Guest blog by Tim Coney, Senior Enterprise Architect at ServiceNow #techUKdigitalPS
Tim Coney
Senior Enterprise Architect, ServiceNow
To unlock AI’s full potential for public service transformation and economic growth, the UK must look beyond tools and pilots—toward platforms that scale. The UK government is in a race on two fronts:
Transform public services through mission-led innovation
Drive national economic growth
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is central to both ambitions. It represents a £45 billion productivity opportunity and a broader means to transform services, deliver better citizen outcomes, and unlock growth.
Throughout history, revolutions—agricultural, industrial, digital—were not just moments of invention but inflection points shaped by platforms. Crop rotation enabled agricultural surpluses. Factories transformed production. The internet redefined communication. Platforms are the infrastructure on which transformation scales.
AI is today’s platform.
The Power of Platform Thinking
A platform is more than a piece of technology—it’s an enabler of scale, flexibility, and sustained innovation. Just as Ford’s assembly line redefined manufacturing and opened the door to unimagined products, AI platforms today can support diverse use cases, often far beyond what their creators initially envisioned.
Modern AI platforms—like those delivered by ServiceNow—can unify legacy systems, bring together data, orchestrate multiple AI models, and streamline workflows through low/no-code interfaces. Crucially, they’re ready now.
They don’t just improve IT—they reimagine how an entire organisation operates, enabling both innovation and efficiency at scale.
Visionaries who have led major periods of change have understood the power of platforms. Today’s leaders look to bring the power of platforms together with AI.
Real-World Proof: Siemens
Take Siemens—a 175-year-old industrial giant with 300,000 employees. Its Global Business Services (GBS) handles:
10M invoices
6M payslips
700K orders
10M transactions annually
To modernise, Siemens needed more than automation—it needed a platform. CIO Matthias Egelhaaf explains:
“Digitalisation is the next step to bring GBS into the new technology-led era.”
ServiceNow delivered. Not as a tool, but as a foundation—a platform—enabling Siemens to standardise, simplify, and scale intelligent automation across the enterprise.
The UK public sector faces similar high-volume, complex challenges. The opportunity to replicate platform success stories is enormous.
The Opportunity: Platform Thinking in UK Public Sector
The government’s AI Adoption Plan is an important step. But true transformation requires more:
A blueprint mindset rooted in platform thinking
A shared focus across government, anchored on citizen journeys
A maturity model to track adoption, guide funding, and focus action (as seen with HIMSS in healthcare)
Platform thinking reframes the approach to AI adoption. It shifts away from scattered pilots and tech-first experimentation to mission-first, scalable, interoperable transformation.
Actionable Ideas: Four Levers of Platform Thinking
Reframe legacy as opportunity: Legacy systems are everywhere. But they’re not an excuse to delay. Platforms let organisations work around legacy, not be limited by it. When Apple reinvented music consumption, they didn’t wait for the industry to modernise—they bypassed it. The UK public sector should ask: Are legacy systems enabling 21st-century outcomes—or holding them back? Platforms can bridge the gap between old architecture and new ambitions.
Stay mission-focused: AI “scanning” can turn into long lists of use cases that fail to align with core goals. Platform thinking flips the process—start with the mission, then identify use cases that deliver impact at scale. “Quick wins” have a role, but the £45bn prize will be won by those who think big and bold.
Scale beyond the pilot: 80% of pilots fail to scale. Why? Because they aren’t designed with scale in mind. Platform models enable a smooth path from pilot to production. They share common infrastructure, budgets, governance, and planning. With a shared platform, every pilot isn’t a one-off—it’s a step forward on a common roadmap.
Drive pace with purpose: Transformation used to take decades. Now it takes years—or months. The UK has the ideas. It needs the pace. Platform thinking compresses time-to-value and builds agility into the core.
A Clear Role for Industry
Industry has a critical role to play—but it goes far beyond providing technology. It must become a genuine partner to the public sector, helping to deliver real, scalable impact. That means investing in robust, flexible AI platforms that are easy to adopt and built for long-term value. It means providing the skills, training, and embedded expertise needed to accelerate capability—meeting departments where they are, whether they’re exploring foundational automation or deploying advanced AI. And it means working collaboratively to co-design digital blueprints, shape maturity models, and help the public sector move with pace and purpose through the scan, pilot, and scale journey.
