Niall Robinson leads product innovation at the Met Office, the UK’s national weather and climate service. He’s been with the organization for 12 years, always on the lookout for ways to drive change.
“The Met Office offers such a wide range of work,” he shares. “I’ve had the chance to explore multiple roles all within one organization.”
Originally, he joined as a research scientist with a PhD in physics, exploring climate modeling and field science. He helped to launch the Met Office Informatics Lab, where he teamed up with technologists and designers to maximize the organization’s data. In February 2021, he took on his current role, focusing on transforming innovative concepts into operational services.
“My job involves finding new ways to make the Met Office more impactful and bringing those ideas to fruition,” Robinson explains. “I collaborate with my team to identify new possibilities, gather evidence, and test them to integrate them into our everyday operations.”
He reports to the associate director of propositions, but he also works closely with the IT department. This partnership plays a vital role in his work.
“Given my background, I find myself bridging the gap between those who build technology, the scientists, and the service deployers,” he states. Robinson collaborates closely with Charlie Ewen, the director of technology, as much of his work revolves around using digital transformation to enhance product development.
“Previously, I spent more time on the technical side, building prototypes with my team. Now it’s more about how those products deliver value,” he says. “It’s about leveraging technology to create new offerings.”
One major achievement in his three years as head of innovation? “Getting our data into the hands of people,” he declares. He emphasizes modern tech platforms as essential for extracting value from the Met Office’s data.
A recent economic study revealed that the Met Office will contribute £56 billion to the UK economy over the next decade, with a remarkable return of nearly £19 for every pound of public funding. This study also pointed out the broader innovation impact of the Met Office’s partnerships and data services.
“That’s central to our mission,” Robinson states. “We produce data that must serve the UK economy effectively. People now expect cloud-based solutions, and we need to adapt accordingly.”
Currently, one of Robinson’s key initiatives involves the Snowflake Marketplace. This platform allows users to easily access and explore data services, marking a significant shift for the Met Office.
“Launching data on Snowflake is one of our biggest projects,” he notes. “It went live in February after a lot of planning. It’s transforming how we handle data.”
This technology gives users the ability to purchase Met Office data quickly and efficiently.
“Our core customers include central government, the Ministry of Defence, and sectors like aviation and energy,” he explains. However, the Marketplace opens doors to new clientele.
“The beauty of it is economies of scale. Many businesses want our weather data without needing direct interaction, which is fantastic,” he says.
Meeting new demands can be challenging, especially as the Met Office churns out about 400 terabytes of data daily. They also partner with supercomputer provider Microsoft and cloud services from Amazon Web Services (AWS). Robinson stresses that ongoing innovation hinges on ensuring their information is user-ready.
“The raw data from the supercomputer can be quite complex. The Met Office has hands-on experience in processing that data efficiently using AWS and on-premise systems,” he explains.
Robinson is committed to exploring fresh avenues for innovation. One exciting project is their climate data portals. These user-friendly platforms aim to assist local councils in adapting to climate change.
“The portals streamline access to our data,” he highlights. “We’re launching a new service for local authorities, critical for making informed decisions about climate action.”
These portals integrate with ESRI’s geographical information software. “There’s a whole community of ESRI users, and we’re focused on making our data accessible within that ecosystem,” he adds.
Artificial intelligence is another key focus for the Met Office. Robinson is eager to see how they can harness AI for more accurate weather predictions.
“There’s fierce competition in the forecasting community to develop AI models,” he notes. “We’re collaborating with the Alan Turing Institute in this area.”
He’s also interested in how AI can enhance their products and services.
“We’re working on taking weather predictions and making them more relatable,” he says. “It’s still in the early stages, but we have some promising proof of concepts.”
One notable advancement involves using Snowflake’s Cortex AI model to generate natural language weather forecasts. Although promising, Robinson acknowledges the need for caution.
“There’s a long-standing tradition of verification in our forecasting methods,” he says. “Relying on generative AI for verification is a new challenge we’re approaching carefully.”
Reflecting on the importance of digital innovation, Robinson identifies key qualities for a successful head of innovation: feasibility, desirability, and viability.
“I come from a tech and science background, and building things excites me,” he shares. “But there’s a trap in focusing solely on what you enjoy. You need to consider feasibility: What can you create?”
For desirability, he cites a quote attributed to Henry Ford: “If I’d asked people what they wanted, they would’ve said faster horses.” Robinson believes that while understanding customer needs is essential, innovators must also anticipate future desires.
“Part of the job is uncovering what users don’t yet know they want,” he adds.
Lastly, he emphasizes viability: “Creating something useful means little if you can’t make it sustainable,” he concludes.