Matt Peacock: Tech optimism, corporate transparency and the state of journalism

In Episode 4 of Do Not Adjust Your Focus, the podcast from business reputation consultancy Blurred, Stuart talks to Matt Peacock, previously Group Director of Corporate Affairs at Vodafone, leading the company’s corporate social transformation strategy across 30 countries, becoming in the process one of the world's most sought-after experts on corporate transparency and purpose.

Matt is one of business’s leading experts on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles and operations, including a specialist passion for digital human rights. He is also a former BBC News Correspondent, working on its flagship World At One programme. 

Matt and Stuart discussed the role of mobile technology in the world and whether it is a force for good or not, given the current concerns over the impact of social media on democratic process.

But the core focus of the conversation was around corporate transparency and purpose. In the podcast, Matt talks about his worldview on corporate social purpose and how it needs to start with a rigorous risk assessment, grounding it in firm ESG principles. He explains how he and his team inculcated a culture of social purpose across the business, arguing strongly that for any such strategy to be effective it must be grounded in hard business metrics, not a moral argument.

Finally, Matt and Stuart discuss the state of our journalism and politics today and whether, if we care about understanding the world’s biggest problems and dissecting the pertinent issues, we should be worried…

You can listen to the full podcast here and subscribe on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. And below is a handy time-guide for topics and questions covered.