British Red Cross CIO Rosie Slater-Carr said that the organisation had “grasped Agile” in response to Covid-19 restrictions, and advocated the opportunities provided by Internet of Things, automated translation and videoconferencing as ‘Tech for Good’ which could have a significant positive impact on some of the most vulnerable in society.​

Responsible for technology, digital and data at the charity – its mission to mobilise the power of humanity – Slater-Carr was speaking to NS Media Group Technology Editor Edward Qualtrough at the inaugural Virtual CIO Symposium, a gathering of CIOs and business leaders hosted by Computer Business Review and NS Tech.​

In her session ‘Mobilising the kindness of volunteers – Technology and the British Red Cross response to Covid-19’, Slater-Carr discussed getting the organisation working remotely and empowering frontline workers, its volunteer registration service which is being used by NHS Scotland, developing digital products at scale, managing remote teams, and her role as sustainability lead at the institution.​

​”We’ve seen the organisation really grasp Agile and product management – we’d been encouraging them to do so for a while and I don’t think we will go backwards from that,” she said. “Marketing colleagues and fundraising colleagues are getting at this time it’s the way to work and that’s really exciting.”

Sitting on the British Red Cross executive leadership team, the CIO also discussed some of the technologies she believes could help the humanitarian charity fulfil its mission.​

“I remain really excited about automating translation; I think that’s hugely powerful,” she said.​

“I think video-conferencing and use of video is mainstream now. So how do we really harness that so that if people can’t travel then we don’t make them?​

“I’m also still quite excited about Internet of Things. I’m excited about what that can mean in terms of things like independent living where we can use something like the fact that someone hasn’t used a kettle today as an indicator that there might be something wrong in that house. I just think that there are things that we can do that aren’t as intrusive as CCTV but help us support those who want to live independently, but have significant vulnerabilities.”​
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You can view the full interview with British Red Cross CIO Rosie Slater-Carr on-demand at the Virtual CIO Symposium portal.​