Best Startup
At Best Startup UK we track over 130,000 UK startups and over 500,000 people who hold key positions in these companies. We use this directory of startups to highlight top employees, founders and board members we think deserve more appreciation than they are currently getting.
This list showcases the top United Kingdom based Director operating in the Education space. If you think a Director is missing from this list, feel free to contact our editor on editor@beststartup.co.uk.
The individuals on this list have been included because of exceptional performance in one of the following categories:
- Innovation – Operating as a key part in an extremely innovative business or startup.
- Growth – Operating as a key figure in the growth and upscale of a market leading business or startup.
- Management – Showing exceptional management skills.
- Societal impact – Putting their business on the map for their positive societal or environmental impact.
Our Data – We source our data from OSINT (open source intelligence) and public directories such as Companies House UK, Crunchbase, SemRush and many more. The data from these sources should be treated with a degree of caution and verified yourself.
Carlo Ratti
Director of the Senseable City Lab of Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Carlo Ratti is an Italian architect and engineer who directs the SENSEable City Laboratory, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology research group that explores the “real-time city” by studying the deployment of sensors and hand-held electronics, and their relationship to the built environment. A graduate in engineering at the Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées in Paris, France, and at the Politecnico di Torino in Italy, Ratti later earned his MPhil and PhD degrees in architecture from the University of Cambridge, UK. In 2000 he moved to MIT as a Fulbright postdoctoral fellow, working with Hiroshi Ishii at the MIT Media Lab. In February 2008 the SENSEable City Lab presented an installation at MoMA in New York as part of the exhibition “Design and the Elastic Mind.” The New York Talk Exchange illustrates the global exchange of information in real-time by visualizing volumes of long-distance telephone and Internet data flowing between New York and cities around the world.
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About Massachusetts Institute of Technology: MIT is a research university that conducts research and offers educational courses in science, technology, and engineering.
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Lee Bernasconi
Director of Growth of Founders Factory
Leading the Founders Factory Growth team, Lee’s expertise in strategy, marketing, product and analytics help portfolio companies drive growth from launch through to traction and scale. Lee has previously held Senior Marketing positions at VC backed startups and international marketing agencies, also working as a business and marketing consultant for B2B & B2C companies in Mobile, FinTech, MarTech, AdTech, Property and eCommerce. With a background rooted in entrepreneurship, Lee founded a mobile ticketing startup in 2011 and a digital advertising platform for local businesses aged 19. He holds a BA (Hons) In Marketing & Management from Newcastle University.
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About Founders Factory: Founders Factory is a global corporate-backed venture studio and accelerator.
James Millett
Director of Marketing, Digital & Brand of Founders Factory
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About : Founders Factory is a global corporate-backed venture studio and accelerator.
Louise Almond
Associate Director, Process Sciences of Allergan
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About Allergan, Pharmaron: Allergan is a global pharmaceutical company.
Stefan Wisbauer
CEO, President, CFO, and Managing Director of Lecturio
Stefan Wisbauer is the Managing Director of U.K. Preventive Medicine and the Founder and Managing Director of iHealth, a leading UK executive prevention provider. With a decade of experience in healthcare, Stefan previously worked at the World Bank and McKinsey & Co, where he advised health insurance, medical devices and biotech companies. Stefan also worked as a consultant to the National Health Service and with private healthcare operators on Public Private Partnerships and on establishing innovative approaches to care delivery. Previous to founding iHealth, Stefan helped build CircleHealth, which build next generation private hospitals in the U.K. based on a Kaiser Permanente style model, in which clinicians are co-owners in the business. Prior to that, Stefan was Bid Manager for Nations Healthcare, which won the largest share – valued at more than £400 — of the first wave of private day surgery contracts to treat NHS patients issued by the British government under Tony Blair’s leadership. Stefan also serves on the board of the Center for NonViolent Communication, a global charity promoting innovative solutions to trauma, conflict, restorative justice and communication. Stefan holds a Master in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School, Diploma in Mathematics from University of Bonn and a ‘Part III’ in Mathematics from Cambridge University.
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About iHealth, Lecturio: The Next Generation Learning Platform for Medicine
Jenny Storey
Operations Director of Blue Duck Education
Jenny Storey is an operations director at Blue Duck Education (Mangahigh).
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About Blue Duck Education: Blue Duck Education is the holding company behind Mangahigh.com which develops and publishes maths games for 11 to16 year-old students.
Sam Higginson
Group Marketing Director of Immotion Group plc
Sam has a wealth of experience in brand creation and management, strategic marketing and communications. Sam began his carrier working for global advertising giant Saatchi & Saatchi, working primarily on the client Proctor & Gamble, the world’s largest advertiser. In 2009 he joined NetPlayTV plc, an interactive TV gaming company, where he was Head of Brand Development. Strategic media partners included Sky, Freeview, Channel Five, Virgin Media Television and ITV. Having left NetPlayTV plc, Sam founded Digitalbox plc, a new generation of digital media business with an established pedigree in emerging technology, data acquisition and analysis that has been harnessed with the ability to create and curate great content to entertain and engage audiences. In 2015, Digitalbox plc was listed #68 in The Sunday Times HISCOX Tech Track 100. In 2016, Digitalbox plc was listed again at #58, placing it in Britain’s 100 fastest growing tech companies two years in a row. Sam is a Director at M Capital Investment Partners. Formed in 2010, M Capital Investment Partners manages multiple real estate investments across the UK, with a focus on delivering above average returns for investment cash with minimal risk. He also holds the position Group Brand & Marketing Director at Immotion Group plc – a business that combines award-winning CGi animation with state-of-the-art motion platform technology to deliver mind-blowing ‘out-of-home’ immersive VR experiences. Sam is a graduate of the Lancaster University Management School having gained a BSc Honours in Business & Economics.
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About Digitalbox, Immotion Group plc, M Capital Investment Partners: Immotion combine award-winning content & multi-directional motion platforms to deliver immersive VR solutions for high-traffic destinations.
David Marks
Co-founder & Group Finance Director of Immotion Group plc
David co-founded Immotion Group with Martin, and currently serves as the Group Finance Director. With a degree in Law from the University of Glasgow and membership of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland, David’s expertise in finance is a given. He began his career conducting corporate recovery and restructure at Arthur Andersen. Since then, David has been a prominent face in corporate finance in the City of London, working with UBS, Deutsche Bank and Nikko Principal Investments. He’s overseen the rapid international expansion of Monstermob Group in Europe, the USA and Asia as Group Finance Director, and is also an executive board member at Digitalbox Group.
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About : Immotion combine award-winning content & multi-directional motion platforms to deliver immersive VR solutions for high-traffic destinations.
Masroor Siddiqui
Member of the Board of Directors of News Corp
Masroor Siddiqui is the Managing Partner of Naya Management LLP, an investment firm he co-founded in May 2012. Masroor was previously a Partner at The Children’s Investment Fund Management (UK) LLP, a hedge fund, from 2009 to 2011 and a Managing Director at Canyon Partners, an investment firm, from 2006 to 2009. Masroor previously served as a Senior Vice President at Putnam Investments, where he was responsible for a broad range of investments. Masroor spent several years as an investment banker and sell-side Analyst primarily at Goldman Sachs and Jefferies & Company. Masroor is a Member of the Board of Directors at News Corp since June 2013. Masroor has significant experience in investing with a focus on media investments. Masroor offers the Board valuable insights on global markets and industries relevant to the Company’s businesses. Masroor graduated from Yale University with a Master’s degree in Management and he also holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
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About : News Corp is a media and information services company that creates and distributes engaging content and other products and services.
