Channel 4 CIO taking up HM Courts and Tribunals Service digital post

Channel 4 CIO Kevin Gallagher is leaving the chief information officer post at the broadcaster to join Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service as its new Digital Change Director.

Gallagher was recognised with a high placing in the 2015 CIO 100 for his involvement in Channel 4’s main business strategic programmes, embracing Big Data technologies, making sure IT is viewed as an enabler and for the successful launch of a new digital home for all the broadcaster’s content – All 4.

HM Courts and Tribunals Service is an executive agency sponsored by the Ministry of Justice, and is “responsible for the administration of the criminal, civil and family courts and tribunals in England and Wales and non-devolved tribunals in Scotland and Northern Ireland”.

Gallagher has been CIO at Channel 4 since 2009 responsible for all technology delivery across the broadcaster’s business systems and on-demand streaming services, having moved from the Head of Systems Delivery role which he performed for nine years.

Previously, Gallagher did a three-year stint as a Programme Manager for the Legal Aid Agency.

HM Courts and Tribunals Service is led by Chief Executive Natalie Ceeney, who has recognised the need for change and wrote in her first annual report and accounts foreword earlier this month that HMCTS “will need to operate better services for lower costs, and develop completely new  approaches which will challenge today’s operating models completely”.

She said: “Our paper processes are outdated, disappoint and annoy our users and staff alike, and are expensive to operate. In today’s world, court and tribunal users (whether the parties or their legal representatives) expect to be able to see documents online, use video conference rather than travelling long distances for a brief meeting, and expect to interact with us in ways and at times which suit them.

“We’ve got a huge amount to do, but with an increasingly clear vision for where we’re heading I’m confident we can meet that challenge.”