to be an ideas generator who has the benefit of understanding how technology works and how to implement it, but to also be able to sell those concepts at a board level, to share a vision that invigorates and gets everyone excited about the innovation. We find that everyone operates from a different starting point. Some are very good at operating at that board level and can communicate from a commercial standpoint, they’re the ones that will help their businesses grow.

“With The CIO Circle, we’re trying to bridge the gap between those leaders and the ones that are not at that point yet so we can work together to define how to become a better digital leader,” he continues. “I liken being a modern CIO or CTO to being a chef: you’re the manager, the inspirer and leader who has been given the best ingredients,

“AS TECHNOLOGY LEADERS, WE’RE A VERY SMALL GROUP OF PEOPLE GLOBALLY THAT CAN HAVE A MASSIVE IMPACT”

but it’s how you put those together that lets the creativity or the magic happen; it’s the secret sauce of the recipe, and that’s where the difference is made.”

And just as any good chef employs the best people in his or her kitchen, so too must an effective technology leader be adept at managing a successful team, a task that according to Dowden requires both the ability to empower and to relinquish control. “You can’t be the puppeteer any longer,” he states. “It’s about creating selfmanaging teams and empowering them, which is a real skill set in itself.

“There’s plenty of control freaks in technology, the nature of the job is all about control and structure after all. The challenge in being successful is lessening that control by democratising the technology in the business – and that works because people now are generally smarter with any new technology anyway. The balancing act is all about having the controls to protect the company while avoiding being a bottleneck that hinders progress. It’s tough.”

WORK TOWARDS A COMMON GOAL

But therein lies the link to that original point of inspiration for Dowden and The CIO Circle: communication and the sharing of knowledge. These softer skills are becoming increasingly important for technology leaders, a reason why the group places such a premium on encouraging open and honest discussion. In the operational sense, Dowden advocates a firm

focus on how the leader presents themselves and the capabilities of their team: “I’ve been there plenty of times in my career and it’s not always easy, I’ll be honest,” he comments. “Generally speaking, we in tech are wired a little differently and, when you are deeply involved in that technology, it can be difficult to get your point or vision across correctly.

“BUSINESSES ACROSS THE BOARD HAVE WOKEN UP TO THE FACT THAT DIGITAL IS A BUSINESS MODEL THAT HAS TO BE ADOPTED”

“A lot of times we’ll find leaders talk in quite complex language, don’t make information digestible or relevant to the other stakeholders in the business and so on,” says Dowden. “You have to learn how to work towards a common goal – if you’re implementing a new CRM system, no one cares about the technology behind, they care about the ROI, the value it will bring

to the business, the ways in which it will improve productivity and output. Small things I know, but these are the conversations that not everyone is having.”

COVID AND THE FUTURE

Complexity, of course, comes in many forms. Over the last 12 months, the COVID-19 pandemic has been both

a blessing and a curse for those in technology. Disruption has been significant, with leaders and their teams driving a mass migration to working from home, for example. But, that very disruption has also forced many businesses to accelerate their digital adoption strategies and given technology teams a greater seat at the table within the organisation hierarchy.

“Companies have been pushed on a journey of transformation,” Dowden explains. “People in technology have been crucial to that; they’ve gone from sometimes not engaging as much as they should to a position where the company can’t work without them. I think there are some challenges that will arise from such a big shift. People will be working remotely for the foreseeable future in my opinion, so there’s questions around how you manage working from so many locations in terms of security and management of data. Perhaps more importantly, there’ll be a greater need for those softer skills we discussed, peoples’ wellbeing and mental health has come sharply into focus so leaders will need to become very aware of how they manage and look after geographically diverse teams.”

