This is not so much of a best of episode as a taster for some of the topics we have covered and to tease / encourage you to go listen to the prior episodes.

In this captivating conversation, we have the pleasure of hosting Joy Macknight, the first female Editor of the prestigious publication - The Banker. Join us as we journey through Joy's illustrious career, starting from her double major in biology and environmental studies to leading a team of editors and reporters covering the international banking industry. She shares intriguing insights into the challenges and innovation within the banking sector and talks about her journey to becoming the first female Editor of the Banker.

In this episode, our podcast host, Matthew O’Neill takes us on a deep dive “Exploring DORA”, Europe’s new Digital Operational Resilience Act which is being suggested, will be as significant for Financial Services as GDPR has been to the rest of us. Matthew discusses the key provisions of DORA and how it aims to ensure the robustness and resilience of the financial system in the digital age. We'll uncover Matthew’s take on the motivations behind the act, its implications for financial institutions, IT service provider partners, and even the regulators, all with the aim of providing protection for consumers. From cyber threats to operational disruptions, DORA's framework addresses a wide range of risks and sets new standards for digital operational resilience. Matthew makes it clear that regulators from other jurisdictions are watching with interest. In addition, we learn of Matthew’s unprecedented journey in the financial sector; from an office junior at a local bank in the UK to becoming the Head of Infrastructure and Operations in Asia and then the Global Head of Data centres and IT Service Management at one of the world’s largest banks, and then on to his landing here at VMware. Matthew’s take on DORA gives you a true insider’s perspective. It’s a must-listen!

In this episode, we’re joined by Paolo Sironi, who shares his unique journey from banking to FinTech entrepreneurship and to his current role as global research leader in banking and financial markets at IBM, the Institute for Business Value. In our discussion, he emphasizes the need to understand the human being when innovating in the world of FinTech and banking transformation. He recounts his career-defining moments where he had to choose between doing research and working in customer service, and how this experience shaped his understanding of the behavior of finance and customer interactions with services. We explore banking and Fintech in platform economies. Paolo discusses his experience of creating the risk management architecture methodology for a large Italian bank and how this knowledge influenced his approach to tech innovation. He talks about his proudest moment of writing books, the feedback he received from the community, and how these experiences have helped him make more grounded judgments in financial services. We also discuss platform strategies that can help banks generate more value for their clients, as highlighted in Paolo's latest book, Banks and Fintech on Platform Economies.

In this episode, we delve into a conversation with Dr. Leda Glyptis, an accomplished fintech leader and former banker. With over two decades of experience driving transformation and technology across diverse financial sectors, Leda explores the inherent ties between banking, fintech, and the current technological surge. Discover how these domains can seamlessly integrate into the tech revolution by aligning with the established systems of traditional banks and corporations. Tune in to gain insights from this seasoned fintech veteran, as she guides us through the pivotal juncture where digital innovation and banking converge. Join us for a compelling discussion on the evolving landscape of finance in the digital age.

In this episode, we talk with Tony Boobier, a consultant, mentor, author and advisor with a specialisation with AI and financial services. Tony delves into hype surrounding AI's role in everyday life. He discusses the fear-driven perceptions of data-driven decisions, pondering the motives behind the hype, and its influence on society's view of AI. The episode also explores the practical applications of Generative AI in understanding vast amounts of data. From Customer Satisfaction to Risk Management, we talk through AI's current efficiency and areas that still need improvement and emphasise the need for organisations to integrate AI sustainably, with focus on Stakeholder Management. Join us and gain valuable insights from this thought leader who provides an objective perspective on the evolving AI landscape.

In this episode, we talk with Ian Ellis, Technology Strategist, Angel Investor, Venture Partner and Founder of the London Enterprise Tech Meetup. Ian Ellis is an experienced Technology Strategist who has driven C-level stakeholder engagement across some of world's leading organisations, including Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, Prudential Financial, Microsoft and Bank of Ireland. His work involves aligning the high-level objectives for an organisation with its technology and business strategies, particularly related to how it drives practical innovation and also engagement with the external ecosystem of emerging technologies, investors and incumbent tech players. Ian covers a lot of topics including generative AI and its potential applications, reporting requirements around ESG, and the need for thoughtful regulation, responsible innovation, and sustainable practices in the financial services industry.

