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Starts at the Top is about how leaders from all sectors are using digital to navigate uncertainty and forge a path to the future. It’s hosted by Zoe Amar and Paul Thomas.
Episodes
Wednesday Jun 08, 2022
Wednesday Jun 08, 2022
The UK video games industry is worth £7.16 billion. So what does your organisation need to know about the opportunities and risks it offers?
This week we chat to George Osborn, Head of Campaigns and Communications for UKIE, the UK video games industry trade body, about inclusion in the gaming industry, how charities and fundraisers can tap into the potential of gaming, and what the state of gaming tells us about wider digital trends.
Zoe and Paul also talk about the Runnymede Trust’s report on women of colour in the workplace, and whether we’re too dependent on the algorithms of music streaming services.
Notes and links -
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About UKIE
News stories:
- Runnymede Trust’s report on women of colour in the workplace
https://www.runnymedetrust.org/publications/broken-ladders
- Pitchfork article on addiction to streaming
https://pitchfork.com/features/article/the-woes-of-being-addicted-to-streaming-services/
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music
Friday May 20, 2022
Friday May 20, 2022
How leaders can tackle misinformation - we chat to Laura Dewis, Chief Operating Officer at Full Fact
According to Ofcom’s latest research more than a third of internet users are unaware that online content might be false or biased. Creating and sharing content is such a huge part of what organisations and leaders do, so how can you make sure the information you’re sharing is accurate and truthful?
Guiding us through these tricky issues is Laura Dewis who is Chief Operating Officer at Full Fact, a charity of independent fact checkers and campaigners who find, expose and counter the harm caused by bad information shared by anyone in public debate. Laura takes us behind the scenes at Full Fact, explaining how they operate on the front line of misinformation and disinformation.
Laura’s career has included roles with the BBC and the Open University, and she shares with us what she’s learned about using digital to achieve impact at scale, and how tech can increase inclusion.
Zoe and Paul summarise the tech news stories that have caught their eye, including the social media storm surrounding the Amber Heard and Johnny Depp courtcase, and whether being cancelled has stopped Mumford and Sons’ former banjo player from picking up his phone (or banjo) again.
Notes and links -
Help Full Fact by getting involved here:
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Help us train our AI so we can tackle misinformation and disinformation at scale: https://fullfact.org/get-involved/stats-claim-challenge/
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Sign our petition (to address a broken Parliamentary system that doesn't enable all MPs to correct the record when they get something wrong): https://actions.fullfact.org/petitions/mps-owe-us-truth/
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Use or test our automated fact checking software: https://fullfact.org/about/automated/ (for journalists, fact-checkers, or start-ups)
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Our 10 point plan on what law and regulation should do to tackle online misinformation: https://fullfact.org/about/policy/reports/full-fact-report-2022/
Tech new stories:
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Heard/Depp social media
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/may/15/johnny-depp-amber-heard-defamation-trial-social-media
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Mumford and Sons ex-banjo player , Winston Marshall on being cancelled (paywall)
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music
Wednesday May 11, 2022
Wednesday May 11, 2022
What do charity CEOs do next?
Matt Stevenson-Dodd spent 9 years as CEO of Street League, the UK’s leading sport for employment charity. During his time in post, Street League grew rapidly and he and his team launched an innovative online impact dashboard showing real time transparent impact data. Now Matt has channelled his passion for data and impact into founding Trust Impact, a data and impact consultancy that helps charities and social enterprises demonstrate their impact strategically. We caught up with Matt to find out what other leaders can learn from a career fuelled by passion and purpose.
We discussed what Matt’s path tells us about what career progression looks like for charity CEOs present and future, whether getting the CEO job title is even an aspiration for upcoming, grassroots leaders and if we should be doing more to make the path to top jobs more accessible. We also discuss how charities can learn more with their data and better demonstrate their impact. And stay tuned for bonus middle aged indie disco chat at the end of this episode!
Paul and Zoe discuss the latest tech news, including Zoe’s recent hard hitting blog about what it’s really like to be a woman of colour in tech and our take on what Twitter’s Elon Musk shaped future could look like.