In such an environment, the aims and objectives of The CIO Circle will be of even more importance. Dowden aims to expand the group globally in the future, connecting and working with as many digital leaders as possible to improve the information flow and build a cohesive and singular platform

for success. At the same time, evolution will be in line with several overarching trends on Dowden’s – and tech leaders’ – collective radars. He elaborates: “Momentum around sustainability is gathering pace rapidly and it’s something that CIOs really need to begin thinking about. Technology has a huge impact on the environment and so it’s something we’re taking a lead on by working with a company called One Tree Planted. Through this initiative a tree is planted for every member that joins the group.

“Elsewhere diversity and equality will continue to be of the utmost importance,” he adds. “It’s something that has to be a priority and, in my experience, the benefits of having a diverse team are there to see for all – it just brings better results. It’s a complex and evolving landscape and I think that, certainly in the case of COVID, we’ve not digested the impact of the changes yet. Whatever that new normal looks like, digitising the business will continue to be a core priority for some time and that’s where I think The CIO Circle can add real value. There are many networking groups and opportunities out there but for us it’s one very simple and collective goal: how do we become better leaders together and how can we make things happen.”

www.theciocircle.com

“IT’S ONE VERY SIMPLE AND COLLECTIVE GOAL: HOW DO WE BECOME BETTER LEADERS TOGETHER AND HOW CAN WE MAKE THINGS HAPPEN”

DIVERSITY: THE 21ST CENTURY’S UNFINISHED BUSINESS

The world is changing. It’s more intertwined, diverse and culturally rich than ever before thanks to technology, changing demographics, socioeconomic structures, and the social momentum we’ve seen behind widely publicised injustices, such as Black Lives Matter and the #MeToo movements.

But while technology has helped accelerate the diversity and inclusion agenda through social media and awareness, the technology industry itself still falls short. Typically, technology vendors are not that diverse, equitable or inclusionary when it comes to age, race, gender

ServiceMax CEO Neil Barua gives an honest and open account of addressing diversity and inclusion as a tech leader

or other often marginalized groups. There are exceptions, of course, but for the most part, diversity, equality and inclusion remain the unfinished business of the 21st century.

Addressing these issues isn’t just a check the box exercise. We’ve all read the research about diversity driving greater success and better decisions, but the business case is now overwhelming. More than that, closing these gaps is just the right thing to do. Excellence has no gender or age. Performance doesn’t have a race or religion. And innovation and ideas don’t have a sexual orientation or identity.

SELF-EVALUATE TO IMPROVE

Upon our own self-evaluation, we found that ServiceMax followed many of the current technology industry norms. In other words, we too were falling short in certain areas. Changing these norms is challenging in reality, and certainly not perfect in practice.

As a tech industry leader, I believe there’s value in sharing the aspirational, non-perfect way we’ve moved forward, including lessons learned and insights from implementing our own diversity, equity and inclusion practice. I learned some valuable lessons that may well be applicable to other leaders pushing for greater diversity.

LEADERS MUST REMOVE ROADBLOCKS

You have to lead from the top. Diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) is no longer a side project buried within companies, kept alive by a few active members. It is our duty to ensure it’s a strategic imperative for any company’s success. It requires engagement across the entire business and a champion at the executive level. As leaders, we are responsible for removing roadblocks and providing a platform that allows employees to create programs that challenge our thinking and change our behavior.

Existing hiring practices should be assessed and evaluated. That means considering things like how diverse are the employees participating in the recruiting and hiring process, and how prepared are they to offer an unbiased evaluation? Consider instituting mandatory unconscious bias training for anyone participating in the interview process, and make sure those individuals can offer a range of perspectives based on work experience and culture.

Building a diverse workforce also means creating a brand that fosters equal representation. Does your brand show diversity across your content and collateral? In our own self-evaluation, we were disappointed to see that, frankly, we had missed the mark on representing our people effectively and are actively implementing changes. Similar to hiring a diverse workforce, evolving a brand doesn’t happen overnight. Be transparent about where you are and what your company is striving for.