In this episode, we flip the script on our show and put Brian Hayes, Senior Director, Financial Services Industry Vertical at VMWare in the guest seat. We discuss the digital transformation of the financial services industry. Brian highlights the need for financial institutions to embrace digital transformation, adopt agile methodologies, and cultivate a culture of innovation to stay competitive in the rapidly changing industry.

In this episode, we speak with Joe Baguley, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, EMEA, at VMware. In his own words, Joe is the connection between R&D and the field, our customers, and our partners.  He drives all things around that, in terms of where we're going, what we're doing, what's next, and leading the technical community within VMware in EMEA.

In this episode, we speak with Spencer Kimball. Spencer is the co-founder and CEO of Cockroach Labs. He is one of the original authors of GIMP. Worked on databases during the heyday of the dotcom era and worked for Google during much of their biggest growth and impact.

In this episode, we speak with Claire-Louise McSherry, Managing Director within the Technology Sector at Russell Reynolds Associates. Claire-Louise talks about what she is calling the great reflection on the current work landscape, including changes to recruitment and retention. She explains how factors related to technology, culture, sustainability, and social impact have affected those changes.

In this episode, we speak with Kevin McLoughlin. Kevin is partner and co-founder at MTech Capital. He has spent 22 years in insurance investment banking. Kevin talks with us about how digital technology allows insurance companies to advance their operations and offer new products, but how adoption has been a slow process.

This episode features Zia Yusuf. He is Senior Vice President, Strategic Ecosystem & Industry Solutions at VMware. Zia chatted with us about his outlook on economic development, emerging markets, and the use of technology to benefit and enhance business as a competitive capability.

Ray O'Brien is Chief Operation Officer at Quantexa. He is an international business leader, board member, independent director, and advisor with a unique mix of expertise in Data, Analytics, Technology, Risk and Finance. Ray chatted with us about what is behind what he calls the “third industrial revolution.” He delves into how machine learning has changed the capacity for projects to do things that historically many couldn’t afford before. Ray provides his thoughts on how data and analytics are growing every day and affecting relationships among businesses and consumers.

Hanna Helin is the Global Head of Technology Innovation at the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). In this role she leads LSEG’s Technology Innovation across their global Technology organization. Hanna has worked in a variety of technology and business leadership positions and is experienced in developing, leading and executing large technology and data initiatives. Hanna chatted with us about what is happening in the market around emerging technology. She explains how she is engaged in the global ecosystem through understanding cutting edge technologies, collaborating with venture capital to understand investment approach and focus areas, and engaging organizations in academic research.

Joel Neeb is the VP of Execution and Transformation at the office of the CEO at VMWare. We caught up with Joel recently and talked about what the financial industry can learn from tech companies and more specifically about revolutionary transformation. Why you should sell business outcomes rather than the product that gets you there, and how in just a few years time, the most successful organizations will be the ones whose teams are aligned culturally and operationally around customer success.

In this episode of Don't Break the Bank, we speak with Spiros Margaris. Spiros is a venture capitalist at Margaris Ventures, a futurist, keynote speaker, and board member. He’s a senior advisor to and investor in several companies in the fintech, insurtech, cybersecurity, health care, and AI sectors. Spiros chatted with us about why embedded finance excites him, the future of banking, why both crypto and cash is here to stay, and how the metaverse will disrupt the financial world as we know it.

In this episode of Don’t Break the Bank, we speak with Colin Bannister. Colin is VP of Solution Engineering for VMware EMEA and a big champion of VMware’s Degree-Apprenticeship program. Colin talks to us about mentorship, learning on the job and how to find, cultivate and support new talent within the industry.

In this episode of Don’t Break the Bank, we talk to Josh Simons, Chief Technologist for High Performance Computing at VMware. Josh tells us about some of the things he’s working on in HPC as it relates to financial services. We also explore where ML and AI are fit and are heading...and consider some of the ethical implications as our ability to harness data evolves. This is a great episode for anyone thinking about the types of data that could be used for Machine Learning and how this could be used in your organisation.

In this special VMworld episode of Don’t Break the Bank, we talk with Jennifer Manry, Vice President of the Global Industries Group at VMware, and Tom Kellermann, Head of Cybersecurity Strategy at VMware. Jennifer and Tom discuss guarding against cybersecurity breaches and ways to create better and safer customer experiences as part of the drive of Digital Business Transformation.