Very Group's ex-CIO on gen AI at scale - Ctrl Alt Lead podcast

The ex-Very CIO speaks about AI, fast followers and shadow IT

In season 1, episode 2 of Ctrl Alt Lead Tom Allen talk to Very Group's ex-CIO, Matt Grest, about how to build an AI strategy and roll it out at scale.

Welcome back to Ctrl Alt Lead, Computing's IT leader interview podcast.

This time I was joined by Matt Grest, who's just left online retailer Very Group after three successful years as CIO. Matt describes himself as a "career technologist," having held positions at the BBC, Sky and the NHS before joining Very.

AI is the word on everyone's lips at the moment, and everyone is looking for ways to roll it out at scale. Microsoft Copilot has made that slightly easier, but that's only one system with limited capabilities.

"If you'd asked me [about rolling gen AI out at scale] two years, I think my answer would have been, 'It's nearly there, but it's not quite ready'," says Matt. "The amazing thing is how quickly improvements have been made, literally by the day. It's impossible for any of us in the industry to catch up and keep up with what's going on out there."

ChatGPT put AI into everyone's hands, a move senior technologists "had been waiting for for 10, 20 years," and now we're in a position where "everyone needs to have an AI strategy."

Matt says there are three main factors to consider when building that strategy: "How can I give my customers better experiences using AI; how can I give my colleagues better experiences using AI; and how can I run a leaner, more cost-effective business, as a result of using gen-AI?"

We talked about what those cost savings and better experiences looked like at Very Group, the partnerships Matt pursued to enable AI throughout the business, and how to bring colleagues with you when you give them new tools, rather than installing and ignoring.

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