DON’T LET BUDGET BE YOUR EXCUSE

We felt it vital to create opportunities to learn and grow. Our DE&I and CSR teams joined forces and launched a “Learn & Grow Programme’, for example. It includes a 21 Day Challenge, in partnership with the YWCA, designed to foster open and

honest conversations around social justice habits. Participants receive a daily email with challenges such as reading an article, listening to a podcast, or reflecting on personal experience then share their learnings, connect with one another.

The challenge is run on a quarterly basis with new topics introduced each quarter. The real change happens when, after, everyone is encouraged to put their learnings into action by providing community support through company-led volunteer initiatives.

No budget is no excuse. The economic uncertainty of 2020 has caused many businesses to tighten budgets and plan strategically to weather the storm. Not having a budget to allocate to DE&I doesn’t mean you can’t take action. When purchasing programme materials or attracting guest speakers wasn’t an option, our DE&I team got creative and found free resources that aligned with our programme goals.

“REGARDLESS OF HOW BIG YOUR OWN ORGANISATIONAL GAP IS, DECIDE WHERE YOU’LL START AND MAKE IT A BUSINESS PRIORITY”

It’s also worth noting that creating opportunities to take these conversations home and discuss with family and friends helps your employees to reflect on a deeper and more personal level. If support in social activism is what interests them, offer vetted resources on ways to donate, volunteer and take action. If it’s at all possible, look to implement paid volunteer hours into your company policy.

AN HONEST REFLECTION

Even with the best of intentions, no company is going to do this flawlessly. As business leaders, we have a lot of work to do to improve the inequalities that our industry has neglected for too long. But boiling the ocean won’t get us there any faster. Decide what the most critical need is within your organization and tackle that first. For us, it was clear that the racial injustices against our black community required the most immediate attention. By no means does that diminish any of the other plights our employees face. And candidly, the decision to focus on Black Lives Matter as our first priority was not well received by everyone.

underrepresented groups. Check your ego and biases at the door. This is hard. This is emotional. And if it had ever truly been done right before, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. But by putting in the work and creating a safe space where candid feedback is both honored and respected, we can learn and change preconceptions, old habits and shape new behaviors.

We are still learning and by no means have we completely closed the gap. Regardless of how big your own organisational gap is, decide where you’ll start and make it a business priority. As an industry that has led the charge on so many advancements, it’s time for technology leaders to step up.

Neil Barua is the CEO of ServiceMax and has an extensive background in the technology industry and a proven track record of growing businesses.

Be open and transparent with your employees about your decisions and the importance of perfecting the first part of your programme, so that it can grow to support more

E W Y O R

THE BREATHTAKING PACE OF innovation and diversity of the Manhattan dynamic is rivalled by no other city in the world. The allure of New York attracts and incubates those that wish to avoid conformity and develop their unique ideas amongst a backdrop of collaboration. The wealth of financing possibilities and multicultural workforce make New York one of the most desired international destinations for businesses investment, networking and entrepreneurs alike.

New York is resilient. The shift in the approach to city life post-pandemic affords those with previous barriers to entry the ability to embrace and tolerate a little chaos, and the city welcomes those who truly love an urban lifestyle.

WORDS STEPHANIE OWENS

BUSINESS

While co-working spaces are popping up everywhere, Soho Works is an international network of workspaces by Soho House. The Meatpacking location is designed and equipped to help creative thinkers and businesses connect, collaborate and grow.

The Farm boasts whimsical amenities and joins rustic features with advanced technology. A gathering place to network in the heart of our trendy SoHo neighborhood.

THE FARM

THE BOWERY HOTEL

THE FARM SOHO WORKS

STAY

The historic Gramercy Park Hotel envelopes you in its sophisticated and stylish velvet ornamentation. Most of the rooms face the park and the exclusive Rose Bar and Maialino nestled within the hotel are desirable destinations on their own.

The impeccably designed Nomad Hotel is both elegant and moody. The entrance is dimly lit with a fireplace full of candles and accepts you immediately with a warmth and vibrancy that feels comfortable. The bustling Library Bar is an ideal meeting location too.