Natalie Bancroft
Member of the Board of Directors of News Corp
Natalie Bancroft is a Member of the Board of Directors at News Corp since June 2013. Natalie is a professionally trained Opera Singer, has studied journalism and is a Graduate of L’Institut de Ribaupierre in Lausanne, Switzerland. Natalie has a culturally diverse background, having lived across Europe, and speaks several languages fluently. Natalie served as a Member of the Board of Directors at 21st Century Fox from 2007 until June 2013. Natalie brings public company board and committee experience to the board gained from her service as a current Director and member of both the Company’s Compensation and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committees, and as a former Member of the Board of Directors of 21st Century Fox and Member of its Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Natalie’s public company board and committee service and international experience add valuable perspective to the deliberations of the Board.
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About : News Corp is a media and information services company that creates and distributes engaging content and other products and services.
Selby Knox
Board of Directors of Hubbub
Selby had 35 years experience within the University of Bristol, including 15 in senior management positions. He was Head of the School of Chemistry from 1992-2001, before joining the senior management team of the University as Pro Vice-Chancellor with responsibility for resources (Finance and Estates) from 2004 – 08.
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About : Build fundraising communities for organisations using crowdfunding
Mark Champkins
Creative Director of The LEGO Group
Mark Champkins is a designer and inventor at London. He was a Design Director at Kano Computing since February, 2016 and also a Director at Mark Champkins Ltd since April 2011 to present. Mark also lectures about Communication in Design Module at Dyson School of Design Engineering. He founded Concentrate Design Ltd. Mark won as the British Inventor of the Year, for designing Self-Heating Crockery, a range of plates, cups and bowls that heat up to sixty degrees at the touch of a button. Mark studied Manufacturing Engineering at Churchill College, University of Cambridge and Industrial Design Engineering at Royal College of Art.
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About The LEGO Group: The LEGO Group is a family-owned company that specializes in the development of children’s creativity through playing and learning.
Rob Lowe
Managing Director – Digital Play, LEGO Ventures of The LEGO Group
Rob Lowe is responsible for the global strategy, development and day-to-day running of LEGO® Life, the new creative, social and safe digital experience for LEGO kids. He has been at the LEGO Group for three years, prior to that he has worked in marketing and product development leadership roles at Nintendo and BBC Worldwide.
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About LEGO Ventures, The LEGO Group: The LEGO Group is a family-owned company that specializes in the development of children’s creativity through playing and learning.
Costas Syrmos
Global Marketing Director of The LEGO Group
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About The LEGO Group: The LEGO Group is a family-owned company that specializes in the development of children’s creativity through playing and learning.
James Grant
Co-Founder & Managing Director of MyTutor
James is a driven, passionate and ambitious entrepreneur, with experience in sales, leadership, strategy, product, digital marketing and fundraising. He started a fledgling events business at 15, which grew to a team of 30, catering for over 1,200 weekly guests. After completing a Philosophy degree at University of Birmingham, James worked for Barclays Wealth, in the Chief of Staff Team, within the Office of the Chief Executive, helping to set the Division’s strategic agenda and taking responsibility for the implementation of sponsored projects. James is a co-founder of MyTutor, creating a new world of one-to-one tuition. The team are unwaveringly focused on their mission to give every student access to 1-1 support. The platform provides live, online one-to-one lessons, delivered by bright, inspiring undergraduates studying at the UK’s leading universities – their secondary aim is to become the leading provider of work to these students. MyTutor uses AI-driven matching algorithms to ensure perfect student-tutor matches and every lesson is taught in an interactive online learning space, which facilitates live video and audio chat, document editing, file sharing and lesson recording. The company’s proudest achievement has been helping 92% of their pupils in 2016 hit or exceed their grade targets. James enjoys public speaking and has presented at a number of education and business events. His other interests include sport (football, rugby, athletics), music (blues & hip hop), travelling, reading and all things startup. He has won a number of awards over the past few years, including Unltd’s ‘Do it’, Mercia’s ‘The Pitch’, O2 ‘Think Bigger’ and Santander’s ‘Spark’.
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About MyTutor: MyTutor offers affordable 1-to-1 tutorials online by connecting tutors from the UK’s best unis with pupils at home and in schools
Robert Grabiner
Founder and Executive Director of MyTutor
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About MyTutor: MyTutor offers affordable 1-to-1 tutorials online by connecting tutors from the UK’s best unis with pupils at home and in schools
John Makinson
Finance Director of Pearson
John’s diverse background spans business, consultancy, financial journalism and publishing. He was finance director of Pearson before heading Penguin, and previously served as managing director of the Financial Times newspaper, where he had earlier served as editor of the popular Lex column. John co-founded Makinson Cowell, an international financial consultancy, and was vice chairman of the US holding company of advertising firm Saatchi & Saatchi. John is chairman of the National Theatre and a director of the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian organisation.
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About International Rescue Committee, Pearson, Penguin Group: Pearson operates as a media and education company that offers a wide range of services to its customers.
Harish Manwani
Member of the Board of Directors of Pearson
On January 22, 2015, Harish Manwani was elected as a member of the Board of Directors.Manwani retired from Unilever, a leading global consumer products company, at the end of 2014, where he served as Chief Operating Officer since September 2011. Manwani joined Hindustan Unilever (HUL) in 1976, becoming a member of the HUL board in 1995, and since that time held positions of increasing responsibility in Unilever which gave him wide ranging international marketing and general management experience. Manwani is a director of Qualcomm Incorporated since May 2014, Pearson plc since October 2013 and Whirlpool Corporation since August 2011. He is also the non-executive chairman of Hindustan Unilever Limited since July 2005. He previously served as a director of ING Group from April 2008 to April 2010. He is a director of the Economic Development Board of Singapore since February 2013 and the Indian School of Business since April 2006. Manwani holds a Bachelor of Science honors degree in Statistics and a Master’s degree in Management Studies, both from Mumbai University in India. He has also attended the Advance Management Program at Harvard Business School.
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About Blackstone Group: Pearson operates as a media and education company that offers a wide range of services to its customers.
David King Lassman
Global Director Immersive Learning of Pearson
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About Pearson: Pearson operates as a media and education company that offers a wide range of services to its customers.
Alex Cattani
Business Development Director of Zzish
Won big global deals for Discovery Education. Now partners with Ministries of Education & publishers. Ex-lecturer, owns five guitars.
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About Zzish: Zzish is a valuable classroom digital teaching tool for teachers that provides real-time feedback on the progress of their students.
William H. Janeway
Director of O’Reilly
William H. Janeway is a board member of Magnet Systems, Inc. Currently, Mr. Janeway is a senior advisor at Warburg Pincus. Mr. Janeway received his doctorate in Economics from Cambridge University, where he was a Marshall Scholar. He was valedictorian of the class of 1965 at Princeton University. Prior to joining Warburg Pincus in 1988, where he was responsible for building the information technology practice, he was executive vice president and director at Eberstadt Fleming. Mr. Janeway is a director of Fortent Corp., NYFIX Inc., O’Reilly Media, Nuance Communications, and Wall Street Systems, and a member of the board of managers of Roubini Global Economics. He is also chairman of the board of trustees of Cambridge in America, University of Cambridge, co-chair of Cambridge’s 800th Anniversary Capital Campaign, and a founder member of the board of managers of the Cambridge Endowment for Research in Finance (CERF). Mr. Janeway is a member of the board of directors of the Social Science Research Council.
