EXPERT IMPACT - Key Persons
Alex has over 25 years' experience within the Financial Services Industry. He founded Oplo (formerly 1st Stop Group) in 2004, serving as Managing Director and is now the CEO. The company has grown to over 200 employees with offices in Durham, Manchester and Blackpool.
He has since expanded into other industries and owns companies in the recruitment, software and leisure sectors.
Alex was a North Region finalist for the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2018 in the ‘Scale Up' category.
While Alex hasn't worked directly with any charity organisations, he has participated in a number of fund raising activities for various cancer and children's charities.
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Job Titles:
- Chairman and President, Excelerate Foundation
Alex has spent his career investing in and successfully growing entrepreneurial for-profit and non-profit organisations that seek to drive financial and/or social impact.
He most recently served for four years as Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Communications at Tides, a global philanthropic partner and nonprofit accelerator that facilitates effective grant making and impact investing for individual and institutional donors and also provides infrastructure and nonprofit management services to hundreds of nonprofit organisations nationwide.
Alex created and led Tides' marketing, communications and new client development efforts and served on Tides' Executive Team.
He was also previously Director of Innovation Investments and Portfolio Director at the Skoll Foundation, leading the signature Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship global grant making program.
Alex serves as founding Chairman and President of Excelerate Foundation and its predecessor non-profit organisation, a role that he has held for over 28 years.
Excelerate supports innovative non-profit organisations that drive positive change in the areas of social entrepreneurship, health, the environment and community development. Alex spent 18 years as senior investment professional at several leading venture capital firms including Expansion Capital Partners, JPMorgan Partners and Hambrecht & Quist's venture unit.
He started his investment career at the Vietnam Fund Management Company, managing one of the first venture funds in Vietnam, based in the firm's Hong Kong and then Ho Chi Minh City offices. He invested in and guided innovative private companies from seed stage through IPO/acquisition in a variety of technology sectors, including Clean Technology, entertainment and media, web/cloud-based services, enterprise software and communications services.
Alex began his career as a Presidential appointee serving as Aide to the Administrator at the US Agency for International Development.
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Alex has mentored
Job Titles:
- an Entrepreneur in Residence at Cambridge University, Alex Was an Early Tech Pioneer, Finding Success in IT Security.
- Managing Partner, Seed Funds
An entrepreneur in residence at Cambridge University, Alex was an early tech pioneer, finding success in IT security.
Alex has worked in the technology industry since the 1980s. He co-founded ANT Ltd in 1990 to produce networking products, including web browser software licensed to the Oracle Corporation. ANT plc was listed on the London AIM market (AIM:ANTP) in 2005.
In 1996 he co-founded nCipher to develop internet security products using advanced cryptography. The company became a world leader in IT security, counting major banks, finance companies and governments among its customers. As CEO at nCipher he raised a total of £14m ($25m) in venture capital funding before he led the company to an IPO on the London Stock Exchange in 2000 (LSE:NCH) at a £350m valuation. nCipher plc was sold to Thales SA in 2008.
Alex lives in Cambridge with his wife and three children, where he is an active member of the local entrepreneurial community. He is currently an Entrepreneur in Residence at the Judge Business School, University of Cambridge.
Alex was a patron of the Princes Trust, donates to the Academy of Ancient Music and is on the committee for Kettle's Yard, an art museum based in Cambridge.
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Alex has mentored…
Job Titles:
- Former Managing Director
- Founder
- Founder, Powerchex
Alexandra Kelly is the founder and former managing director of UK pre-employment screening company, Powerchex, and formally the MD of HireRight's background screening operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
Born and raised in Greece, Alexandra moved to the USA aged 25 to study for an MBA. She arrived in the UK in 2000 - interrupting a round the world sailing trip - after discovering she was expecting their first child.
In 2005 she started Powerchex, a pre-employment screening firm specifically targeted at the London financial sector. Seeking investment, she went to face the BBC's Dragons' Den to pitch her business. The Dragons rejected her idea and said it couldn't be done. Alexandra decided to go for it on her own, hired one employee and found a small office. On June 23 2010, California based HireRight Inc., a U.S. background screening company, announced that it had acquired Powerchex, with Alexandra being made Managing Director of HireRight's background screening operations in the EMEA region.
Alexandra has won several business awards for her work and been featured widely in print and broadcasting media.
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Alexandra has mentored
Andrew co-founded Smart Pension to give real people simpler ways to save and access their savings throughout their lives. As the company has grown, world-leading institutions and governments have partnered with Smart, allowing us to help more people with their money.
