Alex Richards
Chief Information & Digital Officer at Ibstock PLC
Can you please provide a little introduction about yourself.
I'm Alex, I live in Leicestershire and have been with Ibstock PLC for about 8 weeks now. I've previously worked for Boohoo, Frasers Group, and Experian (amongst others). I am a big rugby fan, season ticket holder at Leicester Tigers and still playing for my local club occasionally!
What has your journey to your position been like? What path have you taken?
I fell into IT by accident after leaving university - I actually qualified as a criminal psychologist! After finishing my studies, I got a job as a Data Analyst at a local finance firm to tide me over whilst I looked for a suitable Junior Psychologist role. During my studies, I had spent hours per week analysing and reporting on data, so this was quite an easy transition to make.
After a couple of months of working as a Data Analyst and still hunting for a Psychologist role, my Mum was diagnosed with terminal cancer. I put all job hunting on hold and balanced work with supporting my Mum, stepdad and sister through the remaining months of Mum's life.
The company I was working for were exceptionally supportive with the issues outside of work and continued to give me opportunities to progress my career with them. After a small stint as a SQL Report Developer, I moved into a Business Analyst role and that's the point my career really took off.
Over the next few years, I progressed through to Head of Business Analysis & Project Management at the same firm, taking responsibility for a fantastically effective delivery team.
After hitting the 5-year mark at the finance firm, I felt I had progressed as far as I could in my role there - I joined Experian in 2017 as Head of Business Analysis, Process Excellence & Change Management within one of the B2B business units - ultimately working with a really strong leadership team to transform ways of working and embed agility in the business unit I was working in. After almost a year, I was promoted into a group-level role as Head of Agile delivery, taking ownership of Experian's Agile transformation and new delivery approaches.
During this time, I worked with over 40 software engineering teams to refine and grow their capability in delivery. Whilst not always plain sailing, we experimented with a number of Agile frameworks and ways of working, and built a really strong Agile Coach and Scrum Master community to continue the relentless focus on efficiency and value. I saw some great results from our efforts, with clear improvements in deployment frequency, quality and pace.
After 3 years with Experian, I was approached about a new role, heading up the tech delivery and operations function within Frasers Group, Mike Ashley's retail empire. This put me completely out of my comfort zone, after spending many years working in a heavily regulated finance industry - retail is extremely fast-paced and relentlessly value-centric. I joined a tech department which was punching well above its weight in terms of outputs and deliverables.
My role was to ensure the IT teams were always focused on the highest priority items, and to ensure the tech across the estate was working as it should. With hundreds of stores around the world and over 50 websites to manage, it was a mammoth task!
I oversaw some great projects, including the integration of of newly acquired businesses, the complete refresh of the POS technology across the retail estate, the start of the replacement of the core e-commerce platform, the introduction of robotics into the distribution centres/warehouses.
After 18 months at Frasers Group, I moved over for a short stint as Technology Director with Boohoo Group in Manchester. Boohoo Group is a very interesting business, extremely fast-paced and investing in lots of exciting new technology.
During my time with Boohoo, my role was focused on the core technology stack, including the ERP, finance and supplier order management systems. It was a time of huge change in the industry (and in the Manchester tech market in particular), as the impact of the Great Resignation was really hitting in and impacting projects across the board.
In June 2022, I was offered the opportunity to join Ibstock PLC as Chief Information & Digital Officer. I'm currently responsible for all of the tech, data and cyber security across the group - whilst it's still very early days here, I'm delighted to be part of this business and have been warmly welcomed by everyone.
Has it always been your vision to reach the position you’re at? Was your current role part of your vision to become a tech leader?
No - and honestly - when I left university, I didn't know that most of the roles I've done even existed!
I'm extremely ambitious and I've been lucky to work for some really exceptional leaders over the years - all of whom have helped unlock opportunities and experience for me.
I've had aspirations to be a CIO for the last 5 years or so, and I have worked tirelessly to refine my skillset and build a strong network in order to help me hit my target. There's also been a lot of luck along the way - chance meetings at conferences with key individuals, strong relationships with recruiters and suppliers opening up opportunities for me.
I've worked hard to create opportunities for others, in the way opportunities have been created for me - I'm currently mentoring 3 people outside of Ibstock and have made a conscious effort to encourage progression in skills and scope of role for my team members.
Have you had a role model or mentor that has helped you on your journey?
Skipping this question - wouldn't want to name people without their explicit permission
How do you see the role of the technology leader evolving over the next 5 years?
I'm a firm believer that technology leadership needs to evolve into a more explicit 'business' leadership role in the coming years. A renewed focus on emotional intelligence and soft skills is essential.
More broadly, I'd like to see technology leadership collectively taking action against old-school transactional salespeople at the big technology suppliers. A lot of suppliers have now moved away from a heavy sales-led approach, into a more consultative, partnership-driven approach and this is extremely welcome from my perspective.
What skills do you think leaders of the future will need in order to thrive?
I think the world of Web3 is going to be more and more prominent, and I believe strongly that there are significant opportunities for technology leaders to grasp new opportunities using this tech. From using blockchain/distributed ledger technology to improve transparency in supply chains, to embracing the metaverse and enabling experiential interactions with digital versions of exisiting products/services, I believe Web3 will lead to a really positive shift in attitudes towards technology.
How do you keep current with new skills, technologies and personal development?
I like to engage with like-minded individuals via round table-type events and conferences. I read a lot of books/articles and watch a fair bit of YouTube content. I particularly like the TL/DR Newsletter for bitesize daily updates on the tech & crypto world.
I have strong relationships with some of the big tech firms, and maximise the opportunity to discuss emerging tech and new roadmap items with them also.
I also rely frequently on advice from Alex Sainty at SwiftScale, on emerging/scaling start-ups who are using interesting new technology!
What do you see as the next leap in technology that will impact your business or industry in particular?
I'm still very new in at Ibstock PLC and learning about the industry. I've got a wall full of ideas for big leaps we could take, but can't say for sure which ones will be the most impactful yet :)
"Authenticity is absolutely essential."
If you were mentoring a leader of the future, what advice or guidance would you give to help them on their way?
Authenticity is absolutely essential. This means bringing your real self to work, holding your morals and values firmly, and constructively challenging behaviour/decisions you don't agree with.This is a really difficult thing to learn!
Is there anything in particular that you would still like to achieve in your career or what is the next step on your journey?
I'd really like to support as a non-exec director in the tech start-up space. That's next on my list!
If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?
Big question - first thing that comes to mind is that I'd like to see an update to primary & secondary school curricula to focus more explicitly on computer science, data and finance topics.
It's a fast-changing world and STEM-related industry will continue to thrive. We'll make a huge headway in correcting the diversity mix in future generations by equipping everyone with the basics at school! I also think it's criminal that kids leave school without understanding home budgeting, mortgages, credit cards etc.
A big thank you to Alex Richards from Ibstock PLC for sharing his journey to date.
If you would like to gain more perspective from Tech Leaders and CIOs you can read some of our other interviews here.
