Jimmy's Jobs of the Future

This episode is the second part of our conversation with Patrick O’Mahony, Creative Director of NEWSUBSTANCE. This episode is all about their ambitious project ‘See Monster’ in Weston-Super-Mare. Part of the Unboxed Festival, it’s an old gas platform (think ‘oil rig’) converted into a public space to inspire conversations around climate change and renewables.We went there to film these two episodes and the sheer scale of the project blew me away.It is one of the greatest pieces of industrial theatre that I have ever seen and a wonderful example of British creativity. Listen to our first episode with Patrick to get a wider backstory on him and his company NEWSUBSTANCE.In this episode we discuss: How See Monster came to be. Where the creative vision started. How do you transport a gas platform from the Netherlands to Weston-Super-Mare? Scoping a project on this scale.  How will sustainability and creative design develop in the future? Where did the idea for the waterfall come from? The future of pop-up installations Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode sees us go to one of the UK’s most ambitious art projects - See Monster, down in Weston-Super-Mare near Bristol. This is a gas platform or perhaps more commonly known as oil rig, repurposed into an interactive environment to explore and inspire conversations around Climate Change and renewables.We caught up with the Artistic Director of this Project- Patrick O’Mahony- and record this episode in their custom-built podcast studio overlooking the See Monster project itself. I first came across Patrick when his drone show appeared over Buckingham Palace for the Queen’s Jubilee and thought- now that is a job of the future and I HAVE to interview him.That company is called New Substance. This episode is the first time on the show with someone from the creative industries - so we talk through Patrick’s story and he came to lead his 50-person team in Leeds. We talk about how he started out at University, what it was like working at Buckingham Palace as well as how the art and events industries have changed over the past decade. Look out next week for episode 2 of this interview where we do a deep dive into the See Monster project itself. In this episode we talk about: How does Patrick describe what he does? What’s the coolest project he’s worked on? The pressure of working at Buckingham Palace - and could he really enjoy the moment? His fleet of 2,500 drones. How he came about making a huge drone Corgi for the Queen’s Jubilee How his career started in university.  His favorite projects he has worked on. The changes in the events space over the past two decades Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

One of the biggest issues founders face is finding amazing talent - it’s one thing to have an idea, but to build it you need talented people on your team.What’s the best way to do it? Where is the best place to go? How has the pandemic changed it? How do you maintain a culture with a new team working in a hybrid format. We had the terrific opportunity to speak to someone who thinks about this more than anyone else,  Laura Wilming, Head of Portfolio Talent at Octopus Ventures. They are part of the wider Octopus Group who are eight entrepreneurially minded companies who are together focused on investing in the people, ideas and industries that will change the world, they are also a long term backer of this podcast Laura’s job is to oversee people and talent for all of the Octopus Ventures portfolio and so is a treasure trove of information about working, hiring and growing within startups: how to prepare for job interviews (whether you are hiring or trying to be hired!). We speak about the importance of having a professional network, the skills and jobs to look out for in the future, such as the increase in roles like Chief of Staff in start ups Laura spent several years working with start-ups in New York, notably at Harry’s razors, where she helped build the team to several hundred across the world. And, whilst still a student, she interned with Brewdog, being one of the first 8 to work there well before it became the globally recognized brand it is today.I always say each guest is a fascinating episode - todays episode is no exception, but perhaps it is one of our most practical too … For weekly information on the topics mentioned in the show sign up for the Octopus Ventures newsletter here. In this episode we discuss: What exactly she does at Octopus Ventures as Head of Portfolio Talent. What does Octopus Ventures do? What her advice is to startups who have just raised capital.  Her hiring advice from when startups become scaleups. The most common advice she gives to pre-seed founders  When you should hire C-suite level talent.  The best methods to hire the best talent.  How long founders should spend on hiring.  How the pandemic has impacted hiring and creating culture.  How can founders inspire their team - and this amazing example. What questions you should ask in an interview and how to not fall into bias traps. How to speed up your hiring process.  Laura's story from Brewdog to Harry's razors.  