As Digital Lead for Beds RCC I am responsible for leading BedsRCC’s digital strategy and the delivery of our digital programme. I work with colleagues, Action in Communities partners and other organisations to scope, develop and oversee our approach to our digital work. My lead role involves evaluating suppliers and their products and services, defining processes and policies, managing budgets, and reporting back to funders and senior management.I am responsible for managing the delivery of projects against our project delivery requirements and grant funding commitments. The primary active external digital project is “You Can Do IT!” a digital inclusion project which aims to support residents to connect digitally to improve their health and wellbeing. project funded primarily through a successful funding application with NHS Charities Together. This project delivers provision across Central Bedfordshire and Bedford Borough. The project’s purpose is to motivate and inspire residents and other referred clients to make the most of digital technology, principally to improve their health and wellbeing, support them to develop their basic digital skills such as accessing the internet, emails, social media, online banking or joining appointments via an online platform and able to access NHS services online. This is achieved through partnership with recruited volunteer Digital Health Champions who are trained, and supported to work within their local community. I act as the lynchpin between various community groups, housing associations, suppliers and other service providers including primary care networks within the NHS. I also work to identify additional potential digital projects and funding opportunities and lead on project development and funding applications.

With a passion for finding practical ways to enhance the lives of people facing complex life situations, I joined a team to help pioneer a new approach to supporting primarily NHS GP referred clients within their local community.Beds RCC was commissioned by both the NHS and local government to provide Social Prescribing services across Bedfordshire. Community Referral (social prescribing) is embedded in Primary Care Networks and community partners. The BedsRCC Social Prescribing service ensures that people with a range of non-medical needs affecting their health are cared for and included within their local communities, by connecting them with Good Neighbour and Village Care schemes and/or other local activities and specialist services.Working alongside health and care professionals in a Primary Care Network, as an accredited health coach, I worked within my allocated PCN to help identify suitable referrals and then help those referred service users to identify and achieve their goals by means of coaching them through an agreed support plan. I also strengthened relationships with local community groups and assisted in building community infrastructure capacity to meet identified gaps in provision.The role involved a range of interpersonal, team working and problem-solving skills, as well as a high level of IT literacy. With a strong commitment to improving the lives of vulnerable people this break from previous primarily technology focused roles was highly rewarding.

Unseen is a multi-award-winning charity working to eradicate modern slavery wherever it is found. Bringing safety, hope and choice to the survivors of human trafficking and modern slavery. Working closely with UK Government, Statutory Authorities, businesses, media and the general public to bring about an integrated strategic approach to both aftercare, awareness and prevention of modern slavery in the UK and overseas.I led Unseen’s engagement with businesses. Working with the executive director to set a clear vision for the services we offer. We provided training, consultancy, assurance and auditing services. Contributing to the ongoing development of a business focused continuous improvement scheme, that involved both self-assessment and auditing, I worked with partner agencies and organisations to further strengthen our capabilities and services to businesses, providing schemes that aided businesses with their mission to mitigate Modern Slavery from within their operations. I was the Product Owner for the external side of our Salesforce configuration. I developed use cases and worked with developers to agree and implement solutions. I worked with other internal resources to identify, sanitise, risk assess and approve sensitive cases for publication into business portal. I ensured that portal members receive a prompt, reliable and effective service to any queries or requests for further information.

With a budget of almost £1million, I managed four service teams: Supplier management & procurement, Technology Partners, the IT Service Desk and Communications. Working with the Head of IT as part of the senior leadership team, I led on service delivery and engagement.I was responsible for all technology work reception, communications and ultimately our technology delivery reputation. I thrived on motivating people into delivering great service for 2,200+ staff spread across the UK and abroad, ensuring RSPB’s technology assets were available and fit for purpose, ensuring new or changing services were introduced smoothly and efficiently. Within the Supplier and Procurement service, I led on facilitating engagement with staff responsible for procurement in other departments across the RSPB to help improve best practise and seek better ways of increasing value from existing and new supplier relationships and contracts. Within the expanding and maturing service desk team, I worked with the Service Desk Manager, one of my direct reports to lead on an apprenticeship scheme for the department, bringing in and developing apprentices within my work area, some of which progressed their technical careers, achieving promotions elsewhere within the IT department. Within Communications I led on ways of identifying and engaging with IT champions elsewhere within in the business, giving them “IT Buddy” roles, working them I partnership to improve our communications and to shape and then promote new services as they launched.

