Episode #5: Pivot to Purpose - With Rachel Higham & Neil Almond

To be honest, we went into today’s podcast knowing we’d be wowed by our guest, Rachel Higham, Managing Director of IT at the communications colossus BT. After all, Neil consistently regales us with stories that paint her as one the most inspirational leaders he’s ever worked with. But truth be told, we were expecting dirt; David and Goliath stories about her fight with the corporate machine, epic battles of her efforts to wrestle BT kicking and screaming into a modern world. We couldn’t have been more wrong. Rachel was still brilliant, of course, but the story she shared gave real insight into how organisations can embrace massive change whatever their size. The conversation became a rich case study of how to place your purpose at the heart of change in order to remain relevant to customers, talent and stakeholders whilst simultaneously harnessing the organisation's energy to positively impact society. This podcast is a frank discussion between host Neil Almond and Rachel about the importance of a socially-rooted purpose and how to avoid the platitudes of green-washing so many organisations resort to. Together, they explored how to attract and keep the best talent and how vital this is becoming, given the changing employment landscape. Rachel gives templates for energising and inspiring change projects within organisations, and explains how Human-Centred Design is driving innovation and allowing her tech teams to place people at the heart of development. As usual, Neil also asks Rachel to also consider the workplace skills that will be needed to thrive in the years ahead. As someone at the very heart of technological advances in Artificial Intelligence, chat-bots and automation, her answers have a heightened poignancy.