Strategy and roadmap: Technology

Mark Luckins
Principal Consultant

Mark advises senior leadership teams to help them navigate the world of digital technology. He helps charities and third sector organisations determine the right digital, data and technology strategies to enable their mission. In his career, Mark has held various technology leadership roles and has achieved numerous certifications (ITIL, CISSP, PRINCE2, MCSE); academically, he holds a degree in “Operations Research” (better known today as ‘data science’). He helps charities grow the right organisational capabilities to support their current strategic priorities as well as generate value in the longer term. He advises on the specialist staffing and suppliers required to deliver as well as staff and SLT skills more widely. Mark often acts as a fractional “digital technology director” advising senior leaders on digital transformation agendas, major technology investments or simply how to make data and technology provide more value. Mark also regularly helps our clients to kickstart innovation or major new projects, or conversely to turn around stalling or failing change processes. Mark has extensive experiencing working across third sector organisations including marketing, fundraising, beneficiary/member service provision and corporate (finance, HR, IT/facilities). Mark has worked in large international charities (Plan International); the public sector (Houses of Parliament); small international charities (Marine Stewardship Council); UK charities (Crisis) and the education sector (ICAN). He managed teams of over 30 and has built teams from scratch. He has delivered major multi-million projects (CRM, website and data architecture) as well as smaller projects; and he is regularly involved in innovation and helping to save money and reduce overheads. He prides himself on providing commercially realistic, rightsized advice appropriate to the maturity of the organisation.

Paul Sypko
Consultancy Director

“Charities and not-for-profit organisations are demanding users of information systems and digital technology. There’s a clear sense of purpose in the sector, and that shows in how technology is used to achieve impact and obtain real value. Not-for-profits often hold massive amounts of data, much of which is highly sensitive in nature, and they engage in many different ways with a very broad range of stakeholders. Whether it’s using digital channels to support personalised ‘user journeys’ or high-impact campaigning and engagement, or diligently taking care of back-office systems to deliver an efficient and cost-effective service, it’s great to be working in a sector where technology can be used so effectively to make a tangible difference to people's lives.”

Paul is a highly experienced technology management consultant, with a senior-level CIO/CTO background and expertise in areas such as technology strategy development, digital solutions, infrastructure and systems management, function reviews, information security and data protection, and selection and management of technology partners. He has 25 years’ experience of leading high-impact consultancy engagements, the majority of which have been with clients in the not-for-profit sector. Prior to Adapta, Paul held senior roles at not-for-profit specialists Sayer Vincent, Crowe UK, and BlueSpark Consulting. He also brings to his engagements significant experience from the commercial sector, having worked for “Strategy &”, a leading firm of strategy consultants that is now part of PwC, where he was awarded their Professional Excellence Award while leading a large-scale digital transformation and innovation programme. Paul has led assignments for more than 100 organisations, including charities, membership organisations, trade unions, trade associations, royal colleges, professional institutes and other not for-profit and commercial organisations. Paul's recent clients have included ActionAid UK, ClientEarth, Cranstoun, Tate Britain, St. Peter's Hospice, the Institution of Civil Engineers, British Gymnastics, the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation, the Education Support Partnership, National Children's Bureau, the Institute for Fiscal Studies, Lymphoma Action, SPANA, the Woodland Trust, the Trussell Trust, Volunteering Matters and Woking & Sam Beare Hospices. Paul specialises in strategic planning for information systems, function reviews and outsourcing, commercial contract negotiation, project planning, data protection, information security management, business process improvement, and procurement of business applications such as CRM. Paul holds a MA (Oxon) degree from the University of Oxford, having gained a scholarship to read Economics and Management at St. John’s College and the Saïd Business School. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Consulting and has a particular interest in helping others to achieve their potential. Following a long period of time spent on various committees in a voluntary leadership capacity, he was pivotal to the development of the ‘Chartered Management Consultant’ award which was launched in 2020, and he often provides guidance and support to people working towards their professional qualifications. Paul is also a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute, a Fellow of the Institute of Leadership and Management, a Certified Business Advisor and a member of the British Computer Society’s IT Leaders Forum. In his spare time, he is also the chair of trustees for a local Scout group.

“Paul is enthusiastic, dedicated and a highly capable person who works with such integrity and to a high standard. I very much value Paul’s support and guidance and know I can always rely on him.”

Andrew
Technology Strategy and Operations Associate

Andrew has 30 years' experience in senior technology roles and has spent the last 15 years driving change and delivering strategies at some of the largest and best-known names in the not-for-profit sector including Comic Relief, British Red Cross, and Cancer Research UK. As CTO at Comic Relief, he unified the Digital, Data & Technology teams, delivering technology to support diversification of income streams and measurement of social change. At Cancer Research UK he led a radical shift to innovative infrastructure to support the rapid growth of scientific systems and tools. At British Red Cross he transformed the management of a huge end-user computing estate to deliver a simplified, integrated post-pandemic work environment. Prior to his work in the charity sector, Andrew spent 12 years in the pharmaceuticals sector as European IT Director for Novartis Biopharmaceuticals and as Director of Global Finance systems at GSK. He played a leading role in the integration of GSK’s Head Office systems during the merger of GlaxoWellcome and SmithKline Beecham. An excellent lateral thinker, Andrew uses a collaborative approach to find innovative solutions and to deliver change via close working partnerships with business leaders, partner organisations, and staff. His focus is on building trust and confidence for senior management teams that their technology strategies and solutions are supporting delivery their vision. A keen golfer, Andrew also enjoys spending time watching cricket and attending live music concerts of artists ranging from Bach to Boy Genius. Andrew is also, pro-bono, a director and CTO of Trickle, a start-up which will use open banking to deliver an effortless charitable-giving platform.

Philip
Associate Principal Consultant

Philip is a senior IT professional, experienced in leadership positions such as IT Director / Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Chief Technology Officer (CTO). He has a particular focus on technology strategy, architecture and consultancy. Adapta clients have included Asthma UK, Cranstoun, Earthwatch, Enham Trust, the Labour Party, Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation, Lymphoma Action, the Mental Health Foundation, NSPCC, PCS Union, Pony Club UK, SignHealth, the Royal Society, the Trussell Trust and the Woodland Trust. Commercial experience included senior management roles at Sopra Steria and its public-private joint venture Shared Services Connected Ltd (SSCL), 2012-2016. Before that (2003-2012), Philip provided IT leadership as a senior civil servant in the Ministry of Justice (CTO) and the National Offender Management Service (CIO). Earlier, as Technical Director, Philip led the European professional services team for Software.com (later known as Openwave), specialising in email software, following a similar role with HP Consulting. He has travelled widely and worked overseas in the Americas, Europe and Asia, including having lived for three years in India as a British Council officer. Philip has significant experience at board level in both commercial and voluntary organisations, as non-executive director, charity trustee and chairman. Philip was previously Chair of Trustees at Eduserv, a not-for-profit IT services business. Philip has held numerous voluntary roles within the Church of England and the United Reformed Church, from local to national levels. He has advised both the Alzheimers' Society and the Church of England on IT strategy, information security, programme delivery and organisational design, on a voluntary basis. He has also been a school governor in both the UK and in India, and served as the chair of trustees for Hands of Compassion, supporting primary education in Zambia. Philip read Natural Sciences and Mathematics (MA MMath) at the University of Cambridge. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Directors, a Fellow of the British Computer Society and a Member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (FIoD FBCS MIET).