The rich tapestries and vintage-inspired lobby of The Bowery Hotel offers charm and glamour which spills into a sprawling space of grand fireplaces and mismatched furniture. The scene in the lobby is perfect for meetings or people watching and the adjacent Gemma is lively, bold and full of spirit.

GRAMERCY PARK HOTEL THE NOMAD HOTEL

GRAMERCY PARK HOTEL @oliviapalermo

STEPHANIE OWENS

started her career in New York City in 2006 in finance and has since been responsible for key account and business development for her clients in the technology space.

Stephanie is passionate about her philanthropic and creative endeavours and is the President of the NYC Branch of the Slovenian Union of America, member of the New York Junior League, the New Membership Advisor for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Advisory Board, mentor with the Leeds Professional Mentorship Program, a Guide Leader for The Resolution Project and was formerly the Editor in Chief of the Wagner Review and a Junior Board of Trustees member for the NY Restoration Project.

EAT / DRINK

Our beloved Pastis has recently been revived by Keith McNally and Stephen Starr. The space gives a nod to its original predecessor and is always bustling with young entrepreneurs trying to connect with the nostalgia of old New York.

In the chic West Village neighborhood, walk through the Five Guys and you’ll discover a hidden staircase in the back leading to The Garrett West – the perfect attic bar to meet a potential client. The brick walls and funky furnishing are juxtaposed with skylights and windows offering a rare opportunity to gaze out at the city with a cocktail in hand.

Serra Fiorita sits atop Flatiron’s Eataly spectacle and offers the perfect spacious and airy roof garden escape for a drink or even a longer relaxing stay for a full meal, if schedules allow. The seasonal décor change has become much anticipated throughout the year.

SERRA FIORITA (EATALY)

LEISURE

The Whitney Museum of American Art in the Meatpacking district is a great way to spend a few hours looking at exhibits and, on the multiple roof decks, take in the city and all of its glory.

Seeing a live show is a NYC rite of passage. I recommend to reserve a spot in advance at the infamous Comedy Cellar. The experience guarantees a good laugh and an unforgettable atmosphere with both up and coming and often celebrity comedians.

If you’re feeling venturesome and daring, I highly recommend seeing New York from a Citi Bike – even better is an e-bike which adds an extra boost of speed. While one must keep their head on a swivel and remain alert as NYC continues to expand pedestrian and bike lanes, a loop from southern Central Park along the Hudson affords spectacular views of the river, the Vessel at Hudson Yards, The High Line, the Little Island all the way down to the World Trade Center and the Statue of Liberty.

WHITNEY MoMA CITIBIKE

THE HIGH LINE

COMEDY CELLAR

GLOBAL EVENTS CALENDER

MONEYLIVE SUMMIT GOES DIGITAL

MARCH & APRIL [ 2 EPISODES PER WEEK ] —

London, UK *ONLINE*

MoneyLIVE Summit Goes Digital is the ultimate meeting place for the most innovative minds in the banking and payments ecosystem.

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TECHNOLOGY

& DIGITAL LEADERSHIP VIRTUAL SUMMIT

30 APRIL —

Virtual

Learn from thought leaders and industry insiders on what it takes to level up in an ever-changing and dynamic world.

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WORLD DATA SUMMIT

19-21 MAY —

Amsterdam, Netherlands *ONLINE*

Experts will discuss data analysis, how to work with unstructured data, and building a future-proof analytics model.

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DIGITAL ENTERPRISE SHOW

18-20 MAY —

Madrid, Spain *ONLINE*

DES enables digital business transformation to happen, gathering cutting-edge technologies and speakers to meet delegates’ objectives and challenges.

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MONEY 20/20

21-23 SEPTEMBER —

Amsterdam, Netherlands

The leading global stage to drive the fintech industry forward and bring payments, banking, fintech and financial services together.

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