Interim and fractional data and AI leadership
Senior data leadership for the gap you cannot leave open.
When a head of data seat is empty, a platform migration is under way or an AI programme has stalled on its foundations, I step in and lead. I set the direction, steady governance and delivery, and hand over a team and operating model that hold once I have gone.
30 minutes. Confidential by default.
Track record
What the work has produced
Three programmes, three kinds of pressure: a regulator, a multinational estate and a function that did not exist yet.
Alpha Bank London
Head of Data
Partnered with PwC on BCBS 239 data remediation while the core banking platform was being replaced, and produced the evidence base for the Deloitte FY25 data-governance risk audit, which had no material findings.
Platforms Microsoft Purview, Microsoft Fabric, Finastra Fusion Essence, Salesforce Financial Services Cloud
HSBC
Head of EMEA Data, Reporting and Analytics
Led a 40-person blended team across a 30+ country EMEA portfolio and delivered £2m+ in recurring cost efficiencies.
Platforms Collibra, Oracle OBIEE, PeopleSoft
Volante Global
Head of Data Engineering and Analytics
Built the data function and commercial data platform from the ground up, took the MVP live within 18 months and moved commercial reporting off spreadsheets onto a single platform.
Platforms Azure Databricks, Microsoft Fabric, Power BI, Salesforce
The flagship mandate
Interim and fractional data leadership
An accountable senior operator inside your operating rhythm, for an initial three-month mandate, typically one to three days a week. Use it to cover a vacant head of data role, carry a migration or regulatory deadline, or get an AI programme moving on foundations that will hold.
A strategy the board can sign
I have developed and owned the data strategy at Alpha Bank London, Volante Global and MTC UK. A mandate starts by agreeing the decisions, outcomes and authority before any activity begins.
Governance that holds during change
At Alpha Bank London I founded and chaired the Data and AI Governance Working Group, with use-case intake, risk classification, approval gates and human-in-the-loop controls, while the bank moved onto new core banking, CRM and compliance platforms.
A function that runs without me
Every mandate ends with named owners and a working cadence and, where you need it, a definition of the permanent role and a plan for the transition to it.
How a mandate runs
Four stages, with ownership moving steadily from me to your team.
Mandate
Agree the decisions, outcomes, authority and reporting line before activity begins.
Stabilise
Close the control, delivery and leadership gaps that stop progress.
Build
Establish the operating model, team cadence, roadmap and governance.
Transfer
Embed ownership so the function runs without an outside dependency.
Fees are agreed in writing before work starts, based on scope, time commitment and whether line management is part of the role.
Other ways to work together
Smaller, fixed-scope pieces of work for when the question is narrower than a leadership mandate.
10 business days
Executive data and AI confidence review
An independent review of whether your data, reporting, governance and AI controls can support the decisions now being asked of them. You receive a board-readable view of what is true, what is exposed and what should happen over the next 90 days.
Fixed fee for one legal entity or business unit, agreed before work starts.
Half a day, plus preparation and readout
Board AI governance workshop
A focused session for up to twelve participants that turns AI governance from abstract policy into explicit decision rights, materiality thresholds, evidence and oversight, and closes with a 60-day action plan.
Fixed fee, agreed before work starts.
How I work
Hands on, not hands off
Most AI programmes stall on data foundations, not models. I stay close enough to the work to see where.
I build with AI agents myself
Since May 2026 my independent practice has worked hands on with agent orchestration, Model Context Protocol servers and retrieval pipelines. I design an agent loop the way I would design any control: plan, act, observe and retry, with tool scope, stop conditions, retries and cost limits set before anything runs.
I ship working products
I built and run CV Aligner, a live product in which every model suggestion is checked against the candidate's own CV before it is shown, with server-side payment verification, usage limits and automated tests. Since 2018 I have been sole technical owner of the custom booking, payments and enquiry system behind OneYogaLondon.
CV Aligner (opens in a new tab)OneYogaLondon (opens in a new tab)
I build teams that keep going
At HSBC and Alpha Bank London I led data and AI adoption through online training, open surgeries, regular check-ins, a newsletter and champions across the business. I also mentor people directly, from SQL skills to career decisions.
What people say
From people who managed me and people I managed.
Quentin brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in data and analytics. Along with his stakeholder management skills and ability to present data management and associated technology in understandable terms, he demonstrated his ability to innovate and effectively deliver business transformation.
Martin BlakeManaged Quentin directlyOn: transformation and executive communication Quentin has been a leader, mentor and friend for several years.
Quentin is delivery focused with the ability to translate demanding business requirements into effective solutions.
David BrownReported to Quentin at Barclays Capital and RBSOn: leadership and mentoring His technical skills are unsurpassed, coupled with his lateral thinking, and I would love to work with him again if the opportunity arises.
David BurrowsManaged Quentin at Barclays Capital and RBSOn: technical depth
Quoted from recommendations on LinkedIn (opens in a new tab).
Career
Head of data roles across banking, insurance and the public sector, and an independent practice since 2026.
- Eureka Digital ConsultingFounder and Principal Consultant · Independent data and AI advisory2026 to present
- Alpha Bank LondonHead of Data, reporting to the Chief Operating Officer · Banking2024 to 2026
- Volante GlobalHead of Data Engineering and Analytics · Specialty insurance2022 to 2023
- MTC UKHead of Data, Analytics and Insight · Probation services2020 to 2022
- HSBCHead of EMEA Data, Reporting and Analytics · Banking2013 to 2018
Earlier: VP roles in business intelligence, data governance and data management at RBS and Barclays Investment Bank.
Start with a confidential conversation.
Thirty minutes to talk through the role, the programme or the decision in front of you.
Book a confidential introductory call