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About Cambridge Endowment for Research in Finance, Cambridge in America, Fortent, Nuance Communications, Roubini Global Economics, LLC, Social Science Research Council, Wall Street Systems: O’Reilly provides technology and business training, knowledge, and insight to help companies succeed.
Stephen Hawking
Director of Research at Center for Theoretical Cosmology of University of Cambridge
Stephen William Hawking is a theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author. He is the director of research at the Department for Applied Maths and Theoretical Physics within the [University of Cambridge](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/university-of-cambridge). Hawking attended St. Albans School when he was eleven. He obtained a first class honors degree in natural science from the Oxford University and a Ph.D. in cosmology from the University of Cambridge. After gaining his Ph.D. Hawking became first a research fellow and later on a professorial fellow at Gonville and Caius College. After leaving the Institute of Astronomy in 1973, he came to the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics in 1979, and held the post of Lucasian professor of mathematics from 1979 until 2009. Hawking has worked on the basic laws which govern the universe. With Roger Penrose he showed that Einstein’s General theory of relativity implied space and time would have a beginning in the Big Bang and an end in black holes. His publications include The Large Scale Structure of Spacetime with G F R Ellis, General Relativity: An Einstein Centenary Survey, with W Israel, and 300 Years of Gravity, with W Israel. Among the popular books Hawking has published are his best seller A Brief History of Time, Black Holes and Baby Universes and Other Essays, The Universe in a Nutshell, The Grand Design, and My Brief History. Professor Hawking has twelve honorary degrees. He was awarded the CBE in 1982, and was made a Companion of Honour in 1989. He is the recipient of many awards, medals and prizes; is a fellow of The Royal Society; and a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. Hawking suffers from ALS, a form of motor neuron disease. Stephen William Hawking was born on January 8, 1942, in Oxford, England.
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About University of Cambridge: The University of Cambridge is a public research university based in England.
Robert Wardrop
Executive Director, Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance of University of Cambridge
Robert is an economic sociologist and the Executive Director of the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, a research group at the University of Cambridge. He is also a Research Fellow and teaches two MBA courses at the Cambridge Judge Business School. Prior to joining Cambridge, Robert had a 30-year career as a financial investor, most recently as a Managing Director of the Anschutz Investment Company. Robert holds an MBA from the University of Chicago, an MSc in Social & Cognitive Anthropology from the London School of Economics, and is currently completing his PhD in Economic Sociology at Cambridge.
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About ABS Global, Cambridge Judge Business School, University of Cambridge: The University of Cambridge is a public research university based in England.
Nick Saville
Director, Thought Leadership of University of Cambridge
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About University of Cambridge: The University of Cambridge is a public research university based in England.
Stephen Cave
Executive Director of the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence of University of Cambridge
Dr Stephen Cave is Executive Director of the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, Senior Research Associate in the Faculty of Philosophy, and Fellow of Hughes Hall, all at the University of Cambridge. Stephen earned a PhD in philosophy from Cambridge, then joined the British Foreign Office, where he served as a policy advisor and diplomat. He has subsequently written and spoken on a wide range of philosophical and scientific subjects, including in the New York Times, The Atlantic, and on television and radio around the world. His research interests currently focus on the nature, portrayal and governance of AI.
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About University of Cambridge: The University of Cambridge is a public research university based in England.
Stephen Cave
Executive Director of the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence of University of Cambridge
Dr Stephen Cave is Executive Director of the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, Senior Research Associate in the Faculty of Philosophy, and Fellow of Hughes Hall, all at the University of Cambridge. Stephen earned a PhD in philosophy from Cambridge, then joined the British Foreign Office, where he served as a policy advisor and diplomat. He has subsequently written and spoken on a wide range of philosophical and scientific subjects, including in the New York Times, The Atlantic, and on television and radio around the world. His research interests currently focus on the nature, portrayal and governance of AI.
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About University of Cambridge: The University of Cambridge is a public research university based in England.
Fatuma Mahad
Director of IT Transformation of Queen Mary University of London
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About Queen Mary University of London: Queen Mary University of London is an educational institution offering under graduate, graduate, post graduate and research studies.
Joanne Martin
Director of Blizard Institute of Queen Mary University of London
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About BioMoti, Queen Mary University of London: Queen Mary University of London is an educational institution offering under graduate, graduate, post graduate and research studies.
Marta Piekarska
Director of Ecosystem, Hyperledger of Linux Foundation
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About Cambridge Blockchain Society, Hyperledger, Linux Foundation: The Linux Foundation builds sustainable ecosystems around open source projects to accelerate technology development and industry adoption.
Sheena Barclay
Managing Director, Collins Geo & Deputy Managing Director, Collins Learning of HarperCollins
Sheena runs the cartographic and geo information division of HarperCollins Publishers, overseeing Collins Geo and Collins Bartholomew Ltd, and is now also Deputy MD of the combined Collins Learning division. She received BSc (Hons) Geography from the University of Edinburgh, followed by an MBA from the University of Glasgow and was awarded the RSGS Digital Award in 2004 for outstanding achievement in the field of cartography. She has a wealth of experience in the cartographic field, working first as an editor, then Cartographic and Technical Director before being promoted to run the cartographic business within HarperCollins in 2008.
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About HarperCollins: HarperCollins is an English language publisher that offers a range of Bibles, atlases, dictionaries, and reissued classics.
John Athanasiou
Director of People of HarperCollins
John joined HarperCollins in September 2008. He is responsible for overseeing all areas of talent management, recruitment, staff development and employee relations, plus compensations and benefits across the company. Prior to this role, John was Director of Executive Search International at TimeWarner, and has also worked in a number of HR roles in blue-chip multi-national, private and public sector companies. John also has executive responsibility for communications and facilities at HarperCollins.
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About HarperCollins: HarperCollins is an English language publisher that offers a range of Bibles, atlases, dictionaries, and reissued classics.
Fiona Allen
Communications Director of HarperCollins
Fiona joined HarperCollins in January 2015. She heads up corporate communications, with responsibility for internal and external comms, corporate social responsibility and events. She has almost twenty years’ experience in communications, having previously worked at Dorling Kindersley and Penguin. Most recently she was Head of PR & Brand Communications for high street retailer Waterstones.
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About HarperCollins: HarperCollins is an English language publisher that offers a range of Bibles, atlases, dictionaries, and reissued classics.
David Wood
Board of Director of Humanity+
David Wood, DSc, has spent 25 years envisioning, architecting, designing, implementing, and avidly using smart mobile devices. He was co-founder of Symbian, the creator of the world’s first successful smartphone operating system,and served on Symbian’s leadership team from 1996-2009. Subsequently he was Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Accenture Mobility, and now acts as independent consultant and writer. As chair of London Futurists, he has organized regular meetings in London since March 2008 on futurist, transhumanist, technoprogressive, and singularitarian topics. He was the author of the book, Smartphones and Beyond, which was published in 2014, and he was also the lead editor of Anticipating 2025 and Anticipating tomorrow’s politics.
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About : Humanity+ is a non-profit 501(c)3 educational organization[1] dedicated to elevating the human condition.
