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DWP CIO Rich Corbridge leaving to join property developer
The digital chief at the Department for Work and Pensions is moving on only 18 months after starting his role in the civil service
Rich Corbridge, the chief digital and information officer at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), is leaving his role in November to take up a new post as chief information officer (CIO) at industrial property developer Segro.
Corbridge only joined DWP in April 2023, and Computer Weekly understands his departure is for personal reasons and not due to any issues with his role as digital chief at one of the largest government departments. His final day in the civil service will be 15 November.
He will become the first ever CIO at Segro, a real estate investment trust listed on the London Stock Exchange and Euronext Paris, which owns, manages and develops modern warehouses and industrial property.
“The increased use of technology and data are integral to the delivery of our strategic goals,” said Soumen Das, Segro’s chief financial officer. “With Rich’s passion to drive change through technology, we will enhance our offering to customers, and maximise the talents of our colleagues by enabling more efficient and effective digital processes.”
At DWP, Corbridge was responsible for a budget of £1.4bn, in an organisation that transacts £170bn a year, manages 50 million lines of code and operates one of Europe’s largest IT estates. His remit at DWP included some of the highest-profile public services, such as Universal Credit and the state pension.
In an interview with Computer Weekly in July 2023, Corbridge said his first task had been to deliver a new business plan for his DWP Digital operation, which was achieved within four weeks.
“The expectations of digital around DWP are high, and rightly so,” he said at the time. “I see my role as a facilitator, easing our progress towards our goals by clearing the way and removing obstacles.”
‘Reverse pitch’ events
Corbridge has looked to find new ways of bringing innovation into DWP, and earlier this month launched a programme of “reverse pitch” events to allow startups and scaleups to work with DWP and the Ministry of Justice on solving a set of complex problems identified by the departments.
Prior to DWP, Corbridge was CIO at Boots, the chemist, which he joined in 2019. Before that job, he was the CIO of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, having previously been CIO for the Health Service Executive in Ireland and CEO of eHealth Ireland. He was also CIO at the National Institute for Health Research’s Clinical Research Network between 2011 and 2014.
DWP has yet to make an announcement about Corbridge’s replacement.
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