This month's Talking 5 guest is Terry Chana, Chief Technology Officer at XMA
Each month, techUK's Associate Director for Local Public Services, Georgina Maratheftis, interviews a member active in the local government space about their vision for the future of local public services and where digital can make a real difference to people and society. This month we talk with Terry Chana, Chief Technology Officer at XMA, about the role digital plays in delivering sustainable, people-first services that work smarter—not harder.
Welcome Terry. Firstly, tell me more about you, your career and how you got to this position today?
I didn’t take the usual route into tech—I started out as a sound engineer and ran a record label for a few years. But after getting married, I decided (well, my wife decided!) it was time to get a proper job. I moved into IT around 18 years ago.
I began in sales, as an account manager, before stepping into a strategic role managing vendor relationships across EMEA—Google being a key partner. That gave me a strong commercial grounding and taught me how to build partnerships that scale.
Over time, I moved into more technical roles—leading practices, driving consultancy engagements, and ultimately supporting digital transformation at scale. I joined XMA around six and a half years ago as a lead consultant and worked my way to CTO.
That blend of commercial and technical experience helps me connect vision with delivery—especially in local government, where it’s not about hype, it’s about making tech meaningful and manageable in the real world.
I’m also a member of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, which reflects my belief in professional standards and continuous learning.
What is the greatest opportunity for local government when it comes to digital?
The biggest opportunity? Doing more with less—but doing it smarter.
Councils are dealing with rising demand, constrained budgets, and increasing complexity. But with the right digital strategy, they can shift from reactive firefighting to proactive, sustainable service delivery.
At XMA, we use a structured approach—Stabilise, Standardise, and Optimise—to help local authorities reduce operating costs and reinvest those savings into frontline services. Whether it’s automated testing across ERP and low-code platforms, introducing conversational AI for multilingual support, or incrementally modernising legacy services—small, high-impact moves add up fast.
And we place huge emphasis on Total Experience—because you can’t deliver great resident services if staff are stuck with slow, fragmented systems. Aligning digital tools for both residents and employees builds trust and unlocks time, money, and morale.
Digital transformation isn’t always about the big bang. Often, it’s the quiet revolutions—the well-placed upgrades—that deliver the biggest return.
What is your vision for the future of local public services and places?
I see a future where digital is simply part of how local government works—embedded, intuitive, and always evolving with community needs.
That means automation that frees up frontline staff, AI that spots issues before they escalate, and data used responsibly to personalise services without leaving anyone behind. Digital inclusion and accessibility aren’t side notes—they need to be built in from day one.
I’d also love to see more empowered local teams with better tools, so they can spend less time wrestling with systems and more time helping people.
Ultimately, I’ve always believed that tech should make life fairer and simpler. Whether it’s helping a resident access the right support without navigating red tape or equipping a council officer with real-time insights at their fingertips—it’s about making public services work better, for everyone.
And for me, it’s still about bringing the right pieces together to create something that works. These days it’s digital transformation instead of music—but the goal is the same: to create something that makes a difference.
Local Public Services Programme activities
Our Local Public Services Programme helps techUK members to navigate local government. We champion innovation that can create truly digital local public services helping to create thriving, productive and safer places for all. Visit the programme page here
Regional perspectives on local Net Zero through tech (Birmingham)
Join us in Birmingham for a dynamic and insightful session exploring how climate planning is evolving in devolved regions, with a spotlight on the West Midlands.
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.
Georgina is techUK’s Associate Director for Local Public Services
Georgina works with suppliers that are active or looking to break into the market as well as with local public services to create the conditions for meaningful transformation. techUK regularly bring together local public services and supplier community to horizon scan and explore how the technologies of today and tomorrow can help solve some of the most pressing problems our communities face and improve outcomes for our people and places.
Prior to techUK, Georgina worked for a public policy events company where she managed the policy briefing division and was responsible for generating new ideas for events that would add value to the public sector. Georgina worked across a number of portfolios from education, criminal justice, and health but had a particular interest in public sector transformation and technology. Georgina also led on developing relationships across central and local government.
If you’d like to learn more about techUK, or want to get involved, get in touch.
Programme Manager – Local Public Services and Nations and Regions, techUK
Luke Newcombe
Programme Manager – Local Public Services and Nations and Regions, techUK
Luke joined techUK in September 2025 as a Programme Manager for Local Public Services and Nations and Regions.
Luke works closely with members and stakeholders across industry and government at local, regional and national levels to support collaboration, drive innovation and strengthen tech-enabled public services. His work supports the development of strong local and regional tech economies by helping organisations to engage with public sector challenges, explore emerging technologies and build impactful partnerships.
Prior to joining techUK, Luke worked at Enterprise Ireland, the Irish government’s export development agency. He began by advising SMEs on export strategy to the UK and later focused on connecting Irish businesses with multinational organisations to foster strategic partnerships, drive international growth and support economic development.
Luke holds an MSc in Political Economy from the University of Amsterdam and a BA in European Studies from Trinity College Dublin.
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.