David Wood
Board of Director of Humanity+
David Wood, DSc, has spent 25 years envisioning, architecting, designing, implementing, and avidly using smart mobile devices. He was co-founder of Symbian, the creator of the world’s first successful smartphone operating system,and served on Symbian’s leadership team from 1996-2009. Subsequently he was Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Accenture Mobility, and now acts as independent consultant and writer. As chair of London Futurists, he has organized regular meetings in London since March 2008 on futurist, transhumanist, technoprogressive, and singularitarian topics. He was the author of the book, Smartphones and Beyond, which was published in 2014, and he was also the lead editor of Anticipating 2025 and Anticipating tomorrow’s politics.
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About : Humanity+ is a non-profit 501(c)3 educational organization[1] dedicated to elevating the human condition.
Lauren Thorpe
Director of Strategy of ARK schools
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About ARK schools: ARK Schools is an education charity and one of the country’s top-performing academy operators.
Phin Mpofu
Director of Startup Grind
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About Startup Grind: Startup Grind is a global startup community designed to educate, inspire, and connect entrepreneurs.
Marian Gazdik
Director, Europe of Startup Grind
Marian has over twenty years of business experience, having worked in different marketing and product management roles with fast growing technology businesses. He is Director at Startup Grind Europe, world’s largest organisation for entrepreneurs, based in 150 countries. Marian is a founding partner at IPM Growth, a venture capital company that invests in high growth companies from Central and Eastern Europe with world class technology. In 2015 he co-founded Braintrust, a think-tank of top entrepreneurs based in the Central & Eastern Europe region. Marian is an advisory board member at Tachyum and is a member of Acquisition Committee (REEAC) at TATE Gallery. He was featured in New Europe 100 (organised by the Financial Times, Google, Respublica and Visegrad Strategy), a list of outstanding leaders in world class innovation from Central and Eastern Europe. Marian holds an MBA from ESCP, the oldest business school in the world.
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About BrainTrust, InfraPartners Management, IPM Growth, Startup Grind, Tate: Startup Grind is a global startup community designed to educate, inspire, and connect entrepreneurs.
Ed Goodman
Director of Cambridge Grind of Startup Grind
Ed Goodman is a business start-up mentor who’s worked with over 10,000 start-ups to successfully build their knowledge of financial management, social media, networking and more. He has also delivered keynote presentations and workshops at large-scale seminars and exhibitions, including the MADE Festival, Business Start-Up Show, and other events at Earls Court, ExCel London and The National Space Centre. Through independent consultancy and mentoring, along with aligned partnerships, he has worked with multinational corporations including Barclays, Google, Sage, Intuit and more. In 2012, Ed co-founded the Cambridge Business Lounge, a co-working space and support hub for start-ups and small businesses. He also regularly blogs on small business topics, including ‘The A–Z Guide to Starting a Business’, as well as being a contributor on the BBC, podcasts as well as other established business blogs. January 2015 sees the release of Ed’s first book “New Business, Next Steps – The All In One Guide to Managing, Marketing and Growing Your Small Business”, published by Pearson.
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About Startup Grind: Startup Grind is a global startup community designed to educate, inspire, and connect entrepreneurs.
Ed Goodman
Director of Cambridge Grind of Startup Grind
Ed Goodman is a business start-up mentor who’s worked with over 10,000 start-ups to successfully build their knowledge of financial management, social media, networking and more. He has also delivered keynote presentations and workshops at large-scale seminars and exhibitions, including the MADE Festival, Business Start-Up Show, and other events at Earls Court, ExCel London and The National Space Centre. Through independent consultancy and mentoring, along with aligned partnerships, he has worked with multinational corporations including Barclays, Google, Sage, Intuit and more. In 2012, Ed co-founded the Cambridge Business Lounge, a co-working space and support hub for start-ups and small businesses. He also regularly blogs on small business topics, including ‘The A–Z Guide to Starting a Business’, as well as being a contributor on the BBC, podcasts as well as other established business blogs. January 2015 sees the release of Ed’s first book “New Business, Next Steps – The All In One Guide to Managing, Marketing and Growing Your Small Business”, published by Pearson.
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About Startup Grind: Startup Grind is a global startup community designed to educate, inspire, and connect entrepreneurs.
Lisa Thomson
Co-Director of Edinburgh Chapter of Startup Grind
Lisa is co-Chapter Director of Start Up Grind Edinburgh & Glasgow Chapters, and Founder/MD of Purpose (HR & Coaching) Limited. Lisa has developed her HR experience in high-growth, fast-paced entrepreneurial technology companies across a range of sectors. She supports business leaders and managers with fast-paced changing environments, business growth and the associated people and organisational challenges, and coaches technical, creative and entrepreneurial people supporting their personal and soft skills development. Lisa is a 2014/15 Saltire Fellow and will be studying at Babson College, Boston from September – December 2014.
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About Startup Grind: Startup Grind is a global startup community designed to educate, inspire, and connect entrepreneurs.
Wes Armour
Director of University of Oxford
Wes Armour is associate director at the Oxford e-Research Centre (OeRC). He leads the scientific computing group at OeRC, which has around 10 members. Wes’ grant portfolio spans a range of different funders, reflecting the interdisciplinary projects that the group is involved with. His research interests are strongly focused in scientific computing, specifically the use of HPC and many-core technologies to answer scientific problems or to impact people’s daily lives. Wes’ work focuses are modeling and simulation, digital signal processing, HPC/many-core and real-time computing for big data/data science. Wes has a Master’s of Physics in fundamental particle physics and cosmology and a Ph.D. in lattice gauge theory, the computational description of the strong nuclear force.
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About University of Oxford: Oxford is a world-leading centre of learning, teaching and research and the oldest university in the English-speaking world.
Trudie Lang
Director, The Global Health Network of University of Oxford
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About University of Oxford: Oxford is a world-leading centre of learning, teaching and research and the oldest university in the English-speaking world.
Nick Bostrom
Director of University of Oxford
Nick Bostrom is Professor in the Faculty of Philosophy at Oxford University. He is the founding Director of the Future of Humanity Institute, a multidisciplinary research center which enables a few exceptional mathematicians, philosophers, and scientists to think carefully about global priorities and big questions for humanity. Nick has a background in physics, computational neuroscience, and mathematical logic as well as philosophy. He is the author of some 200 publications, including Anthropic Bias (Routledge, 2002), Global Catastrophic Risks (ed., OUP, 2008), Human Enhancement (ed., OUP, 2009), and the academic book Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies (OUP, 2014), which became a New York Times bestseller. He is best known for his work in five areas: (i) existential risk; (ii) the simulation argument; (iii) anthropics (developing the first mathematically explicit theory of observation selection effects); (iv) impacts of future technology; and (v) implications of consequentialism for global strategy. He is recipient of a Eugene R. Gannon Award (one person selected annually worldwide from the fields of philosophy, mathematics, the arts and other humanities, and the natural sciences). He has been listed on Foreign Policy’s Top 100 Global Thinkers list; and he was included on Prospect magazine’s World Thinkers list, the youngest person in the top 15 from all fields and the highest-ranked analytic philosopher. His writings have been translated into 24 languages. There have been more than 100 translations and reprints of his works.
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About University of Oxford: Oxford is a world-leading centre of learning, teaching and research and the oldest university in the English-speaking world.
