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My Duvet Flip by Jack Parsons

Nicola Green, Chief Communications Officer at Virgin Media O2: Lessons From 18 Years of Breaking the Rules

My Duvet Flip by Jack Parsons

Jack Parsons

Business, Careers

4.25 Ratings

🗓️ 24 September 2025

⏱️ 40 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Episode Guest:

Nicola Green is the Chief Communications and Corporate Affairs Officer at Virgin Media O2, where she leads all internal and external communications, brand PR, and public affairs. With over two decades of experience, she’s a driving force behind major industry campaigns and a passionate advocate for building trust through authentic communication.


Episode Timestamps:

0:00 Introduction

0:43 Meet Nicola Green: Role at Virgin Media O2

1:18 Paper rounds and the power of early graft

2:30 Building confidence through work, not textbooks

3:49 The teacher who fuelled Nicola’s drive

5:08 The impact of setbacks and self-belief

6:35 Balancing hard graft and glass-half-full mindset

8:00 Learning from the hard parts of the job

9:42 Internal vs external comms: what Nicola learned

11:01 Helping others see the opportunity

12:31 Why mentors matter (and when to move on)

13:53 The fearlessness of youth vs corporate caution

15:16 The 6-letter hustle that unlocked her career

17:04 Staying curious in the boardroom

19:01 Bringing the customer into every conversation

20:12 18 years at O2: from startup spirit to industry impact

22:41 From iPhone launches to Beyoncé at The O2

24:45 Why you don’t need to know tech to work in telco

26:03 Writing is still a superpower

27:47 How AI helps — and hinders — comms

30:00 AI as a starting point, not a solution

32:58 Daisy AI: Using tech for good

34:00 Will AI replace comms jobs? Nicola’s view

36:16 The three life lessons Nicola lives by

37:30 Why connections are your career currency

38:20 Nicola’s duvet flip: enjoying the work, being a role model


Episode Partners

Hg Foundation

Together with The Hg Foundation, we’re on a mission to motivate and inspire young people like you to explore, or even start a career in technology through inspirational talks from industry.

https://bit.ly/4mwzRGs


Disclaimer:

The content provided on Duvet Flip is for informational and entertainment purposes only and should not be considered professional advice. The views expressed by hosts, guests, brands or contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the show's producers, sponsors, or affiliates. The information shared is not a substitute for professional advice, including but not limited to career counseling, financial guidance, legal consultation, or mental health support.


Listeners and viewers are responsible for their own decisions and actions based on the content provided, and Duvet Flip assumes no liability for any outcomes resulting from reliance on the information shared. By engaging with the show, you acknowledge and agree to this disclaimer.


If you’re struggling with debt, trusted advice and free support can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/debt-advice


If you’re struggling with mental health of any kind, you can find free support here: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

I mean, I had to write a difficult email only last night to...

0:04.9

Yeah, to me. I got that email.

0:07.6

Hi, I'm Nicola Green. I am the Chief Communications and Corporate Affairs Officer at Virgin Media 2.

0:14.7

We hire around 15,000 people, and this is my duvet flip.

0:18.8

What do you believe has been the most hardest decision that you've

0:22.1

had to make in your career? I found boys and booze. That meant that I wasn't as successful as I should

0:27.2

have been at my A levels and I needed to think differently. I'd done some research about having a

0:32.3

year in industry. It was the best year of my life. And would you have kept going in to do industry placements?

0:40.0

Who would really write six times to apply and beg someone to take them on work experience?

0:45.5

Did you get feared?

0:46.4

People do business with people that they trust.

0:49.5

You grow up with your connections.

0:51.9

What's your duvet, what gets you out of bed in the morning to flip the duvet? What gets me out of bed? I think it's...

0:58.0

Hi, I'm Nicola Green. I am the Chief Communications and Corporate Affairs Officer at Virgin Media 2.

1:08.5

I'm feeling a little bit apprehensive about setting down with

1:13.1

Jack today, but also excited. I have never met Jack before. I'm actually really looking

1:18.8

forward to asking him a question because he's obviously sat in front of some amazing people.

1:23.4

I said yes for coming on my duvet flip because maybe I'm a slightly mad. I don't know.

1:27.7

No, it's definitely on my walking to work and walking home from work things to do now, which is great.

1:37.1

Right, Jack, before we start, did you get my email I sent you last night?

1:41.6

So welcome to my duvet.

1:43.1

How are we?

...

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