When systems matter — a conversation with Chris Brocklesby
We shared three short clips from this conversation the other week.
This is the full version.
Chris Brocklesby is Chief Technology Officer at the British Heart Foundation. Before that, he’s spent his career running technology in organisations millions of people rely on — airlines, telecoms, retail, national infrastructure.
So this isn’t a conversation about “tech” in the abstract. It’s about what happens when systems really matter. When they’re visible. When they fail.
And when people are depending on them without even thinking about it.
We talk about that pressure — the reality of always being on, of incidents happening at the worst possible moment, and the responsibility that sits behind it.
We also talk about what changes when you move into a purpose-led organisation like the British Heart Foundation.
https://www.bhf.org.uk/how-you-can-help/how-to-save-a-life/how-to-do-cpr/learn-cpr-in-15-minutes
Not in a theoretical sense — but in how decisions are made, how trade-offs are weighed, and what the outcome actually represents.
There’s a simple line Chris uses that I love:
The bottom line doesn’t say profit. It says funds available for research.
That shift is subtle — but it changes everything. The final part of the conversation goes somewhere more personal.
Chris talks openly about navigating serious health challenges while operating at exec level — and, importantly, how he chose to handle that at work.
Not dramatically. Not performatively.
Just honestly.
It adds a layer to the conversation that most leadership discussions never quite get to.
As ever with The Third Half, this isn’t an interview in the traditional sense.
It’s a conversation about work, life, responsibility and perspective — and how those things evolve over time.
Listen to the full conversation below
Paste this link on your preferred Audio streaming platform: https://player.captivate.fm/episode/df7bee63-e632-433e-8440-3be1afcbb51f/
The British Heart Foundation does extraordinary work across research, fundraising and retail — and if you’ve ever wondered how technology supports that at scale, this is well worth your time.
https://www.bhf.org.uk/how-you-can-help/how-to-save-a-life/how-to-do-cpr/learn-cpr-in-15-minutes
And if nothing else, it’s a reminder that behind every system, every decision, and every organisation… there are people carrying more than you might think.
People.
Planet.
Progress.