Lorraine Dodd

Part of the IT Leaders 100 - a list of the most influential IT leaders in the UK in 2026.

Lorraine Dodd is an experienced IS/IT Director with 16 years at Renault Group, passionate about using technology to drive business transformation and measurable results.

Lorraine leads teams across AI, infrastructure, cyber security, digitisation and business intelligence at Renault UK, ensuring technology supports growth, efficiency and strategic goals.

She is proud to have been recognised in Computing's IT Leaders 100 (2024, 2025 (and now 2026 – Ed.), Tech Women 50 (2024, 2025), and as Inspiring Automotive Women Winner 2026.

A strong advocate for women in tech, Lorraine runs insight days for young girls and serves as a Primary School Governor. She believes technology should enhance human potential and unlock innovation.

What's the most exciting part of your current role?

Creating opportunities for knowledge sharing that genuinely build capability across the organisation. Seeing people grow in confidence, skills, and curiosity as they engage with technology is hugely rewarding.

In 2023, I hosted our first Girls in Tech Day, welcoming 40 students into our offices for hands on experiences in AI, digital tools, virtual reality and Renault's in car technology. The day concluded with a panel discussion and received 100% positive feedback.

Building on that success, we ran the event again in 2025 with 45 very happy attendees. In the same year, we cohosted Tech Fest for all staff. A total of 796 session spaces were filled, 46 new AI practitioners were trained, and the event achieved a 91% five star feedback rating. Sessions included cyber, data and BI workshops, hands on RPA, AI training, VR experiences, Power BI drop-ins, coding challenges, and webinars delivered by global experts.

What makes this particularly exciting is that the learning is two way. While the wider business develops, my team deepens its own expertise through designing, delivering, and continuously improving these initiatives. We are working on what is next for 2026!

What do you do in week one of a new project to avoid pain in month six?

My rule of thumb is simple: if something feels awkward to raise in week one, it will be painful in month six. I promote having honest conversations early, before assumptions harden into problems.

I have a strong dislike of wasted effort, so week one is about clarity what the objective is, what success looks like and what is genuinely expected from the team. The team must agree a clear definition of "done" at the start of the project and revisit it throughout delivery to ensure expectations remain aligned.

When a piece of work is proposed, we first confirm whether it is truly a project or an action; the distinction is usually dictated by level of effort required. We then know which level of governance and oversight is needed to track it to success.

Even when working in an agile way, I believe in a clear, gated governance process, knowing what is expected at each stage reduces ambiguity, supports accountability and prevents unpleasant surprises later in the lifecycle.

What’s the part of your estate you most want to simplify in 2026?

Our legacy application estate. Over the past two years, we have successfully decommissioned 50% of our legacy applications through consolidation, replacement or removal. This has delivered reductions in cost, risk and complexity.

Some remaining applications are significantly more complex, often supporting critical business processes across multiple countries. While we remain committed to decommissioning legacy systems, we are also investing time upfront to properly study to allow us to build a clear, prioritised pipeline of work that supports the mission rather than creating disruption.

Simplification is not just about removal, it is about becoming more digital, streamlining and ensuring we have subject matter experts who genuinely understand and can support the technologies we use.

Reducing complexity strengthens resilience, improves delivery speed and enables security to remain a top priority.

Excluding smartphones, what piece of technology could you not live without and why?

My car. Modern vehicles are no longer just about getting from A to B, they are technology on wheels and fully connected. I'm fortunate to work for Renault, which means I get to experience this innovation first hand every day.

I love new car day because every time I step into the car it has been improved and perfected to offer the best customer experience. EV is very exciting, I am an early adopter I was quick off the mark to make the switch and I definitely haven't looked back; we were able to drive the Scenic in one charge from Hertfordshire to the Angel of the North to visit friends.

I also love the bidirectional charging. I saw a news story recently of a couple powering their appliances during a storm with their Renault 5 – it's amazing!

What excites you most about the future of IT?

As a teen I was one of the first in my year group to own a mobile phone. It was beyond basic: black-and-white screen, no games and text messages took ages to write as I clicked 4 times to reach each letter. Every message cost me 15p so we had to get creative with shortening every word we could ('hi m8').

Now I look at my phone with unlimited calls, texts, and data; I can make payments, manage family life, organise my day, communicate instantly, work remotely and stay connected in ways that were unimaginable as a teenager. That pace of change is what excites me most about the future of IT.

I can't imagine where we will be in another 25 years, but at the same time I can't wait to find out. I just need to hope I remain tech savvy now so my children and potential grandchildren don't become IT support!

What talent are you quietly proud of that would never show up on LinkedIn?

I can bring clarity to messy problems, my quiet strength is cutting through the noise to focus on what truly matters and mobilising energy around it. When something is important, I'm able to work with intense focus, delivering strong outcomes under tight deadlines and sustained pressure.

I'm particularly effective at reenergising stalled initiatives. I work best in short, powerful bursts of concentrated effort, enabling teams to make meaningful progress rather than incremental movement.

Alongside this I have a strong sense of fairness and a deep discomfort with wasted effort. I'm loyal to people rather than hierarchy and I prioritise doing the right thing even when it's difficult or unpopular. Once something feels meaningful, my commitment is absolute. I like bringing integrity, pace and clarity to create the best outcomes.

What’s your most-used keyboard shortcut or command that you wish everyone knew?

Ctrl + Shift + T is the shortcut I wish everyone knew. In a web browser it reopens the most recently closed tab.

I've been known to close my browser a little too fast when it's time to switch into mum mode and collect the children, this one has genuinely saved me more than once.