Starts at the Top Podcast

Episode 13 - Maggie Philbin, CEO of TeenTech and broadcaster

Maggie Philbin, CEO of TeenTech, is one of our heroes. If you work in digital today you may well have been inspired to do so by her groundbreaking work on the BBC’s Tomorrow’s World.

We talked to Maggie about how TeenTech is inspiring a new generation of school children to engage with technology, how the education system needs to change to grow digital skills, and how schools have tackled remote learning. We also heard about Maggie’s journey as a pioneering woman in tech.

Zoe and Paul discuss the latest digital news and their book recommendations.

Notes and links -

TeenTech is running a series of online events to help grow STEM skills.

The Digital 2021 report from We Are Social and Hootsuite can be found here - https://wearesocial.com/digital-2021

Brunswick Group's report on Connected Leadership can be found here - https://www.brunswickgroup.com/perspectives/connected-leadership/

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 Beth Donkin and Paul Thomas

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music

 

Episode 12 - Shelly Bell, Founder at Black Girl Ventures

We were delighted to speak to Shelly Bell, Founder at Black Girl Ventures, a social enterprise that creates access to social and financial capital for black and brown women founders. Shelly is also an inspirational speaker and serial entrepreneur. She was named one of the 100 Most Powerful Women in Business by Entrepreneur Magazine, Entrepreneur of the Year by Technically DC and acknowledged as A Rising Brand Star by Adweek.

 

We talked to Shelly about how female entrepreneurs have been hit by the pandemic, about Black Girl Ventures’ pioneering approach to crowdfunding female entrepreneurs and why inclusion is key to progression in tech.

Zoe and Paul discuss the rise of digital fitness and what this means for data privacy.

 

Notes and links -

Black Girl Ventures

https://www.blackgirlventures.org/

The rise of digital fitness

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-55318822

Google’s Fitbit deal

https://www.theverge.com/2020/12/17/22158271/googles-fitbit-deal-eu-regulator-approval

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 Beth Donkin and Paul Thomas

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music

Episode 11 - Dama Sathianathan, Partner at Bethnal Green Ventures

We were thrilled to speak to Dama Sathianathan, a partner at Bethnal Green Ventures, Europe’s leading early-stage tech for good VC. Dama discusses how Bethnal Green Ventures is pioneering new tech for good projects to solve social and environmental challenges, how we can create more collaboration in digital and why diversity is vital for better decision making and innovation.

 

Zoe and Paul discuss emerging news stories about big tech from the UK and US. Could Facebook be facing a potential breakup?

 

Notes and links -

Bethnal Green Ventures

https://bethnalgreenventures.com/

WorkerTech partnership

https://bethnalgreenventures.com/partners/resolution-trust/

Digital Markets Unit story from The Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/nov/27/digital-markets-unit-powers-new-uk-tech-regulator

Potential Facebook break up story from The Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/11/us-government-break-up-facebook-long-overdue

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 Beth Donkin and Paul Thomas

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music

Episode 10 - Paul de Gregorio, Founder at Rally - Digital trends for 2021

In a special live festive recording, we were thrilled to chat to Paul de Gregorio, digital legend and Founder at Rally.

Paul shared his thoughts on what the big digital changes of 2020 mean for charities, including the US election and developments in the UK sector and why digital mobilisation, online organising and fundraising need to be a key part of your strategy. He, Zoe and Paul Thomas also discussed the big tech trends for 2021 and how to start planning for them.

Sign up for Paul’s excellent newsletter here.

 

Notes and links -

ONS data on increase in digital retail sales

https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/retailindustry/timeseries/j4mc/drsi

International Broadcasting Trust’s report on fake news

https://ibt.org.uk/reports/faking-it/

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 Beth Donkin and Paul Thomas

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music

Episode 9 - Professor Carl Gombrich, London Interdisciplinary School

Preparing young people for the tech disruption of tomorrow

Growing digital skills will be vital in helping young people and the economy thrive in the future. How can schools and universities prepare the citizens of tomorrow for the challenges they’ll face?

We were excited to speak to Professor Carl Gombrich of The London Interdisciplinary School, a new university in London which aims to give students the knowledge and skills to solve social and global problems in an increasingly interconnected world.

Carl discusses where academia requires disruption, the need for an interdisciplinary skill set and what that means for the workplace of the future. We also discussed the shift to online learning and how leaders can help nurture digital skills in their organisations.

