Difrent's opinions on all things people and digital

all blogs

Sept. 18, 2019

Procurement is Nothing New

It is the same process you go through when you buy a tin of beans, a computer, a car, a house. There is thought, intent, a look at the availability of products, analysis of pricing, the ability to form a contract, getting the product or service and t

Sept. 12, 2019

Introducing: Colin Passant

Colin Passant - Difrent's UX Designer

Aug. 14, 2019

Silicon Slopes: Old School to Startup

Rachel Murphy spoke about going from old school business to startup at 2019's Silicon Slopes

Aug. 12, 2019

Introducing: David Pierce

Procurement. Commercial. Solutions Driven. Procurement Geek. PCR Expert. Stakeholder Focused. Savings Savvy.

Aug. 5, 2019

Diary of a CEO: days 80-120

Rachel Murphy - Diary of a CEO: days 80-120

July 19, 2019

Introducing: Anna Cotton

Anna Cotton - Difrent's Operations Administrator

July 10, 2019

I left recruitment for this

I’d placed ‘teams’ onto projects before, but I’d never won, or even explored outcome-based deliverables.

July 8, 2019

Introducing: George Morgan

Introducing George Morgan: Deployment | Public Sector | Recruitment | Digital

July 4, 2019

DataTalks: Data into Digital

Rachel Murphy presented her tale on data transformation and how it's the only way forward.

June 6, 2019

Introducing: Michael Hargreaves

I've always had a thing for interacting with people, an inquisitive mind with an eagerness to know 'why?' As well as 'how?'

June 3, 2019

User Research: learning empathy & accessibility the hard way

Our user researcher, Sarah, blogs about her experience on breaking her foot and the things she learned about empathy and accessibility.

May 16, 2019

Introducing: Ann Kempster

I've always had a thing for interacting with people, an inquisitive mind with an eagerness to know 'why?' As well as 'how?'

April 29, 2019

Diary of a CEO: days 40-80 part1

Rachel Murphy discusses her last 40 days as CEO of Difrent

April 29, 2019

Diary of a CEO: days 40-80 part2

Rachel Murphy - Diary of a CEO: days 40-80

April 25, 2019

Press Release: Difrent Establishes Advisory Board

Difrent have established an advisory board. The line-up is a collection of highly experienced leaders within their fields, spanning both Public and Private sectors.

April 9, 2019

Introducing: Jo Brown

Jo Brown - Difrent's Marketing Manager

April 5, 2019

The Future is Multi-vendor Delivery

Rachel Murphy & Hamid Yafai - The future is multi-vendor delivery

April 5, 2019

Introducing: Shannon Heffernan

Shannon Heffernan - Difrent's Deployment Consultant

April 3, 2019

Introducing: Hamid Yafai

Hamid Yafai - Difrent's Senior Consultant

March 27, 2019

Introducing: Daniel Abbott

Daniel Abbott - Difrent's Frontend Developer

March 26, 2019

Leadership lessons from kids

Chris King is a Delivery Lead, overseeing the redevelopment of the NHS Jobs service in partnership with NHS Business Services Authority. Here he introduces the first in a series of Leadership blogs from our Delivery Leads.

March 25, 2019

Introducing: Daniel Leakey

Dan Leakey - Difrent's Delivery Lead

March 20, 2019

Introducing: Smita Mitra

Smita Mitra - Difrent's Developer

March 12, 2019

Diary of a CEO: My first 40 days

Rachel Murphy - Diary of a CEO: My first 40 days

March 4, 2019

Introducing: Nicola Carney

Nicola Carney - Difrent's Operations Manager

March 1, 2019

Difrent Welcomes NHSX

70% of the work we do is in health, both on the front line and with central departments. We work with NHS Digital, Public Health England, The World Health Organisation and Leeds Teaching Hospital.

Feb. 11, 2019

Introducing: Ben Cooper

Everyone at Difrent is extremely passionate and committed to affecting real change in the public sector, delivering quality outcomes on projects aimed at ‘public good’.

Feb. 5, 2019

Introducing: Karen Cleale

At Difrent, we make a big promise to our customers, and as Delivery Director, I ensure that we deliver on that promise, every time.

