Virtue & Virtuosity

In the final part of the festive special, Stuart and Kevin look forward to 2026 and discuss the five key agenda items around Digital Technology, Data and AI for every leader to have on their agenda for the year. If you missed parts 1 and 2 of this special - why not listen to them first?

In the second section of our three-part festive special, Stuart talks with Kevin Antao and looks forward to 2026 to talk about what we can expect in the world of Charity, Digital Tech, and AI. Watch out for the final part between Christmas and New Year - looking at practical actions you can take as a leader to prepare your organisation for 2026.

In the first of three parts, Stuart talks with Kevin Antao and reviews the change we've seen in 2025. Following this over the next few days, we're releasing two more episodes - the next is looking forward, and the final one is on what CTO's and CEO's can be doing to prepare for 2026.

Stuart talks with Third Sector Lab founder, Ross McCulloch, and Elysha from Radiate Hiring, all about their experiences with matching people to Digital Trustee roles. Ross outlines the Digital Trustee programme run by his company and talks a little about the 'Trustee speed-dating' sessions he runs.

Stuart talks with AI100 winners Kit Powney from Tearfund and Trevor Gordon from Save the Children. They talk about innovations and approaches within their organisations, and also talk about the many lessons they've learned from collaborating with people within their sector and more broadly in the past few months.

Bonus Episode! In case you're on a half-term break - or about to go on one - we've just given you a short one this week! Why not have a listen to highlights from the 25th Anniversary Charity IT Leaders conference, presented by myself and regular host (and trustee of CITL), Jane Huntington.

Today we talk with three amazing people - Su Crichton, Freddie Quek, and Mark Dearnley. All of them have chosen to volunteer their time as a digital trustee for a charity. We talk about what it is like to be a trustee, the skills they bring, and the interactions between the board and the internal team. We also talk about what it is like - and what you should consider if you are thinking of becomin...

Gemma Caulwell at Ark discusses how they are pushing ahead with a variety of AI pilots with teachers in their schools. She outlines the results from trials of AI software for marking student’s essays in English and History, and also talks about other AI tools they are trialling to enable teachers to work more effectively, and dedicate more of their time to education, and less to administration.

AI - and Artificial General Intelligence - both seem like they are all about Science and Technology. Yet, the way we talk about them, and the narrative in the media is so much more about belief than science. In this episode, we talk with CEO of Aestora, Stephanie Antonian, about what she's seen in her experiences of AI since working on ethics for Google - and we discuss what the future might hold,...

We are joined by three industry experts for this special debate - what benefits has the charity sector seen from CRM? The panel for the debate is: Laura Dawson, ex CIO from Higher Education (LSE), and Charities (British Council, Save the Children, RSPB) Kevin Antao, ex CIO from Charity Sector (Amnesty International), and consultant from multiple organisations Tory Cassie, CRM expert and Director o...

This could be subtitled 'Holiday reading' - In this episode Stuart talks with Adam Scoot, leadership coach, and builds on some of the ideas from the previous episode. We talk about how aspiring leaders can develop their skills, and hear about book recommendations, and tips to improve your leadership style

In today's episode, Stuart talks with a respected recruiter in the NFP Tech space - Eleri Morgan from Global Resourcing, and with Vince Gratrick who led Technology in Mencap, Age UK and United Response. They discuss trends in Tech recruitment over the past 15 years, and identify the skills most in demand for Tech leaders in 2025.

Stuart is joined by cohost Janani Sridharan where discuss the importance of really understanding your end-users, and not making assumptions. The main interview is with Gerard McGovern who has led Technology for many charities and NFP's including the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, Guide Dogs and the Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity. Gerard shares his experiences including what he has l...

In the first episode of Season 3, we have an interview with Adrian Ruddock, Exec Director of Digital and Data at the National Citizen Service. We hear his experience over the past few months of shutting down an organisation - and hear some learning points. I'm also joined by new co-host Janani Sridharan who has insights on tech and international development, alongside stories of village life in In...

A new season of Virtue & Virtuosity starts on 3rd July - listen out for more great interviews on Tech in the world of charities and NFP's

Stuart talks with Adam Scoot, an expert in Value Stream Mapping about how organisations can identify what adds value and what doesn't. We think about examples in the charity sector - and discuss what impact Generative AI might have in this area.

Stuart talks to Simon Vaux, Head of Data and Analytics at the King's Trust and hears how they have developed their approach to data to help them understand how they make an impact

Stuart interviews a variety of participants at an AI focused Buildathon with charities. At the event hosted by 42London, Stuart hears from students, charities, AI mentors and 42London all about their plans to build a virtuous mix where students are paired with expert mentors, and charities to help those organisations develop AI products. [note - on a couple of interviews, there is poor sound quali...

Stuart is joined by Avril Chester - founder of Cancer Central, patron of SimPal and CTO at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, and also regular co-host Mary O'Callaghan. In a wide-ranging chat we talk about how to bring an entrepreneurial mindset to larger organisations, and also delve into the future of AI and what our name would be if we were an AI assistant.

Stuart talks with Craig Hogan about his experiences of running hackathons with charities - and discusses how corporate partnerships can work better for both sides.

Live Panel Debate recorded at 2024 Charity IT Leaders Conference, hosted by Stuart McSkimming. Featuring Kevin Adams, Anna Hoskins and Giri Gopalan. The panel discuss the role of the CTO/CIO in organisational transformation - and how increasingly the CTO/CIO is the senior leader responsible for leading on 'how' an organisation delivers on its goals.

Stuart is joined by Jane Huntington from Guide Dogs who co-hosts this episode. There is an interview with Paul Smith, CIO at Amnesty International who talks about running great teams, recruiting talent into the sector, and how Amnesty have taken advantage of technology and AI to deliver on their aims.

In this episode Stuart reviews the best bits of the series with some of our regular listeners, including Sian Prime from the NSPCC, Arti Sharma from Nurture UK, and of course Tree Hall from Charity IT Leaders

Stuart talks with Chief Digital Technology Officer, Trevor Gordon, from Save the Children about what he's seen in how technology can effectively deliver for organisations. He reflects on what he has seen in the commercial sector - and looks to what the charity sector can learn from it.

Stuart is in conversation with industry veteran, Laura Dawson. They take a long hard look at what makes technology work for organisations, and what execs and trustees can be doing to improve how technology works. Here some great insights, along with analogies ranging from Persian rugs to Christmas Cakes to Donkeys of the Apocalypse.