{"id":40255,"date":"2026-01-27T13:28:32","date_gmt":"2026-01-27T13:28:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/?post_type=100-alumni&p=40255"},"modified":"2026-02-04T14:46:53","modified_gmt":"2026-02-04T14:46:53","slug":"adam-cresser-data-ai-director-notting-hill-genesis","status":"publish","type":"100-alumni","link":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/dataiq100\/adam-cresser-data-ai-director-notting-hill-genesis\/","title":{"rendered":"Adam Cresser, Data & AI Director, Notting Hill Genesis"},"content":{"rendered":"

Adam Cresser is Data and AI Director at Notting Hill Genesis, where he leads the organisation\u2019s data and AI agenda with a clear focus on outcomes,\u00a0impact,\u00a0and value.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He began his career on the frontline of social housing, where the direct impact on people\u2019s lives mattered more than metrics. That experience shaped his values and continues to inform his approach to data leadership: technology is only useful when it delivers meaningful outcomes. Over more than 12 years in senior leadership roles, Adam led operational housing services, compliance and business improvement through mergers, periods of change and organisational crises. These roles developed the core skills that underpin his data leadership today, including influence, communication, strategic\u00a0clarity,\u00a0and delivery at pace.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Five years ago, Adam pivoted formally into data leadership, bringing with him a strong business-first mindset. Rather than approaching data as a technical discipline in isolation, he focused on solving real organisational problems and surrounded himself with deep technical\u00a0expertise. Building an understanding of data and AI enabled him to amplify his transferable leadership experience and accelerate impact.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Since then, Adam has developed and delivered one of the housing sector\u2019s first comprehensive data strategies. His work has been recognised by organisations including DAMA, Housing Technology and DataIQ, reflecting both innovation and practical impact.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Adam views data leadership as leadership full stop: setting a clear direction, building\u00a0capability\u00a0and creating the conditions for people to do their best work.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As a data and AI leader, which traits and skills do you think matter most, and which of those have been most influential for you in your current position?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cCommunication and influence come first. In a traditional sector, stakeholders rarely arrive with\u00a0well-formed\u00a0asks. You need curiosity,\u00a0empathy,\u00a0and credibility to surface the right problems, build trust, and tell compelling value stories.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0the difference between being seen as a cost and being recognised as a strategic enabler.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cStrategic and critical thinking matters: joining the dots across regulatory,\u00a0commercial\u00a0and political contexts; aligning data and AI to what\u2019s topical and material; and choosing the right idea, at the right time, with the right sponsor. You obviously bring your technical knowledge on capabilities to that. Strong networks ensure\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0in the right conversations.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Reflecting on your career, what is one non-traditional piece of advice (outside of technical skills) you would give to an aspiring data or AI leader aiming for the C-suite?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t\u00a0let perfect be the enemy of progress;\u00a0balance theory with pragmatism and pace. A mentor once reminded me,\u00a0pretty sure\u00a0it was copied from Keynes, that\u00a0\u2018we\u2019re all dead in the long run.\u2019\u00a0In practice: long term architectures and best practice models matter, but if people\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0feel impact soon,\u00a0you\u2019ll\u00a0lose trust and momentum, and not last.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDesign every initiative with a\u00a090-day\u00a0outcome and a\u00a0North\u00a0Star. Deliver something tangible early\u00a0(reduce a risk, save time, improve a decision)\u00a0while building the foundations that avoid technical debt. Earn the right to do the hard stuff by solving real pain, quickly. Measure it. Tell the story. Then iterate.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis approach sustains sponsorship, motivates teams, and keeps strategy grounded in value.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Adam Cresser is Data and AI Director at Notting Hill Genesis, where he leads the organisation\u2019s data and AI agenda with a clear focus on outcomes,\u00a0impact,\u00a0and value.\u00a0 He began his career on the frontline of social housing, where the direct impact on people\u2019s lives mattered more than metrics. That experience shaped his values and continues […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":25825,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","_searchwp_excluded":"","footnotes":""},"100-designation":[1454],"100-search-term":[1456],"class_list":["post-40255","100-alumni","type-100-alumni","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","100-designation-100-brands-2026-europe","100-search-term-2026-europe-brands"],"acf":{"sort":"","rank":"","forename":"Adam","surname":"Cresser","fullname":"Adam Cresser","jobtitle":"Data & AI Director","organisation":"Notting Hill Genesis ","introduction":"","content_2":"","content_3":"","content_4":"","100_thumbnail_image":25825,"affinoid":""},"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-27 07:35:46","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"100-designation","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/100-alumni\/40255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/100-alumni"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/100-alumni"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40255"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/100-alumni\/40255\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40847,"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/100-alumni\/40255\/revisions\/40847"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"100-designation","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/100-designation?post=40255"},{"taxonomy":"100-search-term","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dataiq.global\/devstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/100-search-term?post=40255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}