Previously, Andrew was an international managing director, with roles in banking and finance. He also works with cutting edge innovation foundations - awarding funding and offering advice to promising UK fintech companies and social entrepreneurs, including those who work with open banking.
Andrew is a member of Founder's Pledge, a global community of entrepreneurs aiming to find and fund solutions to the world's most pressing problems.
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Andrew has mentored…
Job Titles:
- Non - Executive Director at the on - Pack Recycling Label
- Non - Executive Director, OPRL
Anne is a Non-Executive Director at the On-Pack Recycling Label (OPRL) the leading recycling label in the UK.
Anne is a Non-Executive Director at the On-Pack Recycling Label (OPRL). It is committed to transforming levels of UK recycling by making it easier for consumers to recycle more material, more often.
Previously Anne was CEO of Cafedirect PLC, (£14 million) running the organisation on behalf of small-holder farmers in Africa and Latin America.
Job Titles:
- Founder
- Founder, Antal International
Spotting the potential of the new professional employment markets in the former Warsaw pact countries, Tony set up his own business in 1993 and named it Antal - Hungarian for ‘Anthony'.
Since then Anthony and his team have developed substantial businesses in some of the most challenging emerging markets across the globe, such as Russia, India and China.
His impact on his chosen industry has been recognised with a series of major awards including winning at the Recruiter Awards 2016 ‘Entrepreneur of the Year', Global Recruiter Industry Awards ‘Best Use of Social Media 2015' and Ernst & Young's ‘Entrepreneur of the Year (Business Products and Services)'
A passionate believer in corporate social responsibility, Anthony is the founder and funder of the Antal Charitable Foundation, which works with charities around the world to improve the living and educational conditions of under-privileged children, such as charities like Regenerate UK, The Duke of Edinburgh's Award and Womanity Foundation.
Despite being an enthusiastic, if exhausted, father of eight, Anthony also occasionally manages to find time to make use of his long-standing season ticket at Chelsea FC.
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Anthony has mentored
We are _SocialStarters a volunteer organisation for professionals who want to share skills, travel with purpose and do something different. Possibilize Academy Equal Education _Social Starters Iconic Steps Biodiversity Business My Pickle CIC Udamon Anthony was a great person to chat to for an hour - he made me feel motivated to get stuck back into running my business, and he assured me that any doubts, worries or fears I had as we move into Year 3 were normal. I'm leaving our session excited to continue - thanks! Andrea Gamson, Co-Founder of Social Starters
My Pickle helps individuals in the UK facing big life challenges to find help fast. We do this by crowdsourcing and signposting to trusted external support resources. Possibilize Academy Equal Education _Social Starters Iconic Steps Biodiversity Business My Pickle CIC Udamon I really appreciate Anthony taking time to offer an independent CEO perspective's view on our social enterprise. He listened carefully and provided constructive challenge which will be valuable for me to reflect on further - thank you! Cat Divers, Founder&CEO, My Pickle CIC
We provide engaging learning experiences which equip under-supported groups with the dynamic confidence and knowhow they need to shape their professional direction and talents. Possibilize Academy Equal Education _Social Starters Iconic Steps Biodiversity Business My Pickle CIC Udamon Tony's support was extremely helpful. This is testament to both his extensive understanding of the careers and recruitment sector, and strong empathy for the challenges faced by young people today. We covered a lot of impactful talking points during our session, and I left with a number of exciting next steps to action. Henry Langdon, Founder, Udamon
Job Titles:
- Managing Director, Appt Corporation Ltd
Atul Pathak OBE is one of the UK's most successful franchise entrepreneurs, operating 43 McDonald's restaurants and employing more than 3,500 staff through his company Appt Corporation Ltd.
Atul was awarded an OBE for Services to Entrepreneurship and serves as West London Business Ambassador. He has received two Honorary Doctorates (University of West London and University of Bolton) and was named the ‘Leader of the Decade Creating a Better World for All' by The Women Economic Forum in 2017.
Giving back to the community is an integral part of Atul's business philosophy. He established the annual Atul Pathak Community Awards in 2014, which recognise the valuable work of local charities in the communities near his restaurants, and more than 50 charities have benefited from this scheme over the past six years.
Atul and Appt Corporation have together donated well over £1 million to good causes over the past ten years.