Notes and links -
Matt Stevenson’s Dodd’s consultancy Trust Impact Ltd
Trust Impact Ltd’s Connect Mix Share product
Zoe Amar’s blog on Why Tech Needs To be More Inclusive
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music
Friday Apr 22, 2022
Friday Apr 22, 2022
How to tackle your tech carbon footprint - We speak to Avril Chester, Chief Technology Officer at RIBA
Logging onto Zoom calls and relaxing in front of Netflix is part of our everyday lives. So we were shocked to learn that almost 4 percent of all carbon emissions are from digital technologies, according to a 2019 study by the Paris-based think tank The Shift Project. A one-hour video call between two people in London generates the same carbon impact as travelling 10km by train. This #EarthDay we wanted to find out how leaders can use tech to fight climate change.
We chatted to Avril Chester, an award-winning technology entrepreneur, Chief Technology Officer at RIBA (and founder of Cancer Central.) Avril tells us about the work she is leading at RIBA to tackle the carbon impact of technology and their Tech Carbon Impact Wiki, as well as how other organisations can start this journey. She also discusssed her journey as a leader and how leaders can take on imposter syndrome. Avril also movingly shares the lessons she learned from chemotherapy that have shaped her as a leader.
Paul and Zoe round up the latest tech news, including Jacob Rees-Mogg summoning civil servants back to the office and Elon Musk’s designs on Twitter.
Notes and links -
RIBA’s Tech Carbon Impact Wiki
Cancer Central
Jacob Rees-Mogg sending the civil service back to the office (The Guardian)
ALex Thomas’ Twitter thread on civil servants working from home
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music
Tuesday Apr 05, 2022
Tuesday Apr 05, 2022
How can you be an anti-racist leader?
We chat to Martha Awojobi, CEO of JMB Consulting and founder of #BAMEOnline
Three years on from #CharitySoWhite and two years since the murder of George Floyd inclusion is a matter on many leaders’ minds. So how can you lead this work in the right way, and create the change you want to see in your organisation?
Martha Awojobi, CEO of JMB Consulting and founder of #BameOnline ( the fundraising conference that aims for an end to racism in fundraising and philanthropy) has the answers to these questions. Martha has a ton of wisdom to share about how leaders can improve their racial literacy, set ambitions for change and keep going, when the going gets tough. All of this involves leaders asking big, existential questions about what the future holds for them and their organisations.
Zoe and Paul also discuss the latest tech news, including new research on working from home and productivity.
Notes and links -
JMB Consulting
Sign up for BAMEOnline
Nick Bloom’s thread on Stanford University’s research about working from home
Matt Smith of Think Consulting Solutions’ remote work Twitter thread
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music
Wednesday Dec 22, 2021
Wednesday Dec 22, 2021
It’s almost Christmas and we thought we’d spoil you with an amazing panel of experts well versed in two big issues that we’re hearing a lot about from leaders right now. One, how can leaders deal with the pitfalls that come with an increasingly tough climate on social media? Two, how can they do so whilst looking after themselves?
We were thrilled to speak to our four wonderful guests: two former winners of the Social CEOs awards, Dr Wanda Wyporska, CEO of the Society of Genealogists and Ruth Ibegbuna, Founder of RECLAIM, the Roots Programme and Rekindle, along with two Social CEOs stalwarts: our Chair of Judges Simon Blake, CEO of Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) England and co-founder Matt Collins, Managing Director of Platypus Digital. All of them have a wealth of experience and advice to share on how you can be bold and authentic online in the age of cancel culture, which leaders they rate at using social media for social change successfully and where leaders can go for support if they’re having a tough time.
We’ve gone out with a bang for our Season 4 Finale and we will be back in spring 2022. Thanks so much to all our listeners and see you then!
Notes and links -
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music
Wednesday Dec 15, 2021
Wednesday Dec 15, 2021
We speak to Tom Loosemore, Partner at Public Digital and co-author of Digital Transformation At Scale.
Getting the right team in place for your digital transformation, and helping them work on the right things, can be the difference between success and failure. What can leaders do to build winning teams?
