Hello! In today's episode, I'm talking to you about Slush, one of the most exciting start-up (and therefore FinTech) ecosystem events happening this week in the Nordics -- Helsinki to be precise. This is both an autobiographical one (I talk about some of my experiences of the event) and a recommendation one as I explore some of the key aspects of the Nordic and Finnish ecosystem that should (or could?) potentially be on your radar. And for the Spotify (or video!) viewers, I'll talk you through my special Helsinki Jacket outfit. I couldn't be at Slush this year because of client demands but I'm hoping to book out the time and attend next year. Perhaps I'll see you there?

In today's episode I'm bringing you a talent-focused conversation for executives who are aiming to hire - and for executives looking to manage their own career development. I'm delighted to be interviewing two executive search experts - Leathwaite's co-founder, James Rust, and his colleague Gordon Stanley who focuses on marketing, product, sales, and CEO hiring. Both individuals are enormously experienced in the business of (international) executive search - Gordon actually placed me in a number of roles and James has overseen the development of many of Leathwaite's newest service offerings across the years. Together they were a fantastic team and in the episode, we explore the hiring trends they're seeing in the market, some of the approaches they recommend for attracting and securing international talent, and we also touch upon what you should be doing to move your career forward. Reach out to James (LinkedIn) and Gordon (LinkedIn) via their LinkedIn profiles and of course you can find out more about the company at http://www.leathwaite.com.

In this episode, I talk about my "Zero to 10 Approach" for managing executive ideas. You are presented with a (potentially great) idea from an executive. But it's complex. It's going to need a lot of work. And although it's a good idea, fully baking it (to the tune of $10m or something similar) and then presenting it to market can result in failure -- irrespective if whether the idea was good or not.💡 Often, direct reports don't want to discourage or say no to their bosses. It feels a little difficult to challenge whether any customer will use it.. or want it.Indeed, many executives tend to think they know what the market wants - and can be surprised when that viewpoint isn't necessarily accurate.💡 My 0-10 approach begins by making this observation:"OK, if this [the idea] was version 10... what would version 1 look like?"You're not saying no.You're not rubbishing the idea.You're not demanding more evidence... Have a listen and let me know what you think?

In this episode, I am proposing a test for whether your bank is digital-first. Here's the test - can your bank quickly update their push notifications for Halloween to add a little Pumpkin emoji to their transaction notifications? Leading British neobank Monzo did this on Monday for me (and, I presume, all of their other customers!) Can your (incumbent) bank do this, easily and quickly? The answer, alas, is generally no...

Just yesterday I was talking with a CEO I work with regularly. He was hoping that a new project idea he'd been discussing would be 'completed by the end of the year'. I challenged this. Especially the word 'hope'. Even though it FEELS like we have a long time before December 31st... we don't actually have much productive 'delivery' time left. I discuss this story in the episode and I talk through some brief approaches for programme and project managers to be considering right now!

In this episode, Bryan sits down with Nelson Wootton, CEO and co-founder of SaaScada, the next-generation core banking software provider. If you're at all interested in core banking - the stuff that underpins everything - then I strongly recommend watching this one. Nelson gives an overview of the background that led to the founding of SaaScada and talks about how their platform's API-first development approach offers significant flexibility for neobanks and incumbents alike. You can find out more about SaaScada at https://saascada.com/.

Hello! In today's episode, I'm discussing the business of talent acquisition with Ali Noor. Ali is a Senior Talent Partner at open banking leader, Lean Technologies. However we're not talking about them today, instead we're focusing on Ali's area of expertise: Talent acquisition. Have you ever thought about approaching internal recruiters like Ali before? Well, in this episode we talk through the whole process and get Ali's very experienced take on how to position yourself, how to engage and some tips on everything from LinkedIn to preparing your CV. Here's Ali's LinkedIn Profile.

In this episode, I sat down with Chris Purdie, CEO of digital receipts firm, Receiptable, to understand more about their business, their offering and to get his perspective on the wider FinTech ecosystem. I was particularly interested to understand how Chris and the team have developed their market offering - and I'm pleased to report that Chris gives a good overview! You can find out more about Receiptable here and find Chris via his LinkedIn profile.

In today's episode, I'm interviewing George Toumbev, Chief Commercial Officer of NatWest Boxed. You'll have heard of NatWest, one of the biggest banks in the UK, but did you know they've recently launched a new Banking-As-A-Service offering called NatWest Boxed? In our conversation, George discusses the background and gives an overview of the service offering -- I think it's going to be an incredibly compelling offering for the UK marketplace. I can't wait to see what services other companies begin to create on top of NatWest Boxed. If you'd like to find out more, George suggests contacting them directly via their website at http://www.nwboxed.com.

