Leaving GDS

Three years ago I wrote: “I’m excited to be joining GDS, to see what I can help them achieve and what I can learn from some world class people”.

I wasn’t disappointed. It’s been three fantastic, challenging, and hugely rewarding years.

Working with people who are smart, motivated, and care deeply about users. Solving hard problems to make people’s lives better. Learning not just about technology, but people, and new ways of thinking and working.

But three years is a long time, especially in digital. I’m leaving at the end of March. For me it’s the right time to move on and try something else for a while.

I’ve worked on many things in three years.

Making it easier to understand leave and pay when having a child. Modeling government during GDS’ first election. Simplifying a deployment process. Building a living style guide. Breaking down hard technical debt problems. Working out what a Design System for government might look like. Being a Technical Lead and mentoring junior colleagues.

I’m still excited about the work GDS is doing.

Things like the Service Toolkit, GOV.UK Notify, GOV.UK Frontend. Building tools for and supporting the reset of Government building their own services.

On the ground there are passionate people delivering work to transform the relationship between the citizen and state. It’s important stuff and there’s so much more still to do.

I might be leaving, but if you’re considering a couple of years in the the public sector then I can recommend it. If you’re not, maybe you should?