I was the single point of contact for all Management Board Directors, Regional Directors, Senior Managers and Portfolio Managers into the IT department. Working across directorates in parallel with teams of HR Business Partners and Finance Business Partners. As lead Technology Partner I was responsible for providing strategic information and relevant Key Performance Indicators in order to guide medium and long term resource planning decisions. Accountable for the effective allocation of resources within the decision making frameworks to maximise the use of operational assets, thereby maximising the resources available for other uses. My role required me to develop and maintain effective working relationships (building capability and knowledge) that influence and challenge senior management teams, ensuring the Technology Partner role was integral and a valued part of the organisation. Working in cross-functional teams to provide transformational advice on new initiatives, investment appraisals, organisational restructures, matters of risk and control in order to support effective decision making. I supported senior managers to develop their plans so that the corporate strategy was realised. I work to identify risks through collaboration with managers to design effective mitigation strategies. I also identify, research, design, gain approval and successfully implement new initiatives and ideas for change based on business analytics and expert knowledge of client areas. Working in conjunction with senior management, I contributed to the development of the wider organisational Strategy to make our IT service best in class including working with appropriate operational teams to ensure the highest level of customer service and support is delivered whilst ensuring our operating styles and procedures are continuously reviewed.I also led the technical Business Analysis service for the RSPB and managed our team of Business Analysts.

I worked in the Information Systems department of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). I acted as a link between the wider organisation and the Information Technology department, building and maintaining relationships with senior managers, regional and board directors. I also led the technical Business Analysis service for the RSPB and managed our team of Business Analysts.I was required to understand business strategies and ensure that Information Systems were able to support these with the timely delivery of services, analysis and implementation of projects. I contributed to many of our projects in a business assurance and project assurance role. I brought people together, facilitated, negotiated and reached agreement around technical approach and technical solutions. The RSPB's ambitious strategy for saving nature meant that our IT department had an exciting and challenging period ahead of us developing applications and novel business systems. My role was key to making sure we had technical capability delivered in time to meet our targets for 2020. I also worked with significant Trading and Logistics projects.

Working with the RSPB's trading team I introduced the RSPB's first pay-per-click advertising. Through trackable orders from our online adverts we doubled the advertising investment month on month. I also developed business logic for special offers and worked with third party suppliers to deliver additional web capabilities to the online shop.

I was responsible for project managing four pre-agreed stages to the RSPB's first Intranet. Working in the RSPB's Creative Services department on a 12-month secondment, I led on delivering four time boxed content stages. Along the way we partnered with almost all areas of the RSPB to replace paper systems, reduce manual reporting and improve work flow processes. Within the first year of launching the intranet, global usability consultants Nielsen Norman Group listed us as one of the top ten intranets in the world for 2007. We were the only intranet in the UK that were included in the top ten, and were listed alongside companies such as Microsoft and National Geographic. Our success led to us being invited to talk at conferences and visit other charities like WWF to provide advice and help them develop their intranets.

Team Leader, Service Manager, Complaints Manager

Outside of paid employment, I founded a social enterprise cafe project called Cafe Mocha. As founder and general manager, I led on recruitment of paid staff and volunteers, building maintenance, lease negotiation, legal compliance on health and safety, food hygiene, fire regulations, corporate responsibility and ethical purchasing. I owned our vision and strategy and our ethical policies. I was responsible for our financial accountability, managing budgets and setting pay and reward policies. I reviewed and maintained our catalogue of local suppliers and owned the relationships with our collaborative partnerships, local council, charities and community groups. This venture continues to support people within their local community, providing a supportive environment for people to visit on the High St.

I returned from world travel in April 2001. I worked with a team of technical staff and project managers working on corporate scale electricity metering and usage monitoring tools.

I worked as a consultant providing bespoke mobile data solutions over mobile phone and data networks with Cognito, Hutchison, RAM Mobile Data & Husky. Travelling around UK to meet with key customers, I designed and sometimes coded bespoke solutions for companies including Caradon Trend and Crane Telecommunications.

I worked with teenagers either at risk of exclusion or teenagers with minor criminal records in South London. I met weekly with clients in their family environment or in a local public venue to coach them into overcoming challenges in their environment encouraging them to consider reaching their full potential

I worked in south London with young people from a variety of backgrounds, often with challenging behaviour, or special needs. Participants joined small music groups with their peers and received one to one tutoring and coaching. Using percussion, beat box, music software, keyboard and guitars participants learnt music skills, and were encouraged to express their creativity in a stable and safe environment. The primary aim was to help attendees regain an appetite for learning

I worked in two different hostels for homeless men ages 16 - 25, initially as a volunteer and then as a permanent paid member of staff. Every resident was assigned a key worker. I coached residents, assisted in identifying and applying for benefits, training and more permanent accommodation. I liaised with social and probation services. At times the role was high pressure and high risk, sometimes experiencing threats and actual violence. However, it was a very rewarding and life changing experience. A challenge I'm glad I completed.

I researched and developed mobile communications solutions that linked internally developed service management software to externally provided mobile devices. Our customers were primarily in the service industry, usually with a team of remote field engineers.

I started as a trainee ACU Cobol programmer having completed an HND in Computer Studies in 1991. I advanced through the development team on newly developed Service Management Software suite called OptimService and then moved into a first to third line support role supporting some older legacy products including Service/Helpdesk, POP, SOP, Stock and Reporting modules. I moved on to specialise in bespoke hand held systems for field engineers.

I worked in the field with specialist equipment partnering with qualified surveyors, with some office based digitising of ordinance survey maps.