Feb. 4, 2019

Press Release: Carruthers & Jones Partnership

Difrent partner up with data experts, Carruthers & Jones.

Jan. 20, 2019

#UKGC19 - My First Unconference

You could not find a more passionate, committed and talented group of people to inspire change and guide our sector forwards.

Jan. 8, 2019

Introducing: Steve Dhillon

Steve Dhillon - Difrent's Founder

Dec. 17, 2018

Introducing: Ross Aitken

A real excitement is in the air, and this just seemed absent from my experience of the industry.

Dec. 3, 2018

Introducing: Adriana Caro

I have been working to take the best from my background into the ever-evolving tech sector.

Nov. 26, 2018

Introducing: Gabby Shoremi

I enjoy meeting the users in order to understand their pains and gains with the ultimate aim of removing the pains and adding value to the gains. This is what I love doing.

Nov. 19, 2018

Introducing: Dave Hudson

Currently a developer for Difrent helping with the delivery of NHS Jobs programme.

Nov. 19, 2018

Introducing: Frankie McGowan

By the time the awards ceremony took place, I had transitioned into a Business Analyst, which was the role I love! Maybe I can claim the top spot in this field :)

Nov. 15, 2018

Introducing: Chris King

No matter what the role, the basis was always the same. Take things on, own them and share out the successes at the end.

Nov. 6, 2018

Introducing: Scott Smith

I get a kick out of making things that get a positive reaction out of people.

Oct. 31, 2018

Introducing: Sarah Stokes

Honestly I’d love to just get all my friends and family (they’re scattered all over the country and North America) round a campfire to cook food and drink some moonshine.

Oct. 23, 2018

Digital Integration: The Future’s Worst Enemy May be The Past

We’re in the digital era. You didn’t need us to tell you that. You’re probably reading this on a device that is infinitely more powerful than the NASA computer that got us to the moon whilst feeling no sense of awe about that fact at all. You may hav

Oct. 18, 2018

Introducing: Jamal Walker

I've always had a thing for interacting with people, an inquisitive mind with an eagerness to know 'why?' As well as 'how?'

Oct. 9, 2018

Introducing: Areesha Malik

I'm very excited to be part of the Difrent team and being a part of a team that believes in delivering.

Oct. 8, 2018

Introducing: Debbie Laird

My biggest love (except my partner Darron) is travelling and exploring new places, countries and cultures.

Oct. 4, 2018

Introducing: Rachel Murphy

Project - Programme - Business Change - Head of IT - IT Director - CIO - Digital Delivery

Sept. 24, 2018

Creating a Digital Workspace

We’re working with Public Health England to develop a Digital Workspace. At the heart of the new space will be PHE’s intranet information combined with the collaboration tools they need to support Digital working.

Aug. 28, 2018

Mentoring: if I had known then what I know now

“If I had known then what I know now,” said everyone.

Aug. 24, 2018

Volunteering: A scout leader's tale

So, here’s the thing - before I left to go to Switzerland, this was going to be a blog about how charity leave is such a good thing for both employer and employee to have. Then I realised I have nothing new to say that you wouldn’t already know...

Aug. 14, 2018

Why BeDifrent?

We were asked recently on Twitter why are we called BeDifrent and typically I did an off the cuff response. It got Jo thinking, and she asked Steve and me to pen a blog explaining why we wanted to call our business Difrent.

Aug. 7, 2018

Press Release: Rachel nominated for FL national awards & summit 2018

Difrent's CEO, Rachel Murphy has been nominated for Female Entrepreneur of the Year, London & the South.

July 23, 2018

WTF is Digital Series: Part 6. People, Culture & Transformation

This is the culmination of the last 5 blogs in the WTF series and is really where you begin to kick start all of your learning, knowledge and skills into an Action Plan and get rolling!

July 17, 2018

Playing the Long Game

The reason I’m writing this is that I found myself somewhat frustrated yesterday by the want for positive change but the lack of willingness to accept that some people…

July 9, 2018

Picking up the baton: Public Health England, digital collaboration space

Having picked up the baton from Nomensa UX design agency, after they delivered the discovery and alpha phases, Difrent are steaming along to move towards the next handover point from Beta version to live - all within the next three months!