Jonathan Lusthaus
Director of The Human Cybercriminal Project at the Extra-Legal Governance Institute of University of Oxford
Jonathan Lusthaus is Director of The Human Cybercriminal Project in the Department of Sociology, University of Oxford. His research focusses on the “human” side of profit-driven cybercrime: who cybercriminals are and how they are organised. In particular, he is interested in issues of trust, cooperation and governance. Jonathan has recently completed a seven year global study on the organisation of cybercrime to be published by Harvard University Press. As part of this research, he has travelled to cybercrime hotspots around the globe and conducted almost 250 interviews with law enforcement, the private sector and former cybercriminals. Jonathan holds a doctorate in sociology from the University of Oxford, where he was a Clarendon Scholar.
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About University of Oxford: Oxford is a world-leading centre of learning, teaching and research and the oldest university in the English-speaking world.
Jonathan Lusthaus
Director of The Human Cybercriminal Project at the Extra-Legal Governance Institute of University of Oxford
Jonathan Lusthaus is Director of The Human Cybercriminal Project in the Department of Sociology, University of Oxford. His research focusses on the “human” side of profit-driven cybercrime: who cybercriminals are and how they are organised. In particular, he is interested in issues of trust, cooperation and governance. Jonathan has recently completed a seven year global study on the organisation of cybercrime to be published by Harvard University Press. As part of this research, he has travelled to cybercrime hotspots around the globe and conducted almost 250 interviews with law enforcement, the private sector and former cybercriminals. Jonathan holds a doctorate in sociology from the University of Oxford, where he was a Clarendon Scholar.
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About University of Oxford: Oxford is a world-leading centre of learning, teaching and research and the oldest university in the English-speaking world.
Victoria Rusnac
Marketing Director of Nexford University
Victoria Rusnac is Marketing Director at Nexford University. She is a marketing expert with proven expertise in corporate and start-up growth marketing strategies, including branding, performance and product marketing.
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About Nexford University: A next generation online university providing students with access to quality, affordable, dynamic education.
Jerry del Missier
Board of Directors of Room to Read
Jerry del Missier is former COO of Barclays Bank Plc and former Co-Chief Executive of Corporate and Investment Banking. Before joining Barclays in 1997, Jerry was the Senior Managing Director of Derivative Products at Bankers Trust, responsible for European Business. Jerry is a former Chairman of the Board of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association and has served on the Boards of the Global Financial Markets Association, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, and the Markets Management Group of the International Institute of Finance. He served on the Board of Trustees of Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario and is currently on the Advisory Board of the Queen’s School of Business. Jerry received his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and an MBA from Queen’s University, Ontario.
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About Copper Street Capital: Focus on two areas where we believe we can have the greatest impact: literacy and gender equality in education.
Robin Souter
Founder / Transformation Director of Opogo
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About Opogo: Opogo is a community platform designed to help schools attract and retain the talent that’s right for them.
Thiago Monteiro
Director of Growth of Peak
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About Peak: Peak’s mission is to help the world spend their time better using tools and technique borrowed from education, neuroscience and gaming.
Sucheta Nadkarni
Director of Cambridge Judge Business School
Professor Sucheta Nadkarni is Director of the Wo+Men’s Leadership Centre, Sinyi Professory of Chinese Management and Head of Strategy & International Business Subject Group at Cambridge Judge Business School. Sucheta’s primary research interests include strategic leadership with a special focus on female rise to corporate boards and executive leadership positions. She has published extensively in leading academic journals in management. She is an associate editor of Academy of Management Journal and Journal of Management. She also sits on the editorial of four other leading academic journals. She has worked on research projects and grants with companies such as Boeing, Booz Allen Hamilton, Newton Asset Management, BNY Mellon and 30% club. Her research on female rise to boardrooms has been featured in global media outlets including New York Times, Forbes, CNBC, Huffington Post, Reuters, The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Scotsman, Economic Times, Times of India, Herald Tribune, Borsen, O Globo, The Times (Kuwait), Business Standard and Folha De Sao Paulo.
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About Cambridge Judge Business School: Cambridge Judge Business School is a business school of University of Cambridge located in the United Kingdom.
Benjamin Todd
CEO, Co Founder & Executive Director of 80,000 Hours
In under three years with Ben’s leadership, 80,000 Hours has grown from a student society, to an Oxford affiliated charity, featured on TED, the Washington Post, the BBC Today Programme and more. Ben has a 1st from Oxford in Physics and Philosophy, has published in Climate Physics and speaks Chinese. Before 80,000 Hours, he was the first undergraduate to intern as an analyst at a top investment fund. Rather than taking the job, he persuaded the Chairman to donate £60,000 to 80,000 Hours.
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About 80,000 Hours: 80,000 Hours is an evidence-based advice on careers that make a difference.
Robert Wiblin
Director of Research of 80,000 Hours
Rob won a scholarship to study genetics and economics at the Australian National University, graduating top of his class and being named Young Alumnus of the Year in 2015. He worked as a research economist in various Australian Government agencies, before moving to the UK to work at the Centre for Effective Altruism, where he was Research Director and then Executive Director, before moving to 80,000 Hours. He was also a founding board member of Animal Charity Evaluators and a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Community.
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About 80,000 Hours: 80,000 Hours is an evidence-based advice on careers that make a difference.
Niel Bowerman
Director of One-on-one Programme and Job Board of 80,000 Hours
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About 80,000 Hours: 80,000 Hours is an evidence-based advice on careers that make a difference.
Jon Wardle
Director of National Film and Television School
Prior to joining the NFTS in early 2012, Jon was Director of the Centre for Excellence in Media Practice, the only HEFCE Centre for Excellence for teaching and learning in the media area in the UK. In his role at Bournemouth University Jon was responsible for Bournemouth’s continuing professional development activity at masters level establishing postgraduate partnerships with the BBC, Guardian and Sony Computers Entertainment Europe. Jon also wrote the Creative Skillset ‘Build Your Own MA’ framework. Jon was NFTS Deputy Director & Director of Curriculum & Registrar from 2012 -2017. He was responsible for all educational matters at the NFTS including curriculum development, quality assurance, education enhancement and registry. Jon was appointed Director of the School in August 2017. Since joining the NFTS Jon has developed a number of new courses working in partnership with organisations including Sky, Channel 4, Discovery Networks International, the BBC and Aardman. Jon leads the annual BFI Film Academy, a ‘talent campus’ for 66 of the most talented 16-19 year old filmmakers in the UK. Jon is the author of a number of papers and book chapters on media education as well as co-editor of the book ‘Current Perspectives in Media Education’. Jon is on the editorial board of the Media Education Research Journal, is an executive officer of the Media Education Association and Nahemi, is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and the National Association of Television Production Executives (NATPE), an associate member of BAFTA and an advisor on education to the Royal Television Society. He has a BA (Hons) in Television Production from Bournemouth University, an MBA from the University of Southampton and a Doctorate of Education from the University of Bristol.
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About National Film and Television School: Educating the best creative talent to the highest professional standard for tomorrow’s screen industries.
Trevor Hall
Finance Director of National Film and Television School
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About National Film and Television School: Educating the best creative talent to the highest professional standard for tomorrow’s screen industries.
Stuart Martin
Managing Director of QA Ltd
Stuart has been with QA since 2000, having previously worked in the training and online education space for IBM and then Ten-TV. Stuart joined QA in the role of Account Manager and went on to become Sales Director of the Learning division in 2005 – where he led the sales organisation through the successful mergers with Interquad, Xpertise and Remarc. Stuart has been at the helm of the Learning division for the last 10 years, responsible for the strategy and development of the sales, marketing and delivery functions to enhance relationships with customers and partners. 2018 saw Stuart step across to lead QA Consulting, focusing on enablement programmes that help customers become self-sufficient in the development and support of their technologies.
