Marcus Durkan is Head of Education (K12) at Manchester-based technology solutions provider, Sync.
With over 10 years of experience in education technology, Marcus leads the team responsible for supporting thousands of schools and trusts across the country in deploying and utilising Apple technology to improve digital learning outcomes.
Recently, Marcus Durkan shared a glimpse into a week in his life.
Monday
Monday is an office day, making it much easier to catch up with the wider team in person rather than over a video call.
This week, Dan, who manages our schools and trusts in the North East, travelled down to the office. He’s been leading a major 1:1 iPad project, so we spent the day refining our plan for rolling out new devices across schools. This project has the potential to benefit thousands of students. It’s crucial that the technology we implement aligns with each school’s learning goals to ensure the best possible outcomes for both teachers and students.
The rest of the day was spent checking in with the team, offering support for the week ahead, and discussing upcoming customer meetings and ongoing projects to identify where the wider company can assist.
Tuesday
Every Tuesday I do the school run, dropping my kids Archie and Lyla at Nursery.
Tuesdays are usually spent working from home but are often filled with customer or partner meetings. This Tuesday, I met with two partners that are key to our 1:1 iPad proposition and rollout.
We have our weekly Education Team meeting in the afternoon, which is always productive. We discuss updates within the company and any recent successes or challenges the team have faced.
As some of the team work remotely, it’s important to get everyone together for that hour to strategise.
Wednesday
On Wednesday, I visited one of our 1:1 iPad secondary schools. They’re working on their application to become an ‘Apple Distinguished School’ next year, a program that supports forward-thinking educational leaders and their communities. We toured the school with a member the Apple team and proudly showcased the huge impact that iPad has made on these young kids since their first deployment.
Thursday
Thursday was a school run day again! If I have back-to-back meetings I’ll work from home, but if my day is looking clear, I’ll head into the office and catch up with each team on progress for the week.
This Thursday, I had a catch up with Sync’s Head of Marketing on some of the exciting events we’re planning, all the way through to Bett 2026, the biggest education technology show in the world. The Sync team had a great time at this year’s Bett and are already planning for next year, which provides another opportunity to find potential collaborators.
Friday
My wife and kids have the day off on Friday so I’d usually head into the office, otherwise my son, Archie, will be joining me for our managers meeting at 9am and anything else I have in for Friday. He’s got such a cheeky face, so it’s no surprise then that we’ve let him join us a few times now.
I then get together with the CSO (Tom Crump), Head of Enterprise (Rehana Khan) and Head of Marketing (Olivia Kidd) to share an update on what is happening across Sync’s departments.
While Fridays are often quiet in the Sync office, the work is anything but slow. As I wrap up the week, I make a note of what ingredients I need to get together this weekend in preparation for the company charity bake sale next week. There’s no reward quite like seeing the impact that technology has had on students’ lives, but Sandra from Accounts bringing in goodies for the bake sale comes pretty close!