July 5, 2018

NEWS: Computing.co.uk Winner

Computing's Digital Technology Leaders' Awards, now in their second year, recognise the people that keep the IT lights on, rather than the platforms and tools that can sometimes obscure them.

June 22, 2018

It's Time for Iftar! My UK Ramadan Experience

Born and bred in Dubai, Areesha shares her experience of her first UK Ramadan.

June 20, 2018

WTF is Digital Series: Part 5. New Ways of Working

One of the greatest benefits of running a business in 2018 has to be the opportunity to utilise digital technology and using it to transform your companies operational processes.

June 5, 2018

Press Release: Difrent Group Partner Up

Difrent & Vix partner in digital delivery for Public Health England

May 22, 2018

Can I get an ounce?

It could read like a shopping list. A well thought out list that you do before you hit the shop.

May 11, 2018

But, what do you actually do?

“But what do you actually do!” I remember hearing what looked like a four-year-old girl say to whom looked like her very smartly dressed dad.

May 8, 2018

Familiar, yet different: it’s all about the people

I work as an Executive Coach and Change Agent across the public and private sector; taking individuals, teams and organisations from A to B, implementing change, reshaping behaviours, improving performance and cohesion, and challenging thinking.

May 3, 2018

WTF is Digital Series: Part 4. Engagement through Digital Channels

As an early adopter of social media personally I found this blog easier to write than some others in this series!

May 1, 2018

Success is the Team

Whoever said success is a lonely journey, didn’t know what they were talking about. No one succeeds alone!

April 27, 2018

Boss Babies On Board

Having always been an interim and having never been through a ‘proper’ onboarding process in any organisation I had surprisingly strong views about how we would approach this with our new graduate hires.

April 20, 2018

A Guy & 10 Digital Ladies

I spent my evening at the 10 Digital Ladies Awards where I met some exceptional women who have contributed immensely to the digital world as we know it today.

April 13, 2018

DevOps: An Immersive Simulation

It’s 8:15 am on Thursday 5th April and I’m on the 360 bus to Imperial College, London.

April 11, 2018

Friends that are like family, family that are like friends

Difrent's CEO, Rachel Murphy, talks about turning 40 with friends and family

April 3, 2018

WTF is Digital: Part 3. Innovation & Agility

Keeping nimble, agile and continuously innovating are often the thing of fantasies for many organisations.

March 19, 2018

10 things agile/digital teams need to know about procurement

At the recent #AgileP event, we discussed the need for a two-way learning journey — involving Digital AND Procurement.

March 18, 2018

People & Prejudice

As the mid-life crisis rages on; I have coloured my hair (very bright blue and now cerise) and had a tattoo done in the last four weeks. I have never in almost 40 years done either of these things before ✌️.

March 14, 2018

WTF is Digital: Part 2. The Digital Imperative

I think the days are numbered for people to say they aren’t touched in some way by Digital.

March 13, 2018

WTF is Digital: Part 1. Digital Diary

During a fantastic meet with a new contact last week, I was sharing ideas about how to make Digital a reality to people, let’s face it, Digital has to be the most overused term in history and it means something different to every one of us!

March 7, 2018

The Clock, the Cat and Agile Procurement!

Little did I know when I woke up Monday morning that I would end up sitting in a discussion about cats and clocks, as part of an unconference on agile procurement!

March 6, 2018

Procuring Digital Outcomes – #AgileP

Difrent ran their first Unconference yesterday bringing together an eclectic group of public and private sector bods to discuss the challenge of digital delivery using outcomes; an event dubbed #AgileP.

Feb. 27, 2018

Thriving in Uncertainty & Change

I was asked ‘Why does my approach to coaching work?’ I have overcome many personal and professional challenges; struggling from one job to another, unfulfilled, undervalued, unknowing how to find the right place to contribute and make a difference;

Feb. 12, 2018

Pablo Escobar: Worlds #1 Entrepreneur

Instilling the right values. It was a case that, “The problem was never a matter of money, it was a matter of dignity”. How can anyone know what you’re about if you do not know yourself?

Feb. 5, 2018

Live in the Moment but Plan for the Future

Hi, I’m Alessandra Distefano and I am an Italian living in London. I’m here to tell you how I became a tireless human being.