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About QA Ltd: QA is the UK’s leading training company, providing the complete range of training, talent development and learning services.
Kris Bachoo
Learning Programme Director of QA Ltd
Having joined QA in January 2015, Kris drives forward individual learning and organisational development with passion, pace and integrity. With over 20 years of experience, holding executive organisational development positions and blue chip consultancy, Kris believes the key to shaping and growing organisations, has its heart in leadership development. Her global experience includes the US, Middle and Far East, Europe and South Africa, and her work has been underpinned by continuous professional development in a range of areas, including doctoral research into leadership career pathways.
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About QA Ltd: QA is the UK’s leading training company, providing the complete range of training, talent development and learning services.
Karen Orr
Director of People & Engagement of QA Ltd
Karen joined QA as Director of People and Engagement in 2016, bringing almost 20 years’ experience leading HR teams across a range of retail, services and technology organisations. She holds an MSc in Management Development and Organisational Change from Bristol University and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Karen is responsible for HR strategy and operations across the group and serves as a member of the executive committee. She leads all employee engagement and development activities in addition to compensation, benefits and HR technology for the group.
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About QA Ltd: QA is the UK’s leading training company, providing the complete range of training, talent development and learning services.
Ben Pike
Managing Director of QA Ltd
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About QA Ltd: QA is the UK’s leading training company, providing the complete range of training, talent development and learning services.
Julie Noone
Managing Director – QA Higher Education of QA Ltd
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About QA Ltd: QA is the UK’s leading training company, providing the complete range of training, talent development and learning services.
Mike Brown
IT Director of QA Ltd
Mike has been with QA since 2008 as IT Director, following the merger with Xpertise. He is responsible for building and directing the company’s technology strategy, including the provision of technology to support all forms of learning plus leading teams in application development, IT infrastructure and platform provision. Mike has been involved in the IT training industry for over 15 years during which time he has worked in a number of operational and IT roles.
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About QA Ltd: QA is the UK’s leading training company, providing the complete range of training, talent development and learning services.
Jennie Marshall
Learning Programme Director of QA Ltd
Jennie Marshall is an award winning learning professional (Winner of the 2016 Learning Performance Institute, Learning Professional of the Year Bronze Award), who joined QA in 2010 as a Learning Consultant in the Leadership, Management and Business Skills team. She has gone on to progress through various positions to her current role of Learning Programme Director where she now designs, develops and manages the delivery of end to end learning programmes. She is an experienced and dedicated learning professional, with expertise including management, leadership and talent, and training and facilitation developed within a variety of environments. Jennie has a proven track record of delivering blended, multi modal learning programmes using Learning Management System platforms and in a more traditional face to face setting, is at home with small and large audiences. She is a proven developer of people and is accredited in the use of a variety of tools including Strength Deployment Inventory®, Emergenetics®, Hogan®, Prism® and Worldsview™ as well as being an NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) Master Practitioner and Kirkpatrick Certified Professional (Bronze).
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About QA Ltd: QA is the UK’s leading training company, providing the complete range of training, talent development and learning services.
Aidan Matthews
Learning Programme Director of QA Ltd
Aidan has over 25 years’ experience working in Leadership, Management and Personal Development, both nationally and internationally. He specialises and advises on profiling and psychometric tools such as Hogan, PRISM, SDI and Belbin. He is also a qualified coach and accredited Emotional Intelligence facilitator using Daniel Goleman’s ESCI framework. Aidan is a member of the EBBF, an organisation focused on implementing ethics in organisations.
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About QA Ltd: QA is the UK’s leading training company, providing the complete range of training, talent development and learning services.
Tim Perkins
Co-Founder & Director of Nudge Global
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About Nudge Global: Brighter financial futures for everyone, everywhere
Jeremy Beament
Co-Founder & Director of Nudge Global
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About Nudge Global: Brighter financial futures for everyone, everywhere
Jamie Mackenzie
Director of Marketing of Sodexo
Jamie Mackenzie joined Pilotlight as Pilotlighter in 2021.
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About Pilotlight, Sodexo: Sodexo is now the worldwide leader in Quality of Life services.
Pierre-Louis Phelipot
Account Director – General Manager Bateaux London of Sodexo
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About Sodexo, The London Jam Factory: Sodexo is now the worldwide leader in Quality of Life services.
Noam Tamir
Founder and Director of Healthcare Learning
Noam Tamir serves as Founder and Director of The Healthcare Learning Company Limited. Mr. Tamir has extensive experience in computer services, management, and marketing as applied to different market niches. He is also the Founder of Isys Plc and has been its Managing Director. He is a Member of the Worshipful Company of IT and has been a Contributing member of the IT Training & Education Panel. He was the youngest officer at the ‘Entebbe Raid’. Mr. Tamir graduated in Computing and Industrial Management Engineering at the Technion in Haifa, Israel.
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About Healthcare Learning: HLC is an integrated learning provider offering cutting-edge learning solutions predominantly in the dental market.
Morten Schmidt
Director of Programmes and Grants of Laureus Foundation
Dr. Morten Schmidt is Head of Strategic Partnerships in Oxfam Great Britain, which is part of the wider Oxfam confederation, and a specialist in programme and business development in the international development sector. Oxfam works in 70+ countries, providing humanitarian relief and supporting communities in working their way out of poverty. He has a diverse background in both research and as a development practitioner over the past 20 years, working with partners ranging from local community organisations in Latin America, Africa and Asia to government agencies, UN organisations, international development banks and multinational companies. He has been with Oxfam since 2010, and has held leading positions in Diakonia Sweden and IBIS Denmark. He is also the founder and Chair of Global Knowledge Brokers Ltd and co-founder of El Chocolatal Golf Eco Resort.
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About Laureus Foundation: Tackles issues such as gang violence, lack of education, racial intolerance, and HIV/AIDS.
Marcella Collins
Managing Director UK of Hotcourses Group
Marcella joined the Hotcourses Group in 2009 and now leads the Higher Education and Adult Learning divisions. She works across teams to deliver a strategy that ensures the very best experience and outcomes for our users and partners.
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About Hotcourses Group, Prompt Marketing: Hotcourses Group operates a program search Website.
Craig Bullen
Finance Director of Hotcourses Group
Craig is a qualified accountant with 20+ years’ experience. He is in charge of financial strategy and governance of 6 companies in 4 countries and is also responsible for Hotcourses Group accounting such as mergers & acquisitions and financial planning & analysis.
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About Hotcourses Group, IDP Connect: Hotcourses Group operates a program search Website.
Torsten de Riese
Director of Strategy & Operations of Dods (Group) plc
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About Dods (Group) plc: Dods is a global political information, publishing, training, events and communications business
Gemma Cranston
Director of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership
Gemma Cranston works within the Natural Capital Leaders Platform at CISL, which brings together influential companies with a global reach to work on addressing the impacts of natural capital loss and degradation on business, their customers and wider society. She is leading projects focusing upon externality valuation and water risk. Gemma’s valuation work has culminated in a suite of resources, including practical guidance around how to undertake an evaluation of the un-costed environmental impacts from business. This resulted in an online Tool, the first of its kind, that guides users through the evaluation process for environmental externalities. Prior to CISL, Gemma was the Lead Scientist at Global Footprint Network leading projects out of the Geneva office as well as supporting the organisation’s Research and Standards Department by contributing to research on the Ecological Footprint methodology and applications. Gemma has co-authored and shaped a variety of innovative projects, including ‘E.Valu.A.Te’: the Externality Valuation Assessment Tool; the ‘E-RISC’ project on the inclusion of environmental risk in sovereign bond assessment; and ‘Innovation through Collaboration’ on water stewardship. Gemma completed her Ph.D. focusing upon Ecological Footprints in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Bath, UK. She also holds a Masters of Aerospace Engineering from the same institution.
