An interview with Ashley Rutland-Kirk, Head of Delivery (In-Life) at CTI Digital

Ashley Rutland-Kirk heads up one of CTI’s two delivery teams (focusing on in-life projects).

We took the opportunity to catch up with him and ask what makes client partnerships tick, and what good support looks like.

Tell us about your role at CTI

My role focuses on making sure we deliver a reliable, high quality service to our existing clients, whether that’s critical support, ongoing enhancement work, onboarding new clients, or project delivery.

I lead a multidisciplinary team of project managers, support managers, technical leads and developers, and work closely with the wider leadership team to ensure our services run smoothly, our clients feel supported, and we’re continually improving how we deliver.

What does a great partnership mean to you?

Over my time at CTI Digital, I’ve had the opportunity to deliver projects and retainer work directly with many of our clients. Through that, you naturally get to know the people behind the organisations, the teams you work alongside day to day to make things happen. We also have the opportunity to look beyond the work we deliver together and connect on a more human level. Understanding what’s going on in our clients’ worlds helps us support them better, whether that’s the pressures they’re under professionally or simply the things happening in their lives outside of work.

One moment that really stuck with me was when I got married in 2024 and an entire team from one of our clients sent me a congratulations card. It was such a thoughtful gesture and a great reminder that these partnerships often go well beyond the work itself.

As my role has evolved into Head of Delivery, I’m much less hands on in the day to day delivery. But one of my favourite parts of the role now is still engaging with our clients whenever I get the chance.

Whether it’s meeting new clients at the start of a partnership, joining quarterly business reviews, or simply dropping in to say hello and hear how things are going, those conversations are incredibly valuable.

They’re the best way to maintain strong relationships, understand what’s really working, and learn where we can continue to improve.

Relationships matter at every level of delivery. And I’m really glad my role still gives me the opportunity to stay connected with the people we work with.

Are there any misconceptions about support as a service or a department?

Support often gets reduced to a queue, a ticket number, and a transactional interaction.

That’s never been how we’ve approached it at CTI.

As Head of Delivery that oversees our support services, something I’m particularly proud of is that we’ve built our service around relationships, not just requests. Every client has a dedicated Support Success Manager who owns that relationship and is responsible for guiding tickets through to resolution, but also for understanding the wider context around them.
It means support isn’t just reactive. It’s informed, accountable, and consistent.

We also meet our clients regularly: weekly, fortnightly or monthly depending on what works best for them. Those conversations give us the space to review trends, anticipate issues, and make sure support is genuinely helping our clients move forward rather than simply closing tickets.

Of course, the fundamentals still matter. Clear SLAs, strong processes, and a team that takes ownership. But the difference is that we don’t see support as a system. We see it as a partnership. And when support works like that, it becomes far more valuable for everyone involved.

Talk to us about Continual Enhancement – what is it and why do clients need it?

The digital landscape doesn’t stand still. Platforms evolve. CMSs release new capabilities. User expectations continue to rise. And organisations are under increasing pressure to maintain high-quality, high-performing digital experiences.

The challenge is that traditional project models don’t always keep up with that pace.

At CTI Digital, one approach that’s delivered real success for our clients is our Continual Enhancement Retainer.

Rather than defining a rigid scope of work at the outset, we work with our clients to create a roadmap of ideas and opportunities. From there, we deliver iteratively throughout the year, allowing us to prioritise what matters most at the right time and pivot as needs evolve.

Agility is at the heart of the approach. It also creates the space for our technical leads and project managers to really get to know our clients, their platforms and their goals. That deeper understanding means we’re not just delivering tasks, we’re helping shape proactive, strategic improvements to their digital presence over time.

We’ve seen some great results with this model across a number of our client partnerships, and it’s a great example of how a more collaborative, flexible approach can unlock better outcomes for everyone involved.

What advice would you give somebody early on in their career who is entering the agency world?

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. A lot of people feel like they need to have all the answers, especially when they’re new or still in their probation period, but the people who impress me the most are the ones who ask lots of questions, even the ones they think might be “silly”.

Asking questions helps you understand your role, your team, and what’s expected of you much faster. I’d also say, be a bit forgiving of yourself when you’re starting out. Most people put a lot of pressure on themselves to be great immediately, but the reality is you’ll make mistakes while you’re learning. That’s completely normal and it’s how you improve, so focus on learning from them rather than being too hard on yourself.

For more information about CTI Digital's hosting and support or continuous enhancement services, get in touch.