This is not about selling the future; it’s about enabling progress now. If the UK is to realise its £45 billion AI opportunity, industry must show up not just with innovation, but with intention—and deliver platforms that make transformation both possible and practical.
The techUK Central Government Programme provides a forum for government to engage with tech suppliers. We advocate for the govtech sector, evangelise tech as a solution to public sector challenges, facilitate market engagement, and help make the public sector an easier market to operate in. Visit the programme page here.
Building the Smarter State 2025 10 September
Building the Smarter State is techUK’s flagship public services conference and the go-to event for public sector digital leaders. The annual event welcomes over 200 senior leaders and decisions makers from across the public sector and the technology industry to showcase how technology is shaping today's and tomorrow’s public services.
Innovation in Procurement – New Approaches to Public Sector Resilience
Join us for a forward-looking conversation on how the UK public sector and public buying organisations can harness procurement to build a more secure, sustainable, and responsive future – and deliver high-impact public services.
Our members develop strong networks, build meaningful partnerships and grow their businesses as we all work together to create a thriving environment where industry, government and stakeholders come together to realise the positive outcomes tech can deliver.
Heather is Head of Central Government Programme at techUK, working to represent the supplier community of tech products and services to Central Government.
Prior to joining techUK in April 2022, Heather worked in the Economic Policy and Small States Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat. She led the organisation’s FinTech programme and worked to create an enabling environment for developing countries to take advantage of the socio-economic benefits of FinTech.
Before moving to the UK, Heather worked at the Office of the Prime Minister of The Bahamas and the Central Bank of The Bahamas.
Heather holds a Graduate Diploma in Law from BPP, a Masters in Public Administration (MPA) from LSE, and a BA in Economics and Sociology from Macalester College.
Ellie joined techUK in March 2018 as a Programme Assistant to the Public Sector team and now works as a Programme Manager for the Central Government Programme.
The programme represents the supplier community of technology products and services in Central Government – in summary working to make Government a more informed buyer, increasing supplier visibility in order to improve their chances of supplying to Government Departments, and fostering better engagement between the public sector and industry. To find out more about what we do, how we do this and how you can get involved – make sure to get in touch!
Prior to joining techUK, Ellie completed Sixth Form in June 2015 and went on to work in Waitrose, moved on swiftly to walking dogs and finally, got an office job working for a small local business in North London, where she lives with her family and their two Bengal cats Kai and Nova.
When she isn’t working Ellie likes to spend time with her family and friends, her cats, and enjoys volunteering for diabetes charities. She has a keen interest in writing, escaping with a good book and expanding her knowledge watching far too many quiz shows!
Junior Programme Manager - Central Government, techUK
Charles Bauman
Junior Programme Manager - Central Government, techUK
Charles Bauman is a Junior Programme Manager in the Central Government Programme at techUK.
He supports the programme’s mission to represent the technology supplier community to the UK government and advocate for digital innovation to address public sector challenges. Charles helps facilitate market engagement, foster partnerships, and ensure that tech suppliers and the government work collaboratively to improve outcomes, deliver value for money, and enhance public services for citizens.
Before joining techUK, Charles gained significant experience in research, analysis, and strategic advisory roles. At H/Advisors Cicero, he specialised in public affairs and corporate communications, while at Verdantix, he supported sustainability research and advisory projects, focusing on regulatory and environmental challenges.
Charles holds an MSc in Theory and History of International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and an MA in Medieval History from King’s College London.
Charles enjoys volunteering with a think tank, reading, hiking, and spending time with his dog and family outside of work.
Programme Team Assistant for Public Sector Markets, techUK
Francesca Richiusa
Programme Team Assistant for Public Sector Markets, techUK
Fran serves as the Programme Team Assistant within techUK’s Public Sector Market Programmes, where she is responsible for delivering comprehensive team support, managing administrative functions, and fostering strong relationships with members.
Prior to joining techUK in May 2025, Fran built a meaningful career in the charitable and local government sectors. She worked extensively with both victims and perpetrators of crime, and notably led the coordination of Domestic Homicide Reviews across Surrey—an initiative aimed at identifying lessons and preventing future incidents of domestic abuse.
Outside of work, Fran is an avid traveller and a proud cat mum who enjoys unwinding with her feline companions.