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About Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership: CISL is a globally influential Institute developing leadership and solutions for a sustainable economy.
Gillian Davis
Commercialisation Director of University of Cambridge Enterprise
Gillian joined Cambridge Enterprise in February 2009 to work as part of the Physical Sciences team. She holds a BA in Natural Sciences from Oxford University and a doctorate in laser applications. Having spent 10 years as an R&D engineer, she moved into Hi-Tech business development in 1997, obtaining an MBA with the Open University in 1998. After running the subsidiary of the US company Noise Cancellation Technologies for 10 years, she took up the post of Commercial Director at Dolomite Microfluidics in 2007.
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About University of Cambridge Enterprise: Cambridge Enterprise helps the University of Cambridge’s researchers & academics to commercialise their ideas for the benefit of society.
Paul Seabright
Deputy Director of University of Cambridge Enterprise
Paul joined Cambridge Enterprise in April 2009 to take up the post as head of consultancy services and is responsible for both IT and business support. In 2010 he was a board member and director of Cambridge University Technical Services Limited (CUTS), a consultancy company wholly owned by Cambridge Enterprise Ltd. He has considerable experience of technology transfer in both the biotech and medtech sectors, a degree in biochemistry and a PhD in chemistry from Manchester. Paul was previously head of business development at Health Enterprise East where he was instrumental in building a successful technology transfer and consultancy organisation for the NHS in this region. Before this he was a technology manager at Cambridge Enterprise for more than 3 years and led its life science team. Paul also spent 5 years as a senior scientist with a Cambridge biotech company developing the its medtech business and has been a postdoctoral researcher with the MRC and the University of Cambridge.
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About University of Cambridge Enterprise: Cambridge Enterprise helps the University of Cambridge’s researchers & academics to commercialise their ideas for the benefit of society.
Greg Young
Operations Director of Team Satchel
Greg is the Operations director at Show My Homework, the UK’s leading SaaS tool for Schools. Greg has previous experience in various roles including venture capital, business analytics, product operations, product marketing, social community management and financial operations at leading Internet brands Yahoo!, Microsoft and UK based Seed VC Passion Capital.
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About Show My Homework, Team Satchel: Team Satchel develops a range of school software focusing on homework, behavior, classroom management, and teaching resources.
Chris Phillips
Director of Marketing of Team Satchel
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About Team Satchel: Team Satchel develops a range of school software focusing on homework, behavior, classroom management, and teaching resources.
Shaheen Chughtai
Regional Advocacy & Campaigns Director of Save the Children International
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About Save the Children International: Save the Children is the world’s leading independent organisation for children.
Belinda Goldsmith
Global Media Director of Save the Children International
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About Save the Children International: Save the Children is the world’s leading independent organisation for children.
Oliver Godfrey
Finance Director of Makers
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About Makers: Our mission is to transform lives: accelerating the careers of tech professionals by integrating education and employment.
Mark Chambers
Consultant & Non-Executive Director of Magpie Education
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About Magpie Education: Magpie Education is Creating curriculum tools for teachers to inspire the next generation of STEM Innovators.
Lexie Hope
Director Of Business Development of Learning 3D
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About Learning 3D: Learning 3D is the brainchild of a group of educators who believe there is a better way in learning
Rory Curnock Cook
Director of The Profs
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About The Profs: The Profs facilitate school, university and professional level private tuition, educational consultancy and academic mentorship.
Leo Evans
Director of The Profs
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About The Profs: The Profs facilitate school, university and professional level private tuition, educational consultancy and academic mentorship.
Richard Evans
Director of The Profs
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About The Profs: The Profs facilitate school, university and professional level private tuition, educational consultancy and academic mentorship.
Richard Evans
Director of The Profs
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About The Profs: The Profs facilitate school, university and professional level private tuition, educational consultancy and academic mentorship.
Sana Farooq
Director of ELN The e-Learning Network
Sana Farooq is the founder and CEO of ELN The e-Learning Network and we absolutely love her dedication and energy towards the education of children in Pakistan – a very dynamic project! She supports elevate and wants girls to have the same opportunities as men.
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About ELN The e-Learning Network: ELN is a digital learning platform that offers accredited, affordable, and interactive online learning services.
Simon Gaeremynck
Founder, Director, Senior Software Engineer of Fronteer LTD
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About Fronteer LTD: Creating awesome Educational Technology experiences
Thomas Ermacora
Founder, Creative & Strategic Director of Machines Room
Thomas Ermacora FRSA, is a Danish-Italian regeneration architect, impact entrepreneur and futures thinker, helping communities, developers and local authorities making better and happier places. He is the producer, design director and co-author of Recoded City: Co-Creating Urban Futures, due for release fall 2015 by Routledge International, exploring the potential of distributed and participatory placemaking to balance cities. Founder and creative director of strategic regeneration non-profit Clear Village, he has delivered initiatives catalysing the recovery of neighbourhoods in the UK and across Europe. The tools and processes he has invented and developed have received numerous peer accolades and been nominated for the INDEX award 2013 and Placemaking Awards 2014 & 2015. In 2012 he restored a complex of warehouses from reclaimed elements in Hackney, east London, to create the Limewharf cultural innovation hub which houses the Machines Room fablab. Prototyping space and futures laboratory for both artistic and technological projects, Ermacora has curated groundbreaking shows such as Adhocracy with Joseph Grima and supported the incubation of hardware start-ups like Technology Will Save Us. Today the Machines Room has become a circular economy testbed for institutions such as NESTA, the Crafts Council, the British Council’s Maker Library Network, the Royal Society of Arts and various universities such as the RCA and CSM. Inspired in his multi-faceted career by project work with Gehl Architects and Gehry Partners among others, and now working closely with Carmody Groarke, his works and observations on how to make more resilient cities has made him a pioneering actor in the relation between the DIY/open-source urbanism and maker technologies.
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About Machines Room: Machines Room is an open access maker space for professionals, learners, and the inquisitive.
Matthew Townend
Director of Cavell Group
Matthew is a respected analyst who has led a number of high-profile consultancy projects for multinational clients such as BT, O2, Vodafone, Level 3, Telkom South Africa, South Korea Telecom and Belgacom. His market analysis skills combined with his product management & sales experience enable him to undertake broad-based market and business analysis and to develop comprehensive business plans & market strategies. He is a recognised expert in the area of hosted communications with frequent speaking engagements and published research. Matthew’s focus has been very much the development of new markets. Early in his career he launched the first UK magazine devoted entirely to the Internet, and he then went on to join PIPEX, the first commercial provider of internet access in the UK. When PIPEX was acquired by UUNET he was appointed Product Director responsible for launching one of the first multinational VPN services in Europe, and subsequently became Senior Director of all indirect channel activities for Verizon in EMEA. After leaving Verizon he became Marketing Director at Inclarity, one of Europe’s earliest providers of VOIP services.
