Sir Richard Branson has paid €70 million in a bid to become the world’s first space tourism operator. But how risky is his investment and will the credit crunch mean a crash landing for the project? Diana Milne meets Virgin Galactic president Will Whitehorn to find out.
When she’s not controlling the Metropolitan Police Service’s €406 million IT budget CIO Ailsa Beaton dons her uniform and goes out on patrol. And as she tells Diana Milne, there’s no better way for her to understand the demands of the job.
Saatchi & Saatchi has consistently dominated the world advertising scene and has the power to transform ordinary brands into global success stories. Diana Milne catches up with its CEO for EMEA, Simon Francis, and asks how to get ahead in advertising.
With around 6.4 million transactions completed every day, online betting exchange Betfair is busier than all of Europe’s stock exchanges combined. It’s a British phenomenon born in the aftermath of the dot.com crash that has become a red hot favourite among shrewd punters. Julian Rogers goes behind the scenes and meets CTO Tony McAlister.
With an annual €1 billion budget to juggle and the pressure of managing the mammoth IT operations of Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC), CIO Deepak Singh has one of the toughest technology jobs in Europe. CXO travels to Westminster in the heart of London to discuss his key projects, the impact of the recession and how he sees the role of CIO evolving.