Jan. 30, 2018

Entrepreneur Life: UK vs. Venezuela

Are you an entrepreneur in the UK? Consider yourself lucky! A few days ago I was talking with a friend who lives in Latin America, discussing the differences between being an entrepreneur in the UK vs.Venezuela, where I am originally from.

Jan. 25, 2018

A Whole New World

My introduction to a world I know nothing about and quite frankly didn’t know existed has been kinda awesome. My only dip into this kind of world would be a two-year AVCE in ICT some twelve years ago when the IT recruitment drive died a death and I p

Oct. 31, 2017

I now know what I want to be when I grow up...

After a couple of particularly intense back to back contracts transforming healthcare I knew I was going to take a month out to re-charge, sleep, be kind to myself and have a proper think about what it really was that I wanted to do work-wise!

Aug. 20, 2017

How to choose your digital recruitment agency

Let’s face it, recruitment agencies aren’t always seen in the best of light. Indeed, sometimes we thank God that estate...

Aug. 30, 2016

Bring on the girl coders!

But tech is a man’s world! Geeks are men! Girls can’t code! True. Or at least, it was up until about five years ago when large tech giants started to place females on their boards such as Sheryl Sandberg (Facebook COO), Susan Wojcicki (YouTube CEO) a

Blogs

Silicon Slopes: Old School to Startup

Introducing: David Pierce

Diary of a CEO: days 80-120

all blogs

Procurement is Nothing New

Introducing: Colin Passant

Silicon Slopes: Old School to Startup

Introducing: David Pierce

Diary of a CEO: days 80-120

Introducing: Anna Cotton

I left recruitment for this

Introducing: George Morgan

DataTalks: Data into Digital

Introducing: Michael Hargreaves

User Research: learning empathy & accessibility the hard way

Introducing: Ann Kempster

Diary of a CEO: days 40-80 part1

Diary of a CEO: days 40-80 part2

Press Release: Difrent Establishes Advisory Board

Introducing: Jo Brown

The Future is Multi-vendor Delivery

Introducing: Shannon Heffernan

Introducing: Hamid Yafai

Introducing: Daniel Abbott

Leadership lessons from kids

Introducing: Daniel Leakey

Introducing: Smita Mitra

Diary of a CEO: My first 40 days

Introducing: Nicola Carney

Difrent Welcomes NHSX

Introducing: Ben Cooper

Introducing: Karen Cleale

Press Release: Carruthers & Jones Partnership

#UKGC19 - My First Unconference

Introducing: Steve Dhillon

Introducing: Ross Aitken

Introducing: Adriana Caro

Introducing: Gabby Shoremi

Introducing: Dave Hudson

Introducing: Frankie McGowan

Introducing: Chris King

Introducing: Scott Smith

Introducing: Sarah Stokes

Digital Integration: The Future’s Worst Enemy May be The Past

Introducing: Jamal Walker

Introducing: Areesha Malik

Introducing: Debbie Laird

Introducing: Rachel Murphy

Creating a Digital Workspace

Mentoring: if I had known then what I know now

Volunteering: A scout leader's tale

Why BeDifrent?

Press Release: Rachel nominated for FL national awards & summit 2018

WTF is Digital Series: Part 6. People, Culture & Transformation

Playing the Long Game

Picking up the baton: Public Health England, digital collaboration space

NEWS: Computing.co.uk Winner

It's Time for Iftar! My UK Ramadan Experience

WTF is Digital Series: Part 5. New Ways of Working

Press Release: Difrent Group Partner Up

Can I get an ounce?

But, what do you actually do?

Familiar, yet different: it’s all about the people

WTF is Digital Series: Part 4. Engagement through Digital Channels

Success is the Team

Boss Babies On Board

A Guy & 10 Digital Ladies

DevOps: An Immersive Simulation

Friends that are like family, family that are like friends

WTF is Digital: Part 3. Innovation & Agility

10 things agile/digital teams need to know about procurement

People & Prejudice

WTF is Digital: Part 2. The Digital Imperative

WTF is Digital: Part 1. Digital Diary

The Clock, the Cat and Agile Procurement!

Procuring Digital Outcomes – #AgileP

Thriving in Uncertainty & Change

Pablo Escobar: Worlds #1 Entrepreneur

Live in the Moment but Plan for the Future