Artificial Intelligence: Enhancing The Built Environment

Dr Will Cavendish joined Arup in 2018 and is Arup's Global Digital Services Leader. In this role he is responsible for leading Arup’s work to support clients to take advantage of the major transformation in their world that is being brought about by digital, including meeting critical sustainability challenges. While at Arup, he has worked at senior level with clients around the world, and in sectors as varied as property, cities, aviation, rail, highways, energy, the environment, and technology. Previously he was Applied Strategy Lead at DeepMind, responsible for understanding the groundbreaking developments taking place in Artificial Intelligence, and working with key partners to apply them for public good in areas such as health and energy. Before that he was a senior civil servant, including roles as Director General for Innovation, Growth and Technology at the Department of Health; Director General, International Energy and Climate Change at DECC, and head of the Prime Minister’s Implementation Unit, working directly to then-PM David Cameron. As a result, he has wide-ranging experience of achieving change in areas such as digital, cities, health, education, energy and climate change, cybersecurity, growth and innovation. When in government, he also led the creation of the world's first network of What Works Centres, set up to provide proper evidence on effective uses of public money, and pioneered the use of transparency and crowdsourcing in policy making. Will has also served as a World Bank economist; has lectured at Oxford University and Imperial College; has a doctorate in economics; and was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath by the Queen in 2015.”

With an established background of more than 10 years as a building surveyor, James uniquely bridges the gap between the construction industry and software development, identifying innovative applications for technology, such as bespoke ESG data analysis systems. This encourages a future-facing culture, not just for Workman, but for the entire property sector. As the wider workforce increasingly becomes more expectant of the use of technology, James believes the real estate industry has an opportunity to take a stand at the forefront of innovation. James combines building surveying, project management, smart building technology and sustainability expertise, working at the interface between property management, building consultancy and ESG teams.

Passionate about navigating the ever-evolving landscape of digital transformation, I specialize in leveraging Salesforce to drive innovation and business growth. With a knack for turning complex challenges into streamlined solutions, I thrive in creating strategic roadmaps that align technology with business objectives. Over the last 8 years i have been in the forefront of multiple system implementations and integrations including Salesforce, Access Dimensions, Templa CMS and the Microsoft suite. More recently I have exploring the real life applications of AI driven technology in our sector, leveraging newly emerging systems to further streamline operational and commercial delivery in the Nexgen Group across multiple company entities. Delivering social value has, and always will be, high on my agenda, always driven by our organization's mantra of "Better Places, Better Lives".

Ed is a Senior Vice President in the Salesforce Market Strategy team. He is focused on helping our customers deliver world-class customer experiences with Salesforce, with a particular focus on customers in EMEA. Prior to his current role he worked as a VP, Distinguished Analyst at Gartner. He was at the firm for over 27 year and was responsible for researching and advising on Customer Experience Management and Customer Relationship Management. He wrote over 660 research papers and delivered over 200 different presentations. He answered inquiry questions on the phone or video calls from over 500 clients per year and met another 200 face to face. He spent his time helping IT, customer experience, customer service, sales, analytics and marketing leaders trying to define a vision, create a strategy, select technology and solve problems with implementations.

As the Regional Vice President and Head of the Built Environment Industry for the UK&I, Yalda is passionate and responsible for leveraging technology in order to solve complex business challenges, supporting organisations of all sizes harnessing the power of the Salesforce Platform in order to drive efficiency, productivity and growth, while also focusing on key areas such as sustainability. With over a decade of experience in Salesforce and the Salesforce ecosystem, Yalda has a diverse background in Built Environment, Media, Gaming, Retail and Hospitality with a vision to align and be aligned to all stakeholders to support in bringing business and technology together, in order to support organisations become market leaders and support with their digital journey. Outside of Salesforce, Yalda is committed to mentorship and community engagements, actively participating in initiatives aimed at empowering women and fostering diversity and inclusion within the industry.