In today's episode, we're joined by Stewart Lockie, a long-standing senior retail banking practitioner and CX champion. Stewart is CEO for Middle East & Africa of Hansal International, a specialist provider of business transformation services. Stewart discusses his background in retail banking and the importance of partnership with technology to deliver great customer outcomes. You can find out more at http://www.hansal-international.com.

In today's episode, I'm interviewing Mark Rennie Davis of Advistic. Mark is one of the leading payments experts in the GCC and consults widely on strategy for some of the largest players in the ecosystem. I asked him to give us an overview of some of the opportunities he's seeing and to give his perspective on the future of the marketplace. You can find out more about Mark by visiting https://www.advistic.com/.

In today's episode, I'm discussing the upcoming Nordic FinTech Week event taking place in Copenhagen, Denmark, next week. I hope to bring you some stimulating insights from the show. There's still time to get a ticket! And if you'd like to know more, can I refer you to Episode 11 featuring Chris Crespo, one of the event organisers, giving us a great overview. You can find out more at http://www.nfweek.com. If you're heading there, do reach out and let me know, I'm looking forward to meeting lots of FinTech fans! See you in Copenhagen!

I today's episode I'm talking about the world's other local bank: Revolut. I love the fact that I can easily transfer money between other Revolut users seamlessly in all sorts of currencies - and with around 30 million users across 43 (soon to be 46) countries, Revolut is developing into a truly 'global' bank. In practical terms, you can easily transfer amounts between all these Revolut countries giving customers such a great experience, compared to making a dreaded "international payment". I have a difficult time with the patience needed for international payments that take days, and days, and days. So, do have a listen and tell me what you think - do you agree with me that Revolut is becoming the world's other local bank?

In this episode, we bring you the origin story of Ben Goldin, Founder & CEO of Plumery, the Digital Success Fabric for banks and financial service providers. Bryan sat down with him to find out more about his journey and plans for the future with Plumery. Ben is incredibly well known in the core banking marketplace having most recently served as CTO and Chief Product Officer of cloud-based core banking platform Mambu. Prior to that, Ben was the First Chief Architect and Product Engineering Lead for Backbase. So we were obviously incredibly excited to hear about his plans with Plumery. Find more about the company at www.plumery.com.

In today's episode, I'm talking with John Smith of specialist core banking experts Quantum Six. The company specialises in assuring seriously important programmes of work for banks - typically core bank replacements or migrations. I talked through with John the difficult scenarios that many banks face and how best to mitigate these with independent assurance. This is something I've had to deal with many times and unfortunately, I didn't have the opportunity to appoint third-party project assurance specialists! I definitely would next time. Find out more about the company at www.quantumsix.com or send a note to John on LinkedIn.

If you didn't manage to make it to the Cedar-IBSi Digital Banking Summit today in Dubai, here's a snapshot of Bryan's panel discussion. In this episode, he outlines the importance and power of data particularly in the context of all the work he did establishing TNEX, one of the leading neobanks in South East Asia.

In today's episode, I am excited to feature Thomas Nehring, Managing Director of DESTRAC. Whilst I am often focused on the front-end future-focused aspects of Transformation, Thomas and his team focus on another far more practical aspect of transformation: That is, the relationship between Business and IT. Many large banks find themselves getting into all sorts of trouble with shadow IT - technology systems run unofficially by business teams. They also struggle with projects and programme management - this is where Thomas and his team specialise. In this podcast, he outlines his approach to solving these issues! You can find more about Thomas and his company at www.destrac.com.

Wio Bank recently launched their personal banking offering in the United Arab Emirates and in today's episode, we take a look at their sign-up process. Does it meet your expectations of a world leading neobank? Let's take a look!

Here's a quick snippet of our MD of Digital Banking & Venture, Bryan Carroll, talking about the importance of encouraging and supporting digital culture in banking in an interview with The Asian Banker, published recently.

Delivering value early and often is a critical component of the Chief Transformation Officer's plan. If you're heading up a key project or programme of work, remembering that senior management and a whole variety of other stakeholders are expecting to see 'something' from you, regularly, is very important. You must be willing to show and tell, all the time, to help build confidence and belief - especially when there are hundreds of millions at risk. In this episode, I give a sneak peek into one of the topics I explore in our "Hard Lessons in Digital Transformation" executive workshops.