I help UK universities run their most important digital programmes: choosing the right systems, getting them live, and making sure the people, processes and politics stand up afterwards. Practical, sector-fluent, and accountable for the outcome.
Most engagements blend two or three of these. I'm hands-on — I write the plan, run the meetings, and own the slide deck that goes to your executive board.
Senior delivery leadership for complex, multi-stakeholder HE programmes — from mobilisation to benefits realisation.
Cutting through vendor noise to set a digital direction your institution can actually deliver against.
Running fair, defensible procurements that get you the right supplier — not just the loudest one.
The bit most programmes underestimate: getting the institution ready, then keeping it that way.
I'm Christopher Colnaghi, an independent programme manager and consultant specialising in technology and transformation in UK Higher Education. Over the last 15+ years I've led digital programmes inside universities, advised vendors selling into the sector, and acted as the steady hand on high-stakes, board-visible change.
Most institutions I work with are juggling a small number of strategically important programmes alongside a stretched in-house team. My job is to bring calm, structure and a credible plan — and then to get on and deliver it.
I use PRINCE2 / MSP / APM PMQ / Agile methodologies and based in London, working with universities and Higher Education Institutions across the UK on site and remotely.
Fancy methodology decks don't deliver programmes — clarity, accountability and momentum do. Every engagement follows the same four beats.
Two weeks of conversations with sponsors, the team, and the people the change actually lands on.
A short, executive-grade diagnosis: what's really going on, what's at risk, and the smallest plan that works.
Hands-on programme leadership — running the cadence, unblocking the team, owning the outcome.
I'm an interim, not a fixture. Every engagement ends with your team confidently running it themselves.
The best engagements start with an unhurried conversation. Tell me what you're trying to land and what's getting in the way — I'll be honest about whether I'm the right person to help.
I usually reply within one working day.