As part of my role, I stay informed about policy changes, legislative updates, and emerging trends that could impact our sector and LCRIG members. Horizon scanning has always been a key strength of mine, and it’s a skill that my Civil Service colleagues have consistently valued and trusted throughout my career. This responsibility remains critical to me as CEO, and I believe it’s equally important for those who work with or are members of LCRIG.
I’m deeply passionate about public services and recognise the vital role a healthy, dynamic, and responsible supply chain plays in delivering services to communities. Effective horizon scanning requires strategic thinking about both the challenges and opportunities that might affect the sector. To do this well, I spend a significant portion of my time reading, building knowledge, cultivating relationships, and carefully listening to others. This aspect of my work is just as essential as meeting members, collaborating with government, and attending industry events.
LCRIG benefits from several valuable relationships, including one with ERTICO, which provides insights into developments beyond the UK. Despite Brexit, changes across Europe still impact our supply chain members, regardless of their size.
When it comes to staying up-to-date, I find train travel invaluable for uninterrupted reading. The unreliable phone signal and unsecured Wi-Fi on the West Coast Mainline help me focus during long trips to London.
This week, I’ve been reviewing a BSI Flex safety standard in the CCAV space. The technical author of this safety standard is someone I greatly respect – we have supported some of his work in 2024, and he invited me to participate in a brilliant ministerial roundtable last Summer. I’ve also been catching up on reading other reports covering the socioeconomic impacts of quantum computing, security in technology, emerging technologies, and think pieces predicting devolution outcomes.
I’m also tracking emerging innovations to decide which ones are worth inviting to the Innovation and Learning Festival (book your spots now!). Last week, I spoke with contacts in the water industry, reached out to military experts, and engaged with people supporting innovation start-ups. I often dig into news stories to assess whether they are genuine breakthroughs or marketing hype. Our sector tends to be shrewd in spotting “innovation hype,” and I take a devil’s advocate approach to question the hype. This has occasionally made me unpopular – once, I asked a simple but overlooked question that led to some red faces and defensiveness. Innovation for the sake of it doesn’t help anyone, especially when budgets are tight.
While I’ve been reading on trains, Dan, our Head of Sector Insights, has also been travelling. This week, he attended an AI event to support our work with the Department for Transport and has been finalising the draft Innovation Report during his train journeys. We’re on track to share the final version with LCRIG members in the coming months.
Paula Claytonsmith, CEO