Over the coming weeks we will announce our new MemberWise Ambassadors who will champion their particular area of expertise. Introducing MemberWise Ambassador (Digital Transformation), Matt Strain, Assistant Director, Digital Platforms & Change at the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investments (CISI). We get to know Matt…

With over 53,000 members across 131 countries (32,000 in the UK), the CISI is a global professional body that sets standards of professional excellence in a broad range of financial service disciplines.

Membership offers continuous personal development through qualifications, networking, events and flexible learning to enhance public trust and confidence in financial services as well as career progression.

I look after the Digital team here at the CISI nearly 40 people in the UK and our other main office in Sri Lanka, We are responsible for the maintenance and development of systems that provide a service to our members such as our member-facing platforms (MMS & website) as well as apps and other development activities. I also manage the data & analytics team who provide insights into membership as well as internal work. Lastly, I chair our organisation’s project management office who are responsible for our project portfolio, managing what work we decide to do and how it’s done.

This is my first role in a membership organisation having worked in technology for over 25 years in various roles from an engineer in a software company to, more recently, IT Director of a number of UK organisations. The collaborative, supportive nature of the work combined with the ability to make a difference is what attracted me to the sector.

Here at the CISI, I’ve revamped our development process to get member-facing features out more quickly, set up a data/analytics team to get insights into our business and members to be able to serve them better, and am championing AI use throughout the business making sure we understand the benefits and risks.

I’m a regular attendee of MemberWise Network conferences and webinars as well as keen reader of the forums to understand challenges.
Given the many opportunities and risks with digital innovation and especially AI, I want to keep the focus on the human element of technology and make sure our members (and staff!) have a great digital experience across all channels.

If I could recommend one thing to a membership/association professional starting out in a role similar as mine I would say to be open to learning new things all the time – technology always changes which is exciting but can be exhausting!

As for me personally that might surprise people, I lived in Japan for 6 years in the 90’s and go back regularly to visit family and friends – it’s my second home!

We welcome Matt on board as MemberWise Ambassador (Digital Transformation) and we look forward to championing effective digital development/transformation.