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Atul has mentored…
Atul was very forthright in his focus on the business fundamentals, very grounded and honest in the challenges and journey of an entrepreneur and encouraging and supportive of our business and future opportunities. Richard Kennedy, Director, Cornerstone Place
Atul was able to identify the activities needed to move the business forward, clearly explaining the logic and empowering me with an immediate set of prioritised actions to take away and execute. Tracey Banks, Founder, unpckd
Atul was inspirational and given his wealth of knowledge and business success he has made me re-think the way I currently run my business. I have a lot of takeaways from the hour session and look forward to implementing his advice going forward. Pranav Chopra, CEO, NEMI Teas
Atul Pathak is one of the UK's most successful franchise entrepreneurs, operating 43 McDonald's with more than 3,500 staff.
Job Titles:
- Chairman, Penguin Random House
Gail co-launched an independent publishing house, Century, in the early 1980s which merged with Hutchinson in 1985 and was acquired by Random House in 1989.
She was appointed CEO of Random House (the largest publisher in the UK) two years later and served for 23 years, during which time she was involved in several mergers and acquisitions, looking after the publishers' interests and distribution globally.
After Random House merged with Penguin, she became UK Chair, sitting on the company's Global Board of Representatives based in New York.
Gail was a Non-Executive Director of BskyB for 10 years and chaired its CSR activities on behalf of the board.
She became a Labour Peer in 2014 and sits in the House of Lords speaking on the creative industries, literacy and women's issues.
Gail has always been a champion of literacy and launched World Book Day in 1998, where every school child receives a voucher to acquire a book. She subsequently launched Quick Reads (now part of the Reading Agency) in 2005 to tackle adult literacy.
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As well as chairing the Goldsmith family organisation, Ben Goldsmith founded WHEB, a leading specialist "sustainability" investment business. WHEB invests across renewable energy infrastructure, green technology private equity, and global listed equities. He remains on the Board.
He is currently Founder and CEO of Menhaden Capital PLC, a new energy and resource-focused investment trust now listed on the main board of the London stock exchange.
Ben is Chairman of the JMG Foundation, which funds campaigning and advocacy work on environmental issues and is co-founder of the UK Environmental Funders' Network. Ben is also Chairman of the Conservative Environment Network.
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Bill Mew is an entrepreneur and high-profile opinion leader that campaigns for striking the right balance between meaningful protection of civil liberties like digital privacy and security, and maximising economic and social value.
As an entrepreneur, Bill is CEO of The Crisis Team, which is made up of an elite team of experts in incident response, cyber law, reputation management and social influence that help clients minimise the impact of cyber incidents.
Bill has been profiled as the top global influencer for privacy and digital ethics and helped lead the crowdfunding to launch None of Your Business, an NGO for pan-European privacy enforcement, bringing the main cases against Facebook and others on the first day that GDPR was enforced.
On the innovative use of technology, he was recently listed as one of the global top 100 cloud influencers (second highest in Europe), and he is ranked in the global top 10 for smart cities, govtech and other digital transformation themes.
Mumsnet is an online community of parents sharing advice, support and product recommendations.
Over the last 19 years it has become the UK's busiest and most influential network for parents with over 10 million visits a month, over 180 local sites, and a network of over 4,200 bloggers. Carrie was listed 7th in BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour's 2013 Power List of the 100 most powerful women in the UK.
Carrie lives in London with her husband and three kids Grace, Noah and Mimi. To read more about how she started and scaled Mumsnet, click here.
Barre & Baby offers ballet classes specifically for expectant and new mums with their baby. Dreamlearners BERRI Food for Kids Barre & Baby Ollies Edible Adventures Disco Media Cubs Footbus I am very grateful to Expert Impact for allowing me to meet with Carrie. We had a great conversation on ways to grow my business and her suggestions were all genuinely correct and helpful! I feel I'm in a better position now to gear up and more confident to follow my ambitions! Elisa Reinerio, Founder of Barre & Baby
Ollie's Edible Adventures is preventative programme for childhood obesity that uses a combination of television, publishing, digital and educational tools to enable healthy behaviour change for children, parents and teachers. Dreamlearners BERRI Food for Kids Barre & Baby Ollies Edible Adventures Disco Media Cubs Footbus Our session with Carrie Longton from Mumsnet met all of our goals. She was incredibly honest about her experiences in business, willing to share her expertise and knowledge and definitely had impact on our strategy. So a perfect session. Thanks to you all. Mickey Rogers, Director of Ollie's Edible Adventures
Job Titles:
- Founder
- Founder of from Babies With Love
- Founding Director, from Babies With Love
Cecilia Crossley is the founder of From Babies with Love, the award-winning social enterprise that donates 100% of its profits to orphaned and abandoned children around the world.
