Sync NI

A few weeks ago journalist Niamh Campbell spoke with Rob McConnell, director at Expleo. The tech firm has helped develop Northern Ireland's StopCOVID contact-tracing app, which at the time of recording had over 260k downloads. The app now has now been downloaded over 300k times, and Rob discusses the importance of quality assurance testing when it comes to creating software to help people amid a global health pandemic.

This week, our journalist Niamh Campbell spoke with Andy Fairchild, the European CEO of Applied Systems. In 2018, the insurance-focused software firm set up a base in Belfast with the promise of creating 50 jobs by 2021. Andy discusses how that growth has continued, and what the company's future plans are, with more new hires in Northern Ireland on the way.

Tim McKane started the Northern Ireland Business Facebook page in June with no idea of how large it would become. Now with over 8,000 members and a media partnership with Q Radio, the page is helping thousands of businesses across the country share advice and information about their organisations, bringing the business community closer together amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

This week journalist Niamh Campbell spoke with Sara McCracken, founder of Belfast charity Angel Eyes NI. It has been awarded a grant from The National Lottery Community Fund for its new, digital VisualEyes project, which incorporates the use of a virtual reality (VR) headset to simulate eye conditions to families, so the impact of sight loss is better understood. Sara discusses the tech and the innovations behind it.

This week our journalist Niamh Campbell spoke with Terry Robinson, the CEO of global consulting firm, Vox Financial Partners. Originally from Northern Ireland he now lives in the US. Terry discusses growing up as a gay man in Belfast and his journey into the tech and finance world, having now co-founded his own firm after 22 years of experience in the industry.

This week Niamh Campbell spoke with Tom Gray, Lead Curator of Beltech and Chief Technology Officer at Kainos, one of Northern Ireland’s largest homegrown tech firms. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, BelTech is going virtual for the first time ever and will take place between Monday 22 and Thursday 25 June. Tom discusses with Niamh what attendees can expect, and also delves into the details of Northern Ireland's tech sector, as well as its potential future post-lockdown.

This week Niamh Campbell spoke with diversity and inclusion consultant, Deepa Mann-Kler following a surge of worldwide support for the Black Lives Matter movement. As a woman of Indian heritage living and working in Northern Ireland, Deepa discusses her own experiences and also delves into why diversity as a whole is so important within the tech and business sector.

This week Niamh Campbell spoke with Francesca Morelli, enterprise support officer at Queen's University Belfast and co-founder of new social media influencer agency, VAVA Influence. Fran discusses all things business and how she believes social media influencers can help any business, in any sector. She also gives advice on those thinking of creating their own start-ups, despite coronavirus fears, and talks about her own career journey.

This week Niamh Campbell spoke with Carol Rossborough, co-founder of start-up ESTHER, the pocket-to-pocket donation platform that allows you to give money directly to those in need living right in your city. Working with registered charities during the COVID-19 pandemic, the ESTHER team is busier than ever helping vulnerable families cope in the crisis.

This week journalist Niamh Campbell is joined by cybersecurity and online safety expert, Wayne Denner. He discusses some top tips for how everyone – from grannies right down to pre-teens – can stay safer online, especially during lockdown, with cyber scams on the rise. Wayne also touches on mental health issues within social media, keeping a good reputation online, and privacy concerns with the new proposed coronavirus contact tracing apps.