Britain’s motorway drivers could soon be benefitting from the rise of AI and other digital technologies to improve customer service, following the appointment of a new chief at Moto, the company that operates 59 of the UK’s 90 motorway service stations.
While a recent Which? survey exposed the good, the bad and the ugly of the sector, it will be new chief digital and information officer Arslan Sharif’s role to bring them all of Moto’s operations up to scratch.
Succeeding CIO Guy Latchem, who has been in the role for 33 years, Sharif’s most recent role was as chief digital and technology officer at Pizza Express, where he had led all technology, digital, data and commercial activities to deliver an omni-channel growth strategy between April 2021 and March this year.
Prior to that, he was chief digital officer at Costa Coffee for nearly four years; and has also held senior digital and technology roles at British Gas, E.On, and Morgan Stanley in a career stretching back to 1997.
Sharif will report into CEO Ken McMeikan, who has been in the role since 2018.
He said: “The next two to three years in retail and hospitality will be the most radical and transformative from a digital and technology perspective, with AI and data analytics revolutionising the customer experience. I am really excited about the impact Arslan will make for Moto customers, and colleagues, in the coming years.”
He added: “Our vision is to ‘Transform the UK’s Rest Stop Experience’ and through artificial intelligence, data analytics and investing in customer service, we intend to accelerate our impact.”
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