Latest posts

• The false promise of technology
  Part 7 of a series on toxic technology. For all the wide-eyed futurology surrounding the potential of digital technology, it commonly fails to meet expectations. Start-ups fail considerably more than they succeed. Digital ‘transformation’ initiatives commonly overrun and under deliver. Many products and features fail the ultimate test – users just don’t find them useful. This […]
• The toxic production line
  Part 6 of a series on toxic technology. Large organisations can feel like out-of-control production lines. Everyone is doing their best to keep up, but the demand keeps coming. This feeling comes from a lack of mastery and empowerment. It is caused by command and control culture, and reinforced by traditional governance. Where technology is […]
• Culture eats technology for breakfast
  Part 5 of a series on toxic technology. Culture in organisations is what people value, and how they behave. Some organisational cultures are undesirable, and will cause and embed problems until the culture changes. Some of these problems impact technology – culture can reduce its quality, and lead to it becoming toxic. Poor cultures can […]
• Mistrust makes technology toxic
  Part 4 of a series on toxic technology. Read parts 1, 2 and 3. Over the next few instalments in this series, I’m going to write about the causes of toxic technology. These causes are systemic: markets, management, culture, finance and human bias can all contribute to toxicity. My intention is to help people understand that […]

Join my email list

I’ll be sharing my writing and interesting links about making technology useful and sustainable in organisations. Over the next few months, I’m planning to write in a regular series about toxic technology. If you’d like to get an email when I create new content, then sign up here:

Video & Audio

Digital in the UK public sector is here to stay. The cultures, processes, business models and technologies of many organisations have changed significantly over the previous decade. Many teams in the sector now have recognisably ‘internet-era’ ways of working: working in the open, user-centred design, iterating services, and doing all of this in multidisciplinary teams.

April 2021 on Making Tech Better. This was episode 5 of MadeTech’s new podcast where I spoke with the host Clare Sudbery about toxic technology and how funding isn’t working for digital.

June 2020 at Computing’s DeskFlix event, co-presented with Kris Saxton. Why a cloud hosting strategy should focus on user-centred design, creating a service that meets the needs of software developers.

June 2018 on the WB40 podcast where I’m interviewed about working in technology and justice.

About me

I’m a digital and technology specialist, with leadership experience in digital delivery and transformation, user-centred service and policy design, and cyber security.

I’m a partner at Public Digital, and an independent consultant. Previously, I was Chief Technology Officer at the UK’s Ministry of Justice. I’ve advised senior public servants in UK, Canada, Madagascar and Australia, and executives of global private sector companies. … Read more