The CDW OCTOpod

In this episode, CDW's Chief Technologist Tim Russell is joined again by Microsoft's Peter Rising to tackle the twin challenges of securing AI and driving real adoption Listeners will get a practical view of how to roll out AI safely, build user trust, and turn pilots into measurable business value.   Speakers: Tim Russell, Chief Technologist, CDW Peter Rising, Senior Partner Cloud Solution Archit...

In this episode, CDW's Chief Technologist Tim Russell sits down with Microsoft's Peter Rising to unpack what the new Microsoft 365 E7 license and Copilot+ PCs mean for security, productivity, and the way work gets done. Listeners will walk away knowing what's changed, why it matters, and where to start.   Speakers: Tim Russell, Chief Technologist, CDW Peter Rising, Senior Partner Cloud Solution Ar...

In Part 2, Tim Russell from CDW and Matt Hains from Intel move from foundations into real‑world application, helping listeners understand how AI PCs translate into tangible outcomes for IT teams and the wider business. The audience will learn where on‑device AI delivers the most value today, how workloads are shifting between cloud and endpoint, and what this means for productivity, security, and...

In this episode, Tim Russell, Chief Technologist at CDW, and Matt Hains from Intel unpack what the emergence of the AI PC really means for organisations today. Listeners will learn how to cut through the hype to understand what defines an AI PC, why on-device AI matters, and how it changes performance, security, and the employee experience. Tim brings the customer and workplace lens, explaining wh...

Integrations are meant to connect the business, but too often they become the source of delay, risk and frustration. In this episode of the CDW Octopod, Jaro speaks with Juha and Soroush from ONEiO about the real-world challenges organisations face when systems, suppliers and workflows fail to connect properly and why Integration Ops offers a new way forward. From platform wars and siloed accounta...

In Part 2 of this Hybrid Trends conversation, Rob Sims sits down again with Michael Cade, Field CTO at Veeam, to unpack the next evolution of data resilience. This episode moves beyond traditional backup to explore why Veeam made a bold move into data security and intelligence with the acquisition of Security AI. Together, they dive into: Why understanding and classifying data is now the foundatio...

This episode offers a grounded, jargon‑free look at how AI is delivering value today - not the slide‑deck theory, but the tangible benefits seen across real customers using Windows 11 Copilot and Copilot+ PCs. Listeners will hear two senior technologists unpack the difference between cloud and on‑device AI, the rise of small language models running locally, and why training, adoption, and persona‑...

In this episode of Hybrid Trends, Rob Sims is joined by Michael Cade, Field CTO at Veeam, to explore the growing challenges around data protection, cyber resilience and enterprise recovery strategies. As organisations continue to expand across cloud, SaaS, edge and on-prem environments, data is now everywhere. While this distributed architecture brings agility and innovation, it also dramatically...

In the final episode of the Hybrid Trends with Dell series, Rob Sims is once again joined by Dell’s Ihab El Ghazzawi to explore how organisations can move from AI experimentation to enterprise-scale deployment. After discussing multi-cloud optimisation in part one and the common reasons AI projects fail in part two, this episode focuses on the practical framework Dell calls the AI Factory. Rather...

AI experimentation is over. Now it’s about outcomes. In this episode of the CDW Octopod, Tim Russell, Matt Browne and Tom Pursey unpack what organisations are really seeing from Windows 11, Copilot and AI-enabled devices. From productivity and security to user support and digital experience, this is a grounded look at where AI is delivering value and where businesses need to get smarter. The discu...

In part two of the Hybrid Trends with Dell series, Rob Sims is joined again by Dell’s  Ihab El Ghazzawi to explore a critical question facing organisations today: Why are so many AI projects failing? Despite the huge momentum behind AI adoption, many organisations struggle to move from experimentation to real business value. In this episode, Rob and Ehab break down the three most common reasons AI...

In this episode of Hybrid Trends, Rob Sims and Dell’s Ihab El Ghazzawi tackle one of the biggest challenges facing IT leaders today: how to optimise a multi-cloud world without losing control. From cloud sprawl and inconsistent policies to rising costs and duplicated data, they discuss why successful organisations are shifting to a multi-cloud by design approach — placing workloads in the right lo...

Everyone is talking about AI — but very few organisations truly understand their data. In this episode of the OCTOPOD, Kyle Davies is joined by Chief Technologist Rob Sims and Field Technologist Jagdeep “Jags” Rai to explore one of the most persistent challenges in enterprise IT: data strategy. Drawing on real-world experiences from customer environments, the discussion looks at why many organisat...

