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Oct 2026

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About the show

The Digital Lighthouse is a podcast for CTOs and other tech leaders looking to navigate their organisation through endless disruption and turbulence. Packed full of real life stories and insights, this podcast serves as your guiding light - wherever you are in your journey and whatever challenges you face.

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60 recent

October 15, 202622 min

Why proactive leadership means going slow to go fast

Most leadership advice waits for things to go wrong. What if you could stop them from going wrong in the first place? In this episode of The Digital Lighthouse, Zoe Cunningham is joined by Melinda Seckington, a leadership and engineering team coach. Melinda has been an engineering manager, software engineer, conference speaker, tech event organiser, blogger and startup founder — including a stint as one of the first engineers at FutureLearn, where she helped grow the team from six people to sixty. Together they explore what proactive leadership really means, why the old idea that engineers can't be great communicators is a myth worth retiring, how AI is making communication skills more valuable rather than less, and why slowing down is usually the fastest way to handle growing pressure on your time. You'll hear about: • The three building blocks of proactive leadership: awareness, intent and action • Why being technical and being a great communicator were never mutually exclusive • How AI raises the value of good communicators instead of replacing them • The handful of questions behind every successful case for buy-in • Why new leaders already have more of the right skills than they think • Why “go slow to go fast” beats trying to do everything at once Whether you're stepping into leadership for the first time or rethinking how your team handles growing pressure, this episode is a practical guide to leading before things go wrong, not just after.

September 9, 202624 min

How to build a winning tech strategy when nobody's building for you | The Digital Lighthouse

What happens when your industry needs cutting-edge technology, but nobody's building it for you? In this episode of The Digital Lighthouse, Zoe Cunningham is joined by Austen Robilliard, Chief Executive at Asher Wealth Consultancy. Known as “The Fund Geek,” Austen is one of Europe's most decorated fund selectors, with 20 years' experience across investment, technology, regulation and compliance. Together they explore how to set a technology strategy in a market that's chronically underserved by tech vendors, why legacy systems that everyone distrusts often remain the safer bet, and what it really takes to prove — not just claim — that a fund meets its ESG commitments. You'll hear about: • Why retail wealth management is stuck with decades-old, hand-me-down technology • How to weigh the risk of replacing a system that still “just about” works • Why consumer duty regulation means there's now “nowhere to hide” • What Moore's Law means for an industry that moves slowly by design • Why ESG scoring can unfairly favour large companies over genuinely green ones • Why better data leads directly to better client outcomes Whether you're setting technology strategy in a niche or underserved market, or simply curious how wealth management works behind the scenes, this episode is a candid look at balancing innovation with the cost of getting it wrong.

August 5, 202624 min

Why AI doesn’t need to be perfect to be trusted

As AI becomes part of courts, healthcare and other critical public services, how do we build systems that people can trust? In this episode of The Digital Lighthouse, Zoe Cunningham is joined by Alex Wolff, Public Sector Director at Softwire, who has spent more than 20 years helping government, NHS and healthcare organisations deliver complex digital transformation. Together, they explore why comparing AI to perfection is the wrong benchmark, how to balance automation with human judgement, and what responsible AI looks like in practice. You’ll hear about: * Why AI should be compared with today’s systems, not an ideal world * When mistakes are acceptable, and when they simply aren’t * Why humans remain central to trustworthy AI * Three practical principles for building safe AI systems * How AI could make public services more accessible, personalised and efficient Whether you’re working in government, healthcare or any organisation deploying AI in high-stakes environments, this episode offers practical lessons for building technology people can trust.

July 2, 202625 min

What happens when water companies stop competing on data

What happens when water companies stop competing on data? Melissa Tallack believes the biggest opportunities don’t come from solving problems alone. They come from sharing data, learning from other industries and building on what already works. In this episode of The Digital Lighthouse, Melissa joins Zoe Cunningham to discuss how the Stream initiative is helping water companies collaborate on open data, why breaking down silos creates value for everyone, and what the water sector can learn from rail, energy, health and beyond. Together they discuss: * Why open data creates more value when industries collaborate. * How Stream is transforming data sharing across the water sector. * Breaking down organisational, industry and cross-sector silos. * Why culture matters as much as technology. * How citizen science could become one of the UK’s most valuable data sources. * Why the best ideas often come from outside your own industry.