A chartered accountant with a background in the City and charity finance, Cecilia is half Brazilian; as a child herself she saw children living on the streets of Rio, fuelling her passion for international development and social enterprise.
Winner of the Prime Minister's Point of Light award, Cecilia is also host of the inspiring podcast, How HR Leaders Change the World.
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Cecilia has mentored
Job Titles:
- Interior Designer
- Founder, Celia Sawyer Interiors
- Having Co - Founded a Number of Internet Startups He Consequently Sold to Recognised Companies, Charles Now Works in Private Equity.
Celia Sawyer is an interior designer who has been discreetly providing both private and commercial clients with bespoke ground breaking luxury interiors for over 20 years through her eponymous company.
Her assignments have included private aviation, yachts, luxury homes and commercial projects and her clients include royalty, celebrities, sporting individuals and high net worth individuals.
2019 will be Celia's 6th year on national television as she continues to appear on Channel 4's Four Rooms (also shown on Netflix USA). She was also chosen to host her own design show for BBC1 which has also aired in Australia, Europe and New Zealand.
Celia has been recognised for her work by being included on lists such as the 100 Most influential Business Entrepreneurs in the UK and the top 250 Women Leaders of the World. In 2018 Celia was listed as one of the top 10 Interior Designers in the World.
As well as mentoring for Expert Impact, Celia regularly speaks at schools across the UK to encourage children to rise to the challenge of life. She is also involved with many charities, as a patron for The Children's Liver Disease Foundation, Refuge, and as a board advisor for Football for Peace, and an Ambassador for the British Heart Foundation, where she was also on the committee for fundraising. She is an ambassador for The Prince's Trust (where she has mentored some of the young people) and Chain Of Hope.
You can read more about Celia here.
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Job Titles:
- Co - Founder, Blenheim Chalot
Since 1998, Charles and his business partner Manoj Badale have co-founded more than 20 businesses, largely technology-related, which are managed through their investment company Blenheim Chalcot.
Charles and Manoj's first venture was netdecisions group, a major internet services provider, now trading as Agilisys. While starting netdecisions, they co-founded a number of internet startups - the First Resort (sold to TUI), mad about wine (sold to Fosters), woowho (sold to match.com) and produxion.com (sold to EMAP).
Job Titles:
- CEO
- Co - Founder
- Alumni Network Board Member
- CEO and Co - Founder of the Girls
- CEO and Co - Founder of the Girls' Network
Charly Young is CEO and Co-founder of The Girls' Network - a charity that provides 14-19 year old girls from the least-advantaged communities across England with a female mentor and a network of professional female role models.
As a secondary school teacher, she saw first-hand how girls and young women were limited by their gender and background, and knew she had to do something! She left teaching, and has since grown the charity from supporting just 30 girls in 2013, to over 1,200 in 2020.
Charly has experience in scaling organisations from idea to reality, and has supported social entrepreneurs working in the education and social justice space through Teach First and the Fair Education Alliance.
She previously worked at the Royal Society of Arts as a researcher, was a primary school governor, and sits on the Expert Impact Alumni Board. Charly also shared what she has learnt about scaling with fellow social entrepreneurs during one of our regular Impact Labs.
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Charly has mentored
Charly is the CEO and co-founder of The Girls' Network, which offers girls from the least advantaged backgrounds mentorship from inspirational and motivated women across a range of professions and from a wide range of backgrounds. The aim is to develop confidence in the girls, inspire them to be ambitious and create amazing futures.
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder, Made.Com and Kama
Chloe Macintosh co-founded MADE.com in 2010 with the mission to offer original design at affordable prices. As Creative Director, Chloe led the brand vision and customer proposition. She directed the collections and designer collaborations for Made together with all the marketing campaigns. Chloe's vision created a unique and differentiating brand while building an innovating platform to revolutionise the development and distribution of home products. Made.com had 160 employees and was named the second fastest growing tech company in the UK. Made.com was also part of the Future Fifty program for high growth companies selected by the UK government.
After her time at MADE, Chloe spent 3 years as the Creative Adviser and Chief Creative Officer for Soho House and now leads Kama, a business she founded which is "building the sex, love, and intimacy superbrand of the future". Chloe launched their sexual wellbeing app which brings together modern science and other evidence based practices into easy-to-follow daily practices. Kama is on a mission to cultivate more love in the world and enhance human connection by improving and supporting intimacy.
Chloe was born in Paris but has lived in London for the past 16 years. Her career in design spurred from her early training in Architecture, previously working as an Associate Partner in Norman Foster's London practice for 10 years. In 2007, Chloe joined Brent Hoberman at interiors brand mydeco where she lead the mydeco Design Board, and collaborated with Philippe Starck, Marc Newson and Terence Conran on design projects.
