When Marra brought together technology leaders from Sage, Northumbrian Water, Karbon Homes and Scrumconnect, one message rang loud and clear: delivering meaningful digital transformation in 2026 won’t be about chasing shiny tools. It’ll be about clarity, governance and solving real problems for real people. 

Hosted by Steph Thompson, Head of Delivery at Marra, the conversation unfolded into an honest, experience-rich discussion about Power Platform, enterprise AI adoption, strategy execution and what leaders should actually prioritise for the year ahead. 

Below is a snapshot of the most compelling themes, but the recording goes much deeper. 

Choosing the Right Tech: Power Platform vs Pro-Code

Michael Taylor (Karbon Homes) set the tone early: Power Platform is powerful, but it’s not the answer to everything. Organisations need “tool for the job” thinking and proper architectural governance to avoid building the wrong thing quickly. His example of replacing 900 spreadsheets with a model-driven app demonstrated the kind of high-impact value low-code can deliver when applied to the right problem. Kelly Dougherty (Northumbrian Water) echoed this, stressing the importance of governance first, especially in complex, regulated environments. Her team is using Power Platform to modernise paper-based inspections and empower frontline colleagues, but only where it genuinely fits the need. Dave Pickering (Sage) brought the finance perspective: Power Platform works brilliantly for rapid delivery and business-led adoption, but still requires strong guardrails to avoid an uncontrolled sprawl. 

A key takeaway was that low code accelerates delivery but governance, business alignment and clear use case selection matter more than speed. 

Keeping Strategy and Delivery in Sync

This question sparked some of the most grounded, practical advice of the whole session. 

Fay Cooper (Scrumconnect) spoke about building long-term vision while delivering small, fast wins that build trust. In government environments especially, momentum comes from “giving people something useful in their hands within 1–2 months,” not 200-page strategy decks. Kelly reinforced the need to anchor work in business value, not technology ambition. Her teams now must articulate expected benefits e.g. time saved, customer improvements, compliance gains etc. before work begins. Michael added that organisations must make smarter use of the tools they already pay for. Getting more value from Microsoft 365 often starts with small, layered improvements that encourage adoption and build credibility. 

A key takeaway was that great strategies don’t survive without delivery discipline. Start small, prove value early, and keep your long-term goals flexible. 

Enterprise AI Readiness: Beyond the Hype

This part of the discussion pulled no punches. Every leader agreed: most organisations are fascinated by AI but far from ready. 

1. Governance comes first. Kelly outlined Northumbrian Water’s structured approach. From Copilot adoption criteria, to tight licence management, to forming an AI committee representing compliance, HR, comms, security and the executive team. Their focus is clear: innovation with control. 

1. Skills and confidence matter. Dave highlighted the importance of upskilling colleagues, building confidence and ensuring people understand both what Copilot can do and what it shouldn’t be used for. 

1. Solve real problems, not theoretical ones. Fay shared some of the most powerful examples of AI in action, including work with judges and court services to automatically digest complex case files. The impact? Reducing cognitive load and enabling safer, faster decision-making. She also described AI solutions addressing housing crisis workflows, where agents currently handle hundreds of cases manually. 

These weren’t experiments. They were live, ethically governed, high-value applications of AI to real societal challenges. 

A key takeaway was that AI readiness is about data foundations, cultural education, governance and solving meaningful problems not racing to plug in a model. 

The One Thing Leaders Should Prioritise for 2026

As the panel wrapped up, the advice became crystal clear: 

• Fix your foundations e.g. technical debt, governance, data architecture  

• Get back to basics and understand your users  

• Align digital strategy to business goals, not technology trends  

• Invest in people to build skills, learning journeys and confidence  

Together, they echoed what Marra sees every day: successful digital transformation is built on strong governance, clear business value and empowered people (not just clever tech). 

Watch the Full Recording

This summary only scratches the surface. The full conversation is packed with candid reflections, real-world examples and practical advice from leaders who are navigating transformation in some of the UK’s most complex organisations. 

Watch the full recording to hear the panel’s insights firsthand. 

If you’d like help shaping your own Power Platform, AI or digital strategy roadmap, our team at Marra would be happy to talk.