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About Cavell Group: Cavell Group offering research, consulting, professional services & training in convergence, mobility & cloud.
Dominic Black
Director – Research of Cavell Group
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About Cavell Group: Cavell Group offering research, consulting, professional services & training in convergence, mobility & cloud.
Edward Weir
Director of Swale Academies Trust
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About Swale Academies Trust: Swale Academies Trust provides professional development assistance to primary and secondary schools.
Tunde Sasvari
Director of Client Development, Europe of Wealth-X
Tunde Sasvari is Director of Client Development, Europe at Wealth-X where she works with clients across the luxury, non-profit and education sectors. In this role, Tunde manages accounts across all sectors and provides top tier counsel to help clients optimize their strategies to engage the HNW, VHNW and UHNW wealth segments. Prior to her role in client development, Tunde joined Wealth-X in 2013 as a Research Analyst, providing her with hands-on experience using open source intelligence methods and eventually managing an international team of research analysts. Before joining Wealth-X, Tunde worked in various commercial roles and has lived in Switzerland, Sri Lanka, Italy and Hungary. She is fluent in Italian, Hungarian and English. Tunde holds a Bachelor of Laws from Universita degli studi di Genova in Italy.
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About Wealth-X: Wealth-X provides wealth intelligence solutions to help you uncover, understand, and engage with the world’s wealthiest individuals.
Maeen Shaban
Director of Research and Data Analytics of Wealth-X
Maeen Shaban is Director of Research and Data Analytics at Wealth-X. Maeen is a lead author of Wealth-X’s main thought leadership reports, including the World Ultra High Net Worth Report, the Billionaire Census and the High Net Worth Handbook. During his six-year tenure at Wealth-X, Maeen has employed his expertise in data science across several roles.
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About Wealth-X: Wealth-X provides wealth intelligence solutions to help you uncover, understand, and engage with the world’s wealthiest individuals.
Maya Imberg
Director of Thought Leadership and Analytics of Wealth-X
Maya Imberg is Director of Thought Leadership and Analytics at Wealth-X. She is responsible for driving thought leadership, using data analytics to showcase the company’s products and services, and fostering knowledge sharing between Wealth-X and client organizations. She joined Wealth-X in 2016 as Director of Custom Research responsible for secondary research, data analytics and branded content. She has worked with clients such as Rolls Royce, Richemont, UBS, JPMorgan and Deloitte. Maya has fifteen years of experience in research, spanning market research, macroeconomics and financial services. Prior to joining Wealth-X, Maya held Senior Consultant and Economist roles at the Economist Intelligence Unit and spent a number of years within Datamonitor’s Financial Services practice. Maya holds an undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania and an MSc in Comparative Politics from the London School of Economics. She speaks Spanish and Portuguese and has worked in China, the US and Belgium.
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About Wealth-X: Wealth-X provides wealth intelligence solutions to help you uncover, understand, and engage with the world’s wealthiest individuals.
Tom Hill
Senior Director, Diligence Solutions of Wealth-X
Tom Hill is the Senior Director of Diligence Solutions at Wealth-X. Tom manages the EDD requirements of clients that operate in both regulated and non-regulated environments, and he has an exceptional understanding of the Risk Based Approach, CDD, KYC, AML, CFT, and ABC. He joined Wealth-X in February 2017 as a Senior Case Manager, initially working operationally in relation to Wealth-X’s Diligence offering, overseeing new WXD dossier requests from inception through to completion. Prior to Wealth-X, Tom worked at Meridian Advisory, a small EDD consultancy, where he built and was the head of its new Integrity Due Diligence offering. Before this, he worked at Thomson Reuters as a Case Manager for the IntegraScreen product and was later promoted within the EMEA case management team. Tom completed his bachelor’s degree in Business Studies and is a certified anti-money laundering specialist and fraud examiner. He is based in the company’s London office.
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About Wealth-X: Wealth-X provides wealth intelligence solutions to help you uncover, understand, and engage with the world’s wealthiest individuals.
Simon Bond
Innovation Director of SETsquared
Simon is Innovation Director of SETsquared, the award-winning enterprise partnership of the universities of Bath, Bristol, Exeter, Southampton and Surrey. He is also Director of the University of Bath Innovation Centre (www.ubic.org.uk) which helps accelerate the growth of technology-based companies both from the University’s research base and from the private sector and has founded a portfolio of networks to support business innovation – these include Silicon South West, Low Carbon South West, the open Mobile Innovation Camp, and the Assisted Living Action Network. He is a Director of the UK Electronics Alliance, ESCO. Simon leads the Bath Entrepreneurship Programme business plan training course which is based on the practical experience and track record of SETsquared and the Innovation Centre.
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About SETsquared: SETsquared is a collaborative partnership that supports enterprise activities, spin-outs, licensing, and incubation.
Anjali Singh
Non Executive Director / Co-Founder of ODE.systems
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About ODE.systems: ODE App – objectified decision engine – supports people on their way to make better informed, transparent, and stress-free decisions.
Richard Taylor
Managing Director of Media Taylor
Education/edtech entrepreneur and investor
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About Media Taylor: We are a specialist media company focusing on the education and edtech markets.
David Philipps
Managing Director of Construct
David Philipps is the CEO of Construct, a global digital learning company, where he manages the company’s fast-growing business and leads a growing team across the U.S., U.K, Middle East and South Africa. He is responsible for leading the day to day operational delivery, the commercial engagements, investor relations and for driving the culture of high performance across the company in addition to agreeing the strategic direction of the company with the board.
David was previously CFO of Bank of America EMEA Emerging Markets (CEEMEA) which he developed in to a world class finance team. A seasoned executive with a background in both consulting and finance, David excelled at organising and driving large scale strategic programmes across Bank of Americas international finance space, creating commercial insights, efficiencies, control enhancements and improved people engagement. David was well respected by both his team and the Bank of America finance leadership for his high energy levels, natural enthusiasm and his results orientated pragmatic approach to bringing clarity and organisation to complex situations. He was promoted to CFO of the CEEMEA group after demonstrating a strong track record of performance leading the EMEA Finance Control Group through the aftermath of the 2008 financial crash.
Before joining Bank of America, David spent 5 years consulting within the Finance and Performance Management Global Service Line at Accenture, running multiple successful projects in the UK, Europe and Asia. David qualified as an accountant and corporate treasurer at telecoms company Global Marine Systems Ltd in 2003 before joining Accenture.
David is a passionate endurance athlete having completed swims across the English channel and straits of Gibraltar. He is currently working towards the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc and enjoying supporting his daughters with their own swimming and running endeavours.
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About Construct: Construct helps organizations with learners, like schools and employers, create beautiful, cutting edge digital learning experiences.
Deshini Newman
Managing Director – EMEA of (ISC)2
As Managing Director for EMEA, Deshini Newman leads the (ISC)² team across the region. Her responsibilities include developing and implementing strategy for the EMEA region and supporting the (ISC)² global vision and mission. Before Joining (ISC)2, Deshini held several education leadership roles, at Edexcel International, Pearson Group, and most recently Cambridge Assessment English, where she held positions as Global Manager of Strategy, Assistant Director, Global Business Development and Global Head of Higher Education and Adult Sector. Cambridge Assessment English has provided English language assessments and qualifications since 1913, and is part of Cambridge Assessment Group, Cambridge University (UK).
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About (ISC)2: (ISC)2 is the official organization that maintains and administers the CISSP certification exam.