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Chloe has mentored
Job Titles:
- Founder & CEO, Adjust Your Set
Having co-founded a number of internet startups he consequently sold to recognised companies, Charles now works in private equity. Charles Mindenhall Blenheim Chalcot An Expert interested in education, gender equality and social justice, Charly has experience scaling organisations from idea to reality. Charly Young The Girls Network The co-founder of Made.com was a pioneer in offering online only made-to-order designer furniture at affordable prices. Chloe Macintosh https://kama.co/about Having found success in the digital content world, Chris is also passionate about marine conservation. Chris Gorell Barnes Adjust Your Set
Chris is the founder and CEO of Adjust Your Set, an award winning full service digital content agency. Adjust Your Set are pioneers in brand media, specialising in digital video.
He is also an investor & Non-Exec Director of Eagle Eye Solutions, the leading mobile vouchers and payments platform and he is an active angel investor in ad tech and new media start-ups.
Chris cares passionately about marine conservation; he was executive producer of the award winning film The End of the Line and is co-founder of The Blue Marine Foundation, a charity funding private sector solutions for the sea and the creation of a global network of marine reserves.
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Chris has mentored
Chris is the founder and CEO of Spacehive - the crowdfunding platform for projects that improve your local area: everything from sprucing up a community garden, or improving a playground, to starting a street market.
Job Titles:
- Founder, the White Company
Chrissie Rucker started The White Company in 1994, when, unable to find well-designed, beautiful-quality white bed linens, that were also affordable, she decided to invest her £6,000 savings to produce them.
Job Titles:
- Social Enterprise Leader
- VCSE Crown Representative
Claire Dove CBE has been an exceptional social enterprise leader for over 40 years. During which she established and led the hugely successful Blackburne House Group for 35 years. Blackburne House provides excellent educational opportunities for women alongside its award-winning School for Social Entrepreneurship and successful social enterprises.
For 10 years, Claire was chair of Social Enterprise UK (SEUK) and is currently an SEUK patron. In 2018, Claire was appointed as the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Crown Representative. In this role, she acts as an intermediary between the Government and the voluntary and social enterprise sectors, championing the Social Value Act and improvements in commissioning practices.
Claire is known nationally and internationally for her work in the social enterprise sector. In the UK she has been a consistent voice within Westminster and Whitehall, ensuring that the contributions that social enterprises make are recognised. Through her work with colleagues on the Social Value Act and tirelessly working with the Cabinet Office and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, she has made significant contributions to the development of the Social Value Model.
She has been the recipient of many awards for her contributions to the sector including an MBE, OBE, as well as the Queens Lifetime achievement award for Enterprise promotion. In 2020 Claire was honoured with a CBE in the Queen's New Year's honours list.
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Claire Dove CBE has been an exceptional social enterprise leader for over 40 years. She was chair of Social Enterprise UK (SEUK). In 2018, Claire was appointed as the...
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Founding Member of the WildHearts Group
- Sales and Partnership Director at the WildHearts Group
- Trustee of the WildHearts Foundation
Colin Downie is the Sales and Partnership Director at the WildHearts Group, a multi-award winning social enterprise group dedicated to launching companies that through their activities and profits deliver entrepreneurship education and micro finance globally.
Colin is also a trustee of the WildHearts Foundation with a specific interest in international development projects that support marginalised and economically disadvantaged groups. He is a Non-Executive Director at Social Enterprise UK (SEUK) where his focus is generally supporting the delivery of social impact via company supply chains.
Colin is a founding member of the WildHearts Group, where his extensive experience and skills in entrepreneurialism, sales and business development and operational efficiencies have helped to build the WildHearts Group into a multi-million pound organisation now delivering social impact across 40 countries.
He passionately believes that business can and must be a force for good, something strategically aligned to both Expert Impact and SEUK.
Job Titles:
- Entrepreneur and Investor
- Managing Partner - Fintech, Blenheim Chalcot
Dan is an entrepreneur and investor in innovative tech startup businesses, focusing on financial services.
He leads the FinTech portfolio for Blenheim Chalcot, a long-established London venture builder. Through this role he has co-founded a number of fast-growth fintech companies including; Salary Finance, Koodoo Mortgages, OpenWrks and ClearScore, and he advises Liberis, Modulr and Tully.
Until late 2014, Dan spent over eight years at Google, as Managing Director UK & Ireland and as VP Marketing EMEA. Prior to Google Dