Ctrl Alt Lead

Leon Butler, IBM’s UK and Ireland CEO, explains why most generative AI models aren't fit for enterprise use and stresses the need for transparent, trusted systems. He also discusses how recent acquisitions - including HashiCorp and DataStax - support IBM’s push to automate enterprise IT.  Leon talks about other key IT areas, like data sovereignty and regulation; agentic AI; and quantum security. H...

In this episode of Ctrl Alt Lead, Tom speaks with AWS CISO Chris Betz about the evolving AI landscape and its implications for cybersecurity. They discuss the challenges and blind spots security leaders face with AI agents; the importance of proactive security measures, and the differences in AI security between public and private sectors. Betz, who leads security across Amazon Web Services global...

With AI agents taking over the world, Oracle's launch of AI Agent Studio last week is exceedingly timely. UK country leader Siobhan Wilson joins Tom at Oracle Cloudworld 2025 to explain how it works, who can use it, and what it means for IT teams. Siobhan also discusses Oracle’s $5 billion investment in UK cloud infrastructure, why demand for AI agents is growing, and whether it comes at the expen...

In this episode Tom talks to GitHub's VP of Developer Relations, Martin Woodward, about open source's evolving landscape and funding models, as well as the role of AI in software development. We dive deep into GitHub's Secure Open Source fund , the importance of financial sustainability for open source projects, and how AI tools like GitHub Copilot are reshaping the developer experience. Become a...

A tobacco company that wants more regulation? Javed Iqbal, Director of Digital & Transformation at British American Tobacco, describes how clear rules, plus technology, can accelerate safer alternatives to smoking. He reveals how AI is driving breakthroughs in marketing insights, patent research and even tackling ESG issues like child labour; and describes how BAT’s investment in ethical AI, cloud...

Healthcare has massive potential for tech-driven disruption, but adoption is - for good reason - cautious. In this episode Perran Pengelly, CTO of NHS partner DrDoctor, shares insights on the challenges and opportunities of modernising healthcare delivery. Perran explains the emerging model of hybrid healthcare, which could alleviate the mismatch between demand and capacity in the NHS. He also div...

In this episode Tom talks to Karen Byer, lead project manager and chair of UK RISE at PA Consulting, about business resource groups' role in fostering inclusive workplaces. Karen shares practical advice for IT leaders on how to support informal groups, develop impactful initiatives, and create environments where everyone thrives - all while balancing their day-to-day responsibilities. Become a mem...

The end of the year is peak sales time, extending from Black Friday in November to the sales in January. Mattie Toia, VP of infrastructure at ecommerce platform Shopify, explains how the platform handles this “peak of peaks." Tom and Mattie discuss the role of resilience, game-day simulations and the use of real-time data visualisation tools, as well as diving into how AI is transforming e-commerc...

In this episode, legal expert Jonathan Armstrong of Punter Southall Law breaks down the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) and its implications for financial services firms and their suppliers. Jonathan talks about DORA's key requirements, the challenges of cross-border compliance, and how CIOs can prepare for these sweeping changes across the EU and UK. Click here to learn more about DORA...

General purpose AI models are great if you want to discuss everything from geopolitics to baking with the same chatbot; but when you have hard limits on data and compute, you need a more focused system. Enter, small language models. This week Tom talks to Arm's Paul Williamson about what the rise of SLMs means for edge computing and the people who use it; different ways to shrink language models;...

Multifactor authentication is better than nothing, but is it really just a false sense of security? With attackers increasingly knowing how to break MFA, whether technically or through social engineering, director Richard Richison switched his entire company of 1,600 employees over to a phishing-resistant process relying on biometric security keys and device-level checks. In this episode of Ctrl A...

Will Amazon's return-to-office mandate be a success, or will Andy Jassy's employees slap on a return label? Reed co-founder Mark Ridley and Dr Andrew MacLaren, Associate Professor of Team Communication at Heriot-Watt University,  join Tom to talk all about the points for and against office vs remote work - and why hybrid might be not the perfect middle ground. What does Jassy's order mean for remo...