In this episode of the OCTOPOD, Kyle Davies is joined by Rob Sims, Tim Russell and Jaro Tomik to explore the major trends set to shape technology decisions in 2026. From inflationary pressures, geopolitical instability and supply chain disruption, through to AI fatigue, rising scrutiny on investment and growing pressure to prove value, the team discusses why 2026 is becoming a year of sharper focu...

In this episode of the CDW OCTOPOD, Kyle Davies is joined by Rob Sims, Nick Garland, and John Evans to unpack the growing global technology supply challenge being driven by the explosive demand for AI infrastructure. From hyperscalers reserving silicon manufacturing capacity years in advance, to geopolitical instability, rising energy costs and shifting supply chains, the panel explores why the cu...

Episode 3: Securing the Future & Designing the Smart Campus In the final part of the series, Rob Sims and Coventry University CTO Steve Rogers look beyond the last decade of transformation and focus on what comes next for hybrid in higher education. Steve shares why his immediate priority isn’t “jumping on the AI bandwagon,” but doubling down on cybersecurity, human firewalls and smarter use o...

Episode 2: Why Partnership Became the Missing Piece In part two of the series, Rob Sims is joined again by Coventry University CTO Steve Rogers—this time alongside Matt Smith, Higher Education Account Director at CDW—to explore the strategic leap that shaped Coventry’s next decade of hybrid evolution. With the university already deep into its cloud-driven transformation, Steve reveals the moment h...

Episode 1: A Decade of Change, Culture and Cloud Rob Sims welcomes Coventry University CTO Steve Rogers to unpack the university’s bold shift away from overloaded comms rooms and sprawling legacy infrastructure toward a modern hybrid cloud strategy. Steve reveals what sparked the transformation, how 850 services were re-imagined for the cloud, why culture and skills mattered more than servers, and...

In this special extended edition of Rob’s Hybrid Platforms Trends Podcast, he is joined by Patrick Smith for a CTO view of this year’s Pure Accelerate announcements. Recorded during an embargo before the New York and UK Accelerate events, Rob and Patrick discuss the new announcements being made and how they will impact customers in areas of cost, operations, and performance. Covering Pure Fusion,...

In this episode of The OCTOPod, Tim Russell, Chief Technologist at CDW, is joined by Sophia Swain, CTO at Leaders Romans Group, to explore the real-world realities of hybrid working, employee enablement, and what it truly takes to create a productive, inclusive digital workplace. Forget the buzzwords—this episode cuts through the noise to reveal: Why choice and flexibility are essential in the mod...

In this episode of The OCTOPod, Tim Russell is joined by Ryan Zoehner, CEO of Algo, to unpack two critical and timely topics affecting IT, security, and facilities teams alike: The Legacy Communications Challenge Why are so many organisations still struggling to complete their migration from outdated comms infrastructure to modern cloud-based platforms? Tim and Ryan explore: Why 46% of UK business...

In the final episode of our three-part Cisco 2025 series, we go straight to the heart of the conversation: digital resilience—why it’s no longer a technology discussion, but a critical business necessity. You'll hear from: Rob Sims - Chief Technologist, CDW Joachim Mason - Managing Director, Partner Sales, Cisco UK & Ireland Scott Manson - Director of Cyber Security and Resilience Ged Fitton L...

In Part 2 of our Cisco 2025 special, we continue the conversation on digital resilience as business resilience, this time focusing on the hybrid cloud, modern data centres, and preparing for the future of AI-powered workloads. You'll hear from: Rob Sims - Chief Technologist, CDW Joachim Mason - Managing Director, Partner Sales, Cisco UK & Ireland Scott Manson - Director of Cyber Security and R...

In this special three-part series, Rob Sims is joined by a powerhouse panel from Cisco to unpack one of the most pressing topics facing every business today: digital resilience as the foundation of business resilience. In Part 1, we explore the real-world pressures shaping strategy in 2025—from cybersecurity and AI hype, to data centre complexity and decision paralysis. You'll hear from: Rob Sims...

Welcome to a special series with our friends from Microsoft centred around the topic of Cloud Beyond IaaS and how we can drive cost optimisation and innovation through technology. This will be a 13-part series starting with the strategy and diving into the technology across three core areas: App Modernisation, Hybrid Cloud and Data & AI. In this episode we dive into the topic of Hybrid Cloud c...