June 11, 202624 min

How insurance is driving the future of autonomous cars

In this episode of The Digital Lighthouse, host Zoe Cunningham speaks with David Williams, a senior executive and non-executive director with more than 30 years’ experience in insurance. David previously worked at AXA Insurance UK, where he led work on connected and autonomous vehicles, including involvement in five government-backed consortia. He was also chair of the Association of British Insurers Motor Committee. Zoe and David explore the future and present of driverless vehicles, and the role insurance plays in helping new technology reach the road safely. David explains why many vehicles described as autonomous are still driver assistance systems, why insurance relies so heavily on data, and what happens when a new technology has no historic claims data to draw from. They also discuss the UK’s role in supporting autonomous vehicle development, how data and machine learning have changed insurance, and why driverless cars are designed to avoid accidents rather than make moral judgements about human life. Discover Why driverless cars are closer than many people think What different levels of vehicle autonomy really mean Why insurance is central to autonomous vehicle development How data has transformed risk assessment in insurance Why the UK could be well placed to support autonomous vehicle innovation Why the trolley problem is not the right way to think about driverless cars

May 13, 202625 min

Why digital transformation rarely goes to plan

Why do so many transformation programmes fail? And what does it take to actually deliver change at scale? In this episode of The Digital Lighthouse, Zoe Cunningham speaks with Andy Burton, a technology leader with over 30 years of experience delivering large-scale digital transformation across industries including insurance, retail, and online gaming. Andy has held senior roles at organisations including Sky Betting & Gaming, The Very Group, and most recently esure, where he led a multi-year transformation to replatform the business and build a modern, digital-first insurer. They explore what transformation really looks like in practice. While many organisations begin with clear plans and ambitious timelines, the reality is far messier. External events, legacy constraints, and constant change mean even the best plans rarely survive intact. Andy shares what made the esure transformation successful, why many programmes go awry before the final step, and what it really means to become “digital on the inside”.

April 16, 202626 min

Why leaders need to create space for thinking

In this episode of The Digital Lighthouse, host Zoe Cunningham speaks with Paul Spiers, founder of The New P&L Institute and host of The New P&L podcast. Zoe and Paul explore how leaders can create the conditions for better thinking, creativity, and innovation in a world shaped by constant change and emerging technologies. While organisations often say they value curiosity, critical thinking, and creativity, Paul explains why many fail to create the space needed for those qualities to thrive. Instead, speed and efficiency dominate, limiting long term innovation. Paul shares how leaders can focus on self awareness, purpose, and culture to drive better outcomes. They also discuss why context matters when introducing AI, why leadership behaviour shapes culture, and how small, consistent actions can transform both individuals and organisations. - Why organisations struggle to enable creativity and innovation - Why self awareness is the foundation of effective leadership - Why context shapes how employees respond to AI - How leaders can create space for better thinking - Why culture, leadership, and technology must be aligned - How small, consistent actions drive meaningful change

April 16, 202626 min

Why leaders need to create space for thinking

Why leaders need to create space for thinking by Softwire

March 24, 202625 min

Why AI is like a highly motivated intern

Host Zoe Cunningham speaks with Steve Burrows, a global product delivery and technology leader with more than 20 years of experience delivering digital platforms and transformation programmes across industries. Zoe and Steve explore how organisations can actually capture value from AI in complex environments. While excitement around generative AI is high, many initiatives struggle because they begin with the technology rather than the problem. Drawing on his experience across consulting, product development, and delivery, Steve explains why the most successful AI implementations start by understanding users and mapping workflows. Instead of replacing people, AI works best when it removes repetitive work and allows humans to focus on judgment, creativity, and decision-making. He also shares a practical way to think about AI: treat it like a highly motivated intern. Useful for many tasks, but still requiring oversight, guardrails, and human judgment.

February 11, 202628 min

Why AI creates knowledge debt and how leaders stay in control with Macs Dickinson

Host Zoe Cunningham speaks with Macs Dickinson, Director of Engineering at LHV Bank on the challenge many technology leaders are facing as AI tools become embedded in everyday work. While generative AI can accelerate delivery, it can also create a hidden risk: knowledge debt. The loss of deep system understanding when teams rely too heavily on generated outputs. Drawing on his experience in highly regulated industries including banking and gambling, Macs explains why “fail fast” does not translate to environments where reliability and accountability are critical. He shares how his teams are adopting machine learning and AI agents safely, starting with narrow internal use cases, building strong guardrails, and ensuring engineers retain ownership of what they ship. Discover: Why AI can speed up delivery while increasing long term risk Why regulated industries require a different mindset for AI adoption How machine learning models can be governed through monitoring and human review Why generative AI is harder to test than traditional software How starting small reduces risk and builds organisational learning Why ownership and understanding still matter in AI assisted engineering