Looking to the future: an interview with Atkins CDO Richard Cross

Engineering giant Atkins is undergoing a big shift in both its culture and technology use as it updates itself for the modern world. The man behind the move is joint CDO/CIO Richard Cross

We recently caught up with Richard Cross, both CIO and CDO of engineering firm Atkins, to talk about the company's ongoing digital transformation. In our first article, we learned how Cross is implementing a culture shift across the Group to modernise its approach to work; here, we discuss how Atkins is adopting new technologies as part of that change.

Cross joined Atkins as Group CIO, and took on the Group CDO job a year later; he now fills both positions, but thinks that at least one of those roles is on its way out - everywhere.

"I think the traditional CIO role is going, and I don't think it will ever be the same again," he tells us. "Whether you call it a CIM or a CIO or a CTO...the future for the person who looks after technology in an organisation has got to be about driving and using technology, as well as some of the techniques I've been talking about... We need to have a much greater impact in terms of production and performance."

The success is everyone taking a personal responsibility towards protecting the company

It is to Atkins' credit that it hasn't (so far) been affected by any of the most recent cyber attacks, such as WannaCry and NotPetya. Cross has been part of building and implementing the company's very broad cyber strategy (that "greater impact on performance"), and the culture shift was key. "I think it's important that people realise that it's not just about the firewalls or the IT defences, although they're important. It's a much broader challenge that I'd liken more around getting the right culture in the organisation. The success here is everyone thinking about security and taking a personal responsibility towards protecting the company."

As well as the technical barriers in place to mitigate external threats, Atkins trains its staff to counter phishing, which Cross admits is "a big challenge." People are the biggest threat to an organisation, largely because they need be properly educated on risks. One of the avenues Atkins uses for this is simulated phishing attacks on its own employees. Even if details are stolen, the firm uses multi-factor authentication as another layer of protection.

Something old, something new

Before moving into big data, VR and especially DevOps, Atkins had to work out how to incorporate its own ageing infrastructure into its new way of working. Two-speed IT is a dirty word (with good reason), and Cross is certainly not a fan. While he realises that a legacy handover is necessary, running two systems in completely different ways is not the way to do it. "We've tried to embrace digital and apply it to legacy systems as well. If we're doing work on legacy systems - our ERP, for example - we will still look to do that in similar chunks of ninety-day work and do Agile within that."

As to how legacy systems are being brought into the modern ecosystem, the secret is containerisation and data warehousing: "A much more flexible way of gathering and showing the data," said Cross.

Once all of that big data was accessible, Atkins was able to use it: an opportunity to look through and analyse past design work. Artificial intelligence and machine learning feeds in here: Atkins is using software that can look at old 3D designs, learn from them and propose solutions to new problems. For example, the software could tell architects what materials are commonly used in a certain type of building, or even how many doors a room normally has. The human touch is not lost, though: Atkins uses several data scientists and analysts.

Atkins is heavily involved in the transport sector: another area where it is making practical use of machine learning. The firm can collect anonymised management data to predict traffic flows and implement real-time control of traffic lights.

Another way in which the firm uses technology for simulation is its use of virtual reality. Off-the-shelf consumer VR products have become so good that even professional design agencies like Atkins can use these headsets in their work, along with gaming engines like Unity. Naming offerings like the Microsoft Hololens, HTC Vive and Oculus Rift - and even augmented reality products like Magic Leap - Cross says, "We can create lots of different versions of a design and simulate them in use...and use that to pick one that we think works best."

"Rather than just handing over a design, now we can say, 'Come and experience ten options and see which one you like best.' It starts to make the whole experience a lot more interactive."

Atkins is still targeting a 2020 goal to go completely digital - and, Cross told us, advances like widespread cloud and SaaS adoption mean that the move is "getting easier." The firm is well on its way from both a culture and a technology perspective - but it still has a long road ahead.

Richard Cross is Atkins' Group CDO and CIO, with responsibility for all IT and systems, as well as driving adoption of digital technologies and approaches across the company. He is passionate about promoting the use of technology to improve the way that Atkins works, and as a differentiator with the company's clients.