What effect will a protectionist President have on the global tech sector? Professor Grant Neeley discusses Donald Trump's stance on tech issues from AI to immigration, and what we can expect from his historic second term. The incoming President is critical of regulation, but has spoken out against Big Tech. He is anti-China, but pro-TikTok. He wants tariffs on global imports, but expects lower pr...

Acquiring new companies is a popular way to grow quickly, but it brings a host of technical challenges: from finding the right company, to due diligence, and finally integrating their systems.  In this episode Ardonagh Advisory CTO Tom Clark discusses the role tech leaders must play at every stage of the process  to smoothly bring new companies on board. Become a member of Computing today at www.c...

BT consumes about 1% of the UK's total power, a massive amount for a single company. In this episode Tom talks to Clare Schramm of BT's "internal hyperscaler," the cloud services division, about how they are reworking software, hardware and partnerships to slash energy use. Clare talks about how and why BT has written sustainability metrics into all of its commercial tenders; how vendor relationsh...

Culture is one of the most difficult things to build, even for engineers. In this episode, Admiral's Chief Engineer Pankaj Kane talks about how he built an engineering-led culture, and why he's made sure to remain separate from it. Instilling a culture through one of the UK's largest insurers was no easy task, so Pankaj launched it using a common vision: a North Star. Plus, he shares his advice fo...

IoT sensors are common in infrastructure, but strangely rare in stately homes - where the predictive maintenance piece, at least, makes them incredibly well suited. Oxfordshire's Blenheim Estate, though, uses hundreds of sensors. I talked to Head of Innovation David Green about the organisation's modern approach. David explains how and why Blenheim invested in a massive sensor network, and how the...

IT professionals are perfectionists under pressure in a changing industry: a combination that leads to exhaustion, stress and burnout. In this episode, head of IT Jeremy Cooper tells Tom how he overcame the problem, and how he tackles it in his team. Jeremy talks candidly about his own experiences of burnout - from what caused it, to how it affected him and how he learned to address it; as well as...

Drowning in documents hundreds of pages long, the legal sector needs a safe, transparent way to speed up the way it works. Is generative AI, trained and prepared on legal data, the answer? In this episode Tom talks to Bruna Pellicci, CIO at Magic Circle law firm Linklaters, about how technology is changing the legal space and how her company built its own AI helper. Become a member of Computing to...

The National Grid was built on infrastructure laid in the 1950s. Now, as the UK's energy sector changes, CIO Sarah Milton-Hunt and her team are replacing that legacy with modern tools to last the next 70 years. Sarah talks about the factors affecting the modern utilities sector, like datacentre growth and the move to renewables, and how digital and AI are "key" to handling a less certain energy ne...

Labour has won a thumping majority in the 2024 general election. Mark Ridley, fractional CIO and technical co-founder of Reed.co.uk, joins Tom to talk about what it means for the tech sector. What did Labour promise in its manifesto - and more importantly, what did it leave out? Tom and Mark talk about where the new government is likely to focus its energy in the coming months and years, from AI r...

AI, especially gen-AI, is all the rage. In this episode Tom talks to ex-Very Group CIO Matt Grest about how the online retailer implemented it - and why - at scale. Matt talks about how he successfully adopted gen-AI, how he brought colleagues along for the ride, and how IT leaders can clamp down on AI shadow IT. Become a member of Computing today at www.computing.co.uk LinkedIn: @computing-- Twit...

A spin-out can be the defining moment of a leader's career. In this first episode of Ctrl Alt Lead, Tom Allen talks to Kellanova CDIO Lesley Salmon about the successful split from cereal giant Kellogg's. Lesley talks about how to spin out successfully, the pain points she encountered, and how she overcame them - plus, her thoughts on the AI revolution. Become a member of Computing today at www.com...