In this episode we speak with Dr. Vik Pant, the Chief Scientist and Chief Scientific Advisor for Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). Dr. Pant shares his priorities in his role and learnings from NRCan’s digital accelerator as they work to implement new technologies. Discover how new artificial intelligence capabilities are being used to promote sustainability, from improved flood mapping and wildfire response to mining risk mitigation.

In this episode we speak with Professor Dame Angela McLean, the Chief Scientific Advisor for the UK’s Ministry of Defence. McLean shares her priorities in the role, from data curation for sharing to risk analysis, and lessons learned from responding to COVID-19. She discusses the importance of asking the right questions and integrating scientific expertise in government.

In this episode we talk with Joseph Courtesis, former Inspector of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), who retired in 2020 after 27 years of service. Courtesis discusses his experience leading the NYPD’s Real Time Crime Center, what it is, and how it has supported communities in New York. He shares his lessons for other public sector organizations.

In this episode we speak with André Correr, Institutional Relations and Project Manager at Best.Projects, Microsoft’s Government Partner of the Year. Best.Projects was recognized for their innovative work over the past year to deliver food to vulnerable communities in São Paulo, Brazil during the global pandemic.

In this episode we speak with Mike Schrock, Vice President of Global Alliances at Thales, Microsoft’s Defense & Intelligence Partner of the Year. Thales was recognized for their work developing cloud-based capabilities for defense organizations, allowing increased agility and interoperability, and bringing the ability to analyze data for decision making in a wide range of locations.

We speak with Mohammad Almadani, CEO & Co-Founder of Classera, Microsoft’s Education Partner of the Year. Classera was recognized for their work empowering schools through the pandemic. Almadani was driven to develop smart learning solutions focusing on AI, gamification, and social learning. We discuss the growth of remote learning, how it supported education in conflict environments, how countries with limited infrastructures embraced this approach, and his vision for the future of education.

In this episode we discuss Jacky Wright’s experience as the Chief Digital and Information Officer of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC), the UK’s tax and customs department. She shares how to build a digital organization at scale and how to create an inclusive culture to deliver the best outcomes. Wright has held leadership roles in both the public and private sector and rejoined Microsoft in 2019 as the Chief Digital Officer and Corporate Vice President.

In this episode, we talk with Maria Hald, who spent 20 years in the Danish public sector, about one of her roles as Deputy Director General in the Ministry of Finance. Hald was responsible for running a shared service center for HR for central government agencies in Denmark. She led transformation of this from a traditional way of operating to a cloud-based approach. We explore how she did this, the challenges she faced, and the outcomes of the work.

In this episode we are joined by Luis Felipe Monteiro, the Secretary of Digital Government in Brazil. He oversees digital transformation of the federal government and is dedicated to implementing innovation actions in the public sector focusing on the needs of the citizens. We discuss how to scale digital transformation in a very large country, how digital approaches have enabled support of the most financially vulnerable people during the COVID-19 pandemic, and where Brazil is focusing next.

In this episode, we speak to Yazmine Laroche, Deputy Minister for Public Service Accessibility in the Government of Canada. We discuss her ambition to make the Canadian public service the most accessible in the world. We explore the steps she’s taking to make it happen, how technology can play a crucial role, effects of the pandemic, and where to get started.