If Laura was 22 in 2022 what would she do? Should entrepreneurs hire a chief of staff? The best startup job title she was ever seen - Director of Ideas! The content  Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This year has seen Jimmy’s Jobs talk to some of the most influential minds in the UK.From Rishi Sunak and Andrew Bailey right through to Martha Lane Fox, these are the thinkers and shapers of the British economy, the voices that generate headlines and shape the national debate. Today’s guest is a worthy addition to this list- Matt Clifford is the founder of Entrepreneur First - a unique institution in the UK economy that backs entrepreneurs for who they are as much as their ideas. We had Matt’s co-founder, Alice Bentinck, on the show late last year and since then the pair have written a book - “How to be a Founder” has since become one of my go-to recommendations and I thoroughly recommend it.Matt has recently taken up a new position as CEO and Chair of the new Advanced Research and Invention Agency- or ARIA for short - where he’ll oversee the funding of transformational UK science and technology. It is based on the DARPA model from the United States which was so influential behind the founding of Silicon Valley. We talk a bit in this show about the UK recreating Silicon Valley, and it’s a theme that I am picking up this week in my Times column. I will be republishing that through my email newsletter on substack this week, just check the link below to sign up. In this episode we discuss: How to be a Founder- why did he write the book? Finding your edge. Being elite but not elitist. Getting underprivileged people into entrepreneurship. The myths of what makes an entrepreneur. The competition for investors in the VC industry. Matt’s thoughts on the wider technology ecosystem.  How will the pandemic change the world of entrepreneurship? Building co-founding relationships remotely. What will be the effects of this year’s political issues in building the UK economy.  What is ARIA - the Advanced Research and Invention Agency. How the UK can become less silo’d between academia, policy and business.  Building talent outside the ‘golden triangle’.  What are the most exciting places of innovation in the UK?  The pressure of being such a big name in the business industry. Why willpower is rechargeable and the danger of valourising founders. The collision of biology and software Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Recorded in October, this week’s episode is with Nigel Verdon- Founder of Railsr (formerly known as Railsbank) who are pioneering something called ‘Embedded finance’ - best described as the financial layer of the internet.Founding a startup is stressful, difficult and often painful at times - one of the most important skills of a founder, as many previous guests have said, is resilience.And after going through it once, you would understand if someone never wanted to go through it all again…Nigel, however, has started not one, not two but three businesses - giving him an expert view on the challenges entrepreneurs face at different stages on their journey.We’ll talk in this episode about why you need to hire different types of people at different times, the difference between builders and operators & why Fintech may disappear. The topics we discuss in this episode are: Why Nigel rebranded from Railsbank to Railsr What is embedded finance? What is the future of FinTech? The future of currency and crypto - the great experiment of Bitcoin. How curiosity drove him to start a THIRD startup. The access to fast finance that embedded finance will power and how it's driving new experiences in sports. Nigel’s advice to new entrepreneurs. Nigel’s advice to himself aged 25 - don’t fail your A-Levels! Deciding to break into FinTech.  Jobs of the Future- the biggest learnings on hirings through 3 huge companies. The thesis of Builders and Operators. Giving back to the FinTech ecosystem. Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s guest is someone I have wanted to interview for a very long time.Tania Boler founded the female technology firm Elvie around a decade ago and last year they raised a whopping £70m series C funding round. But that figure has an even greater significance than the size alone- in 2012, the Femtech sector raised just $62 million in its entirety. In 10 years, that represents amazing growth and presents a hopeful picture for the future of female-first industries. Elvie represents an amazing entrepreneurial story and we discuss what has happened in the last 10 years to inspire such investor confidence, how Elvie has pulled off some of the most daring PR stunts, as well as the future of jobs in femtech.We also talk about how to gain cult status as a brand and the skills of the future that make you stand out.In this episode we discuss: What’s in a name- where did Elvie come from? The monumental changes in the Femtech sector.  Tania’s unusual background for an entrepreneur - working for NGOs. Working at the UN. The impact of her Innovate UK grant. How important is the media in the context of Female technology- and why Elvie runs provocative PR campaigns. Building a community. Some ideas that haven’t made it out yet? Why everyone thought she was crazy in the early days. How to become a cult favourite. How we can improve the production of female founders. What are the future jobs in Elvie? The roles she never thought she’d hire. How to work in strategy. Why she set up another office in Bristol. What does the future look like for Elvie? What’s her advice for entrepreneurs looking to raise money? The key books to read if you’re a founder Where to learn about the FemTech sector? Pass the mic - Hannah Thompson The Joy Club Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The economics of football are immense, intricate, and understood by few - with weekly wages in the hundreds of thousands, and player transfers in the hundreds of millions.One of those few is Simon Kuper, today’s guest and author of Soccernomics - the seminal book on how the money flows in football and one of my favourite books of all time. He is releasing an updated version of the book prior to the world cup in Qatar later this month - he came on Jimmy's Jobs to discuss why this will be such a tightly contested tournament, the significance of it being held in Qatar and why it actually hasn’t cost $220billion as many outlets have reported…We also discuss the wider economics of football such as the jobs it has created, whether will we ever see the first billion-pound player and why we should feel sorry for footballers. Simon is one of the most interesting people I have ever met and I hope you enjoy listening to the most on-brand 'Jimmy McLoughlin' podcasts we've ever made.You can up to Jimmy's substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politics. In this episode we discuss:How he describes himself at a party.The republishing of Soccernomics- the changes in the economics of football since he wrote the book 10 years ago. The economics of the Football World Cup. The significance of Qatar hosting the world cup.Will we see protests at the world cup?How is social media impacting the economics of football?Which footballers have had the most interesting post-career jobs?The future of non-playing jobs in football.The myth of the omnipotent manager and why football was modelled on the army. When will we see the first female manager in the Premier League?Why capital cities aren’t successful at winning European Cups- and when will PSG win it?Will we see the first billion-pound player?How does the branding of a player impact the value of them?Which clubs have had the best transfer policy?The next frontier of football post-data.What Messi does off the ball.Who is the greatest player of all time?The compensation phenomenon and the dilemma of being a footballer.The new ownership structure of Chelsea and Todd Boehly. Who will win the World Cup?Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You can up to Jimmy's substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politics. If I were to read today’s guest’s entire CV, I would fill this entire episode description. Martha Lane Fox is a name that speaks for itself - she is one of the defining figures in 21st century British Entpreneurship, best known for founding lastminute.com.She has since dedicated her career to a life in the public realm, becoming the youngest female member of the House of Lords and recently becoming the Chancellor of the Open University. As you can hear Martha had a bit of a sore throat at time of recording but persevered to give us her unique insights on the future of the British Economy, the biggest changes in hiring in the past few decades and why she regrets Desert Island Discs.In a momentous week for British Politics, Rishi Sunak has become the newest British PM - you may remember we interviewed him back in January when he was Chancellor. It was one of the most revealing interviews he’s ever given.We covered mental health, the challenge of being a new parent and much much more- you check it out on our website at www.jobsofthefuture.co.Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Our guest today is Ben Houchen, Mayor of the Tees Valley since 2017. When he first ran, his odds were 200/1 but he has gone on to become the Conservative politician with the largest electoral mandate in the North of England.Born in Teesside, you can hear Ben’s passion for his area - after growing up there and seeing no real change he is on a mission to bring huge-scale businesses into the region- and he’s succeeding. We asked him what the job of a mayor entails and his plans for rebuilding the Tees Valley, his thoughts on the Mini budget, and the importance of being true to your word as a politician.In this episode we discuss:  How pleased he was to see the 45p tax cut scrapped What is the job of the Mayor? Not what you see in Hollywood! What has surprised him most about being Mayor? What does success look like- what makes a ‘good’ mayor? How do you reposition an area for a new type of work? What does he want the Tees Valley to be known for? The exciting companies in Tees Valley we might not have heard of What are ‘investment zones’ and how to create them. What does ‘Dreamland’ look like? What’s Ben’s ‘secret sauce’?   What was the moment Ben decided to stand for Mayor? And how he accidentally won! The use of modern technology in running a political campaign. Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Our guest today is Tom Rowley, owner of Backstory, London’s newest independent bookstore situated in the heart of Balham. As a  journalist-turned-bookseller, his journey has led to him writing for some of the most recognizable names in the press like The Economist, The Washington Post, and The Daily Telegraph.He originally started Backstory as a market stall and after the pandemic decided to take the plunge and make it a real shop, his fulltime job and fulfill his lifelong dream: recommending books to people from all walks of life.We ask him about the future of the high street, why people from Estonia flock to his website to buy books and how he managed to crowdfund over £25k to make his dream come true! And of course, make sure you listen to the end to hear which book a man with access to over 3500 books recommends!Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Notebook here.Once again thank you to our series partner Octopus Group, a collection of 8 entrepreneurially minded businesses that look to back the people, ideas, and industries that will change the world. Why he quit his dream job at the economist Where did the name Backstory come from The moment he announced he was creating London’s newest bookshop How his newsletter powered his journey The business model of the Bookshop- and the dreaded A-word Creating a bar and bookshop in one Building a community hub with the space Tom’s vision about the future of highstreet- and why they’re shipping books even to Estonia His plans for the future How he crowdfunded £25,000 to set up the shop What he looks for in people to work in the bookshop His lowest moments in his journey What he would differently if he was starting again? How he chooses what books makes it in store The most interesting person he interviewed at the Economist. A very dangerous question… What’s his favourite book? Subscribe so you don't miss any new episodes, releasing every Wednesday.You can sign up to Jimmy's Substack here for weekly content on the future of work, technology, and politicsFor more information on partnering with us please visit our partnerships page here.Also make sure you subscribe to The Shift, you can find it here on Spotify or on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices