Jos Creese
Digital Advisor, Business Consultant, Researcher, Coach, Experienced CIO
With over 30 years IT leadership experience, Jos has held a variety of CIO roles and non-executive director positions. He is a recognised independent analyst and researcher, Past President of the BCS and also of Socitm and a retained strategic advisor for a range of IT businesses on digital practice.
Previously listed as the ‘most influential and innovative CIO’ in the UK, he has worked with national and international governments on a range of technology programmes. For over a decade he was CIO and CDO for Hampshire County Council, leading a range of award winning innovative programmes.
How did you get to become an expert in digital transformation?
Digital transformation requires a blend of business and technology skills, with an eye for detail, influence and advocacy.
My background spans arts and sciences, and I have a passion for the power of technology to transform, but in ways which genuinely puts the customer, client and citizen at the heart of the interaction. This coupled with many years of grappling with technology implementation challenge, has formed my experience.
What areas of digital transformation are you most passionate about?
- Transforming services and outcomes around the user/citizen
- Changing governance, risk models and board engagement in the public sector
- Constructing effective business cases that mix financial and other benefit
Which digital transformation influencers influence you?
Any that achieve the results! Sadly, there are too few. Suppliers are often out of touch with the public sector but ‘talk a good talk’ about products and technologies, in the public sector digital transformation is often unsung, and in the private sector CIO are often not given the chance to lead Digital Transformation
Outside of digital transformation who else influences you?
CEOs who take a direct lead on digital topics – transformation programmes, cyber, cultural change etc
How would you describe your offline influence?
I speak and write extensively, online and on paper. I also undertake a range of coaching and mentoring activities, university lecturing and public speaking.
I spend much time advising boards and politicians on digital planning, and have found that ‘Chatham House Rules’ events can be a powerful and safe way to help with skills transfer.
What are going to be the key developments in the industry in the next 12 months?
Too many to list here, but I write on this topic each year for the Society of IT Management (Socitm).
If a brand wanted to work with you, what activities would you be most interested in collaborating on?
Most of my time is spend with companies from the smallest start-up to household names, in engaging better with the public sector. I have written guides for sales execs, undertaken mentoring, coaching, and other advisory work. I have run events, roundtables, webinars, undertaken research and thought leadership publications.
Recent engagements have covered (as examples):
- Leading deep client workshops to explore public sector sales and engagement opportunities, and to develop coherent and practical action plans to grow reputation, profile and client base
- Building a strong and clear value proposition for supplier offerings to public services, including Local Government, Housing Associations, Whitehall and NHS bodies
- Briefing senior marketing and sales teams on the public sector market complexities and challenges, including the impact of sector cuts and devolution
- Running ‘quick-fire’ client surgeries and problem solving sessions, to identify and overcome ‘blockers’ to business growth, writing up short reports and summarising suggested actions
- Research in to key areas of digital developments – health and social care, role of HR and finance leadership, cloud exploitation, cyber security, outsourcing, and smart cities
- Supporting councils and other public service organisations on their digital journey and in dealing with problem projects and contracts
- Helping clients to understand the nature of public sector IT procurement, the role of GCloud and how to avoid the pitfalls and unnecessary costs of tendering
- Supporting international businesses to gain a foothold in the UK public sector market
- Advising on UK public sector cyber readiness and support for national government, including cyber risks assessment
- Helping clients to build on an existing client base, translating success in other sectors to resonate with public service needs
- Developing a supplier’s profile and reputation for excellence, through thought-leadership activity, running strategic events, survey work and research work
- Capturing key business and sector issues facing a public sector CXO community relevant to the supplier service offerings, with appropriate messaging
- Advising on the state of technology awareness and digital take-up in the public sector, particularly in areas such as cloud, social media analytics, cyber, information strategy, performance management, shared services and digital transformation
- Advising on specific IT bids and opportunities in the public sector, developing prospects and marketing plans, to increase the rate of winning tenders
- Mentoring and coaching sales and marketing teams on how to sell to and build relations with CEOs, CIOs and politicians
- Developing marketing materials, such as video and web content, writing industry focused articles, blogs, white papers and social media activity
- Running events, dinner discussions and client briefings as an independent and reputable voice in the sector, to open up opportunities for suppliers to subsequently engage with prospective public sector clients
- NED advisory, public speaking and lecturing assignments for universities and government.
What would be the best way for a brand to contact you?
They can contact me through my Twitter or LinkedIn.