The Infrastructure Podcast: Episode 169

Guest: Louisa Finlay, Chief Operating Officer and Chief People Officer, Kier Group

Construction's digital imperative

This is another episode recorded live at UKREiiF, the UK Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum in Leeds. 

My guest is Louisa Finlay, Chief Operating Officer and Chief People Officer at contractor Kier Group. Our conversation builds on a panel session that she hosted to discuss the construction sector’s digital mindset and skills needed to power up infrastructure delivery.

Because the reality is that the construction sector has long been criticised as a digital laggard and remaining tethered to legacy processes. However, this narrative is rapidly shifting. 

We are moving on from the era of digital experimentation. Today, the use of data and digital technology is no longer an optional efficiency driver but a core commercial imperative.

Tier 1 contractors and their supply chains face mounting pressures to deliver complex infrastructure under tighter regulatory and financial scrutiny. In response the modern construction landscape is being reshaped – like it or not - by cloud-based data platforms, generative AI, predictive analytics, and digital twins. 

Yet, the true barrier to this revolution is rarely technical. Instead, the industry is grappling with the need for cultural change, a widening skills gap, and deeply entrenched commercial structures that actively disincentivise data sharing.

To unlock the value of technology, the sector must treat data not as an exhaust product of construction, but as a critical asset with its own lifecycle. 

So let’s find out what Louisa is doing about these challenges

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