 

Notes and links -

The London Interdisciplinary School

https://www.londoninterdisciplinaryschool.org/

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 Beth Donkin and Paul Thomas

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music

 

Episode 8 - Liz Williams MBE, CEO of FutureDotNow - Navigating the digital skills gap

In this episode we were delighted to chat to Liz Williams MBE, CEO of FutureDotNow.

Liz discusses why organisations across every sector need to close the digital skills gap, and how to do it. We also talked about why digital inclusion has become an urgent social justice issue during COVID-19, why leaders need to be ambitious about improving digital capabilities and how the key to this is to keep learning.

Zoe and Paul take a look at the latest tech news, including whether gaming really can improve wellbeing and Joe Biden’s online harassment taskforce. Could this be a step change for social media?

 

Notes and links -

Gaming report from Oxford University

https://www.theguardian.com/games/2020/nov/16/video-gaming-can-benefit-mental-health-find-oxford-academics

Joe Biden’s Online Harassment Taskforce plans

https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/11/10163218/biden-harris-task-force-online-harassment-abuse-plan-details

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 Beth Donkin and Paul Thomas

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music

Episode 7 - Vicky Charles, Shelter UK - The secrets of successful remote working

We were thrilled to chat to Vicky Charles, Assistant Director of Technology & Data at Shelter UK.

Vicky shared her thoughts on how to start a new job during lockdown, how to bring remote teams together whilst managing wellbeing, why staff need to feel that they have a stake in digital and what organisations can learn from how they’ve adapted during COVID-19.

Paul and Zoe discuss what the new BBC social media guidelines could mean for your organisation and how Chrissy Teigen has opened up an online discussion about a difficult subject.

 

Notes and links -

The BBC’s new social media guidelines

https://www.bbc.co.uk/editorialguidelines/guidance/individual-use-of-social-media

Chrissy Teigen’s Medium essay

https://chrissyteigen.medium.com/hi-2e45e6faf764

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 by Paul Thomas and production from Alexey Sibikin

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music

Episode 6 - Rhodri Davies, How charities can tackle big tech ethics

Welcome back! In our first episode of Season 2 we are thrilled to speak to Rhodri Davies, Head of Policy & Programme Director, Giving Thought at Charities Aid Foundation.

We talked about how to create your own virtual watercooler when working remotely, how charities can navigate the ethics of big tech and the Facebook boycott, why charities need to take action on digital exclusion, fundraising trends and what the future of civil society could look like.

Zoe and Paul talk digital skills and why leaders need to think like community managers.

 

Notes and links -

RSA event with Bruce Daisley on remote working

https://www.thersa.org/video/events/2020/10/making-remote-work-good-work

CBI report on digital skills

https://www.cbi.org.uk/articles/learning-for-life-funding-a-world-class-adult-education-system/ 

CAF’s Giving Thought podcast

https://www.cafonline.org/about-us/blog-home/giving-thought/podcasts-from-giving-thought

The Digital Human podcast from the BBC

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01n7094

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 by Paul Thomas and production from Alexey Sibikin

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music

Episode 5 - Darshan Sanghrajka, Founder & CEO at Super Being Labs

In our Season 1 finale, we were so lucky to be joined by Darshan Sanghrajka, Founder & CEO at Super Being Labs.

We talked about what leaders can learn from stand up comedy, how to innovate during the crisis, getting comfortable with failure, why traditional leadership is over and how we can rebuild it, and what a digital first future could look like. We also discussed how to create more diverse teams. Finally, we chatted about cake.

Zoe talks about The Charity Digital Skills Report and what she thinks it means for the sector, and she and Paul share their observations on how the arts and music industry are using digital to create new relationships with fans.

Notes and links -

The Charity Digital Skills Report

http://report.skillsplatform.org/charity-digital-report-2020/

Nick Cave’s The Red Hand Files

https://www.theredhandfiles.com/

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 by Paul Thomas and production from Alexey Sibikin

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music

Episode 4 - What do leaders need to do now?

Paul and Zoe reflect on the digital trends they’ve seen during lockdown - and what these mean for leaders.

This week we take stock of the big digital changes we’ve seen during lockdown, and discuss their long term implications.

We discuss how leadership is changing, managing risk, recruiting for digital skills, and adapting your organisation to the new normal. We spoke to Richard Brooks, CEO at translation business K International, and Jane Lambert, CEO of ECG Training to find out how they are dealing with these developments.

We also discuss what to do when small children invade your video call, and how to handle online meeting presenteeism.

Please follow us on Twitter @startsatthetop1

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 by Paul Thomas and production from Alexey Sibikin.

Music by Joseph McDade https://josephmcdade.com/music