Manchester City Council CIO steps down

Manchester City Council (MCC) chief information officer (CIO) Bob Brown is stepping down to take up a new role at healthcare technology firm EMIS Health.

In a return to the private sector – Brown previously held senior roles at Aviva, Accenture and HCL – the executive will serve as chief solutions officer at his new employer.

This is a newly created role focused on building end-to-end health products and services for customers at EMIS, a developer of electronic patient record systems and software used in primary care in England.

Having joined MCC in 2015, one of Brown’s areas of focus as CIO at the council has been around revamping technology tools and processes aimed at citizens and council employees, under a digital experience transformation programme.

MCC is yet to identify a replacement for Brown, who will leave the council on 3 May.

On the legacy he leaves after four years on post, Brown told Computer Weekly: “Setting a strategy that is underpinned by [the motto] ‘service is our number one priority’ has helped everybody come together around a common goal. It’s the foundation we build on, it’s the priority about how we think and act,” he said.

“At the council, we provide and support systems that help people and keep them safe, they must work and be available. This strategy has helped us launch a capital change programme to great effect,” he added.

Brown is also involved in initiatives around growing the IT skills pool in Manchester and is the chair of the Industrial Advisory Board for the School of Computing, Mathematics and Digital Technology at Manchester Metropolitan University.