Hi Nick. How are you doing? Can you give a quick update on life so far with 44?

I’m now more than three years into my time with 44. I started just before the pandemic, so it was an interesting beginning.

That felt like a turning point for internal comms. With everything up in the air, leadership teams turned to the IC function to lead on maintaining stability and keeping disparate teams updated. Now it feels like we’re at a real fork in the road: either IC can keep its seat at the top table and continue to demonstrate its value, or that momentum could be lost as BAU concerns flood back to the top of the tree.

I’ll be intrigued to see what position we’re in in a few years’ time.

And you’re juggling a few plates at the moment − tell us about that…

Well, I’m trying my best to keep them all in the air. We had our daughter in 2021, then last year we got married in the summer, and I started on a year-long master’s course in Internal Communications Management in November.

More immediately, my second child is due in March.

There’s a bit going on before we even start talking about my doer-upper house, which at some point, I’ll have to start doing.

What would be your dream project?

I’m always excited when I get to work on a project where there’s an element of gamification. It completely plays into my incredibly niche Venn diagram of interests, where board games and puzzles overlap with internal communications content. Very sad, I know. One day I’ll develop a Settlers of Catan-style game for a client. One magical day.

And, finally, we know you’re a cricket lover… which player did you try to emulate when you were young?

I am a big cricket fan, although I manage to play much less often than I would like these days (that is one plate I have unfortunately had to let shatter on the ground, along with my ambitions of making the Ashes squad this year).

I never really had a cricketing hero. I was lucky enough to see Brian Lara bat a lot at Edgbaston when I was a young season ticket holder, but I spent most of my time in youth cricket at number 11, so I certainly didn’t learn anything from him.

Now it’s all about Jos Buttler − for my money one of the greatest cricketers we’ve ever produced and certainly the best white ball player England has ever had.

I think I hero-worshipped musicians and writers rather than cricketers growing up. I was a tortured emo during my angsty teenage years, and while the clothes have got slightly lighter in colour (and slightly less baggy), I still haven’t moved away from the music. My Spotify Wrapped basically hasn’t changed in a decade.