Tom Loosemore, Partner at Public Digital and co-author of Digital Transformation At Scale has a wealth of insights to share on building teams to do pioneering work in digital, from his experience as deputy director at Government Digital Service, Director of Digital Strategy at the Co-Operative Group, and digital strategy lead at OFCOM. Tom tells us what leaders need to do to help their organisations take their digital transformations to the next level, and how to tackle culture change at a time when many of your colleagues will be exhausted and craving stability. Tom is giving away a signed copy of his new book Digital Transformation at Scale and you could win a copy if you sign up for our newsletter.
Zoe and Paul share their round-up of the latest tech news, from what the new Beatles documentary can teach us about collaboration, and what the future of work will look like in 2022.
The interview with Tom Loosemore starts at 13:07
Notes and links -
Tom’s new book is Digital Transformation At Scale (updated 2nd edition)
We discussed:
What the Beatles documentary can teach us about collaboration (Huffington Post)
-For more on this topic, listen to our previous episode about what we can learn from musicians about collaboration
https://www.startsatthetop.co.uk/episodes/episode21-digital-leadership-music-innovation
US boss fires 900 employees over Zoom (BBC)
Instagram builds in new features to help teenagers reduce screentime (BBC)
What work will look like in 2022 (WIRED)
Annual Google search terms report (BBC)
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music
Wednesday Dec 01, 2021
Wednesday Dec 01, 2021
Women represent 31% of the UK tech workforce and just 10% of its leadership roles. So what can we do to improve this?
Joy Foster, Founder of Techpixies is on a mission to help thousands of women upskill with social media so that they can return to work, change careers or start their own business. Since 2015 she and her colleagues have helped 5,000 women grow their tech skills. She joins us to discuss the unique qualities that women bring to working in technology and how to create a more inclusive workforce.
Paul and Zoe discuss the latest tech news, including a new film about microaggressions, and how ‘joyscrolling’ can help you find happiness online.
Notes and links -
Find out more about TechPixies here - Techpixies
We discussed:
Badlands’ short film about microaggressions
‘I sniffed out good news like a bloodhound’: how I broke my doomscrolling habit by Pandora Sykes for The Guardian
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music
Thursday Nov 18, 2021
Thursday Nov 18, 2021
What do leaders need to know about online harm? We speak to Imran Ahmed, founder and chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate.
Online hate speech in the UK and US has grown by 20% since the start of the pandemic. 48% of charity CEOs have experienced trolling. So what do leaders need to know about online harm and how to tackle it?
Imran Ahmed is an expert on this issue. As the founder and chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital Hate he spends his days advising leaders and organisations from all over the world about it. Imran joins us to discuss how the environment on social media has changed, what new legislation in the UK and US means for social media platforms and what leaders need to do about online abuse to protect their organisations and themselves.
Imran tells us what all of this means for brands and reputation management in the digital age, and shares the practical tips that every leader needs to know.
Paul and Zoe chat through what we can learn from new remote working legislation from Portugal, and whether being in the office affects career progression.
The interview with Imran starts at the 16:00 minute point.
Notes and links -
Center for Countering Digital Hate
We discussed:
Portugal makes it illegal for your boss to text you after work
Women warned working from home harms their careers (BBC)
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music
Thursday Nov 11, 2021
Thursday Nov 11, 2021
How does one of the world’s most famous face-to-face fundraising events take on technology? Following the success of their virtual event last year the London Marathon team decided to embrace hybrid. What do their learnings mean for the sector?
We were delighted to chat with Kenneth Foreman , Head of Charity Partnerships and Steven Foster Director of Transformation at London Marathon Events to find out more about how they tackled this challenge, and what this means for how charities can approach hybrid fundraising. This episode is a must-listen for any fundraisers or charity professionals who may be running low on energy as we enter the final mile of a tough year. Kenneth and Steven tell us how they were buoyed up by the extraordinary creativity and innovation they’ve seen fundraisers demonstrate during the pandemic, and have great advice for how to draw on these skills, and what this means for your wider digital transformation.
Zoe and Paul discuss the carbon footprint of remote work including some worrying stats which will make you rethink scheduling another Zoom call.
Notes and links -
We discussed:
RIBA’s tech carbon impact Wiki
Email us with your questions and ideas for future episodes startsatthetop@gmail.com
And please leave us a review if you enjoy what you hear!
Editing and production from Syren Studios and Paul Thomas
Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music