Jenny Mowat, CEO of Babel, launches Babel’s 2026 Bravery series on the Digital Communicators Podcast, focused on what “bravery choices” mean for B2B brands. She is joined by Sophie Hodgson, Communications Director at Cisco, who discusses how bravery can range from simply getting out of bed to voicing the “elephant in the room” in meetings, emphasising “progress, not perfection.” Sophie shares a personal example of posting “my name is Sophie, and I have ambitions,” and reflects on how being a “yes person” can backfire when issues arise later. She outlines her career path from studying public relations at Bournemouth University, working in agencies, moving into tech PR, then going in-house at Cloudera during the pandemic, which helped her understand internal approval processes, before joining Cisco.

Sophie explains the importance and difficulty of saying no as a people pleaser, reframing no as the start of a new conversation, and highlights guidance from coach Alison O’Leary on not over-validating a refusal. She recounts advice from Susan Space at Cloudera about only apologising when necessary, and references Mel Robbins’ “Let Them” framework as a tool for letting go of draining pressures. On managing demands, she describes protecting her peace by delaying checking messages in the morning, inspired by CEO Charles Sweeney’s approach of aligning messages to daily goals, and notes the constant expectation of instant replies. On AI, Sophie argues increased automation will make communications “more human,” citing Petri (SVP and GM for Splunk EMEA), and says audiences increasingly value authentic, less-produced content. 

She describes AI as useful for research, summarising documents, identifying trends, and journalist targeting, while warning about bias, limitations, fact-checking, and confidentiality; she notes Cisco provides AI courses to build awareness. Sophie also explains how global comms should keep a consistent core message while adapting tone and storytelling to local contexts and political environments. Her advice for ambitious communicators includes being curious, reading the news, asking questions, shadowing other functions, trusting your gut, and “talking truth to power,” echoing Cisco’s CCO Steve’s message to be truth tellers.

Back2Brave is the podcast from Babel: the agency for B2B tech brands ready to move faster. We combine 20 years of deep sector insight with integrated creative strategies to help clients navigate risk and standout in crowded markets. With Babel, it’s safe to be brave.

Visit us at www.babelpr.com.

In this episode, Babel's Senior Director, Paul Campbell, sits down with Nadine Hawkins, Editor at Capacity Media, to discuss Capacity Europe, the leading telecoms event in London focused on "Keeping the World Connected." They explore key themes and trends shaping the event, highlight the industry's top players in attendance, and offer insights on how to effectively engage with the media around this major gathering. Tune in for an inside look at what’s happening at one of the most important telecoms events of the year.

Back2Brave is the podcast from Babel: the agency for B2B tech brands ready to move faster. We combine 20 years of deep sector insight with integrated creative strategies to help clients navigate risk and standout in crowded markets. With Babel, it’s safe to be brave.

Visit us at www.babelpr.com.

According to Babel’s B2B Tech Comms Barometer, the single most influential channel for B2B tech buyers is analyst industry reports, with 58 per cent of IT decision-makers relying on them for influencing and making purchasing decisions. In this episode Babel director Simon Coughlin speaks with Philip Benton, Principal Fintech Analyst at Omdia. Philip talks about some of the hot topics he is focusing on, including open banking and digital identity, as well as what fintechs need to offer when speaking with analysts.

Back2Brave is the podcast from Babel: the agency for B2B tech brands ready to move faster. We combine 20 years of deep sector insight with integrated creative strategies to help clients navigate risk and standout in crowded markets. With Babel, it’s safe to be brave.

Visit us at www.babelpr.com.

Declan speaks with TechInformed editor James Pearce, who provides insight into launching a new publication during the pandemic and current content trends.

Back2Brave is the podcast from Babel: the agency for B2B tech brands ready to move faster. We combine 20 years of deep sector insight with integrated creative strategies to help clients navigate risk and standout in crowded markets. With Babel, it’s safe to be brave.

Visit us at www.babelpr.com.

Fintech Week London is where traditional financial institutions come together with new fintechs in one of the world’s leading financial districts. From high-street banks to challengers, technology giants to disruptors, this five-day event is a great  opportunity to understand the global themes of fintech. Ahead of the 2024 event (10-14 June), Babel director Simon Coughlin speaks with Fintech Week London CEO Raf de Kimpe about his career, how he has helped evolve the event, and what attendees can expect in 2024.  

Back2Brave is the podcast from Babel: the agency for B2B tech brands ready to move faster. We combine 20 years of deep sector insight with integrated creative strategies to help clients navigate risk and standout in crowded markets. With Babel, it’s safe to be brave.

Visit us at www.babelpr.com.

Vivien Boche is a regular keynote speaker and evangelist for platform technology and women in tech, and appointed before the age of 30 as a senior director at the SAP Center of Excellence. Aside from her day job, Vivien has gained an impressive social media following thanks to her unique approach to promoting SAP technology on TikTok.  

Back2Brave is the podcast from Babel: the agency for B2B tech brands ready to move faster. We combine 20 years of deep sector insight with integrated creative strategies to help clients navigate risk and standout in crowded markets. With Babel, it’s safe to be brave.

Visit us at www.babelpr.com.

David Linthicum is an internationally recognised cloud computing & AI  expert and thought leader. He has authored and co-authored 17 books on computing, the latest of which is An Insider’s Guide to Cloud Computing. David’s industry experience includes tenures as CTO and CEO of several successful software companies, and upper-level management positions in Fortune 100 companies. Until recently he was chief cloud strategy officer at Deloitte, and in February he joined The Cube as an enterprise technology analyst. In his busy schedule, he keynotes leading technology conferences on topics including cloud computing, enterprise application integration, and enterprise architecture. 

Back2Brave is the podcast from Babel: the agency for B2B tech brands ready to move faster. We combine 20 years of deep sector insight with integrated creative strategies to help clients navigate risk and standout in crowded markets. With Babel, it’s safe to be brave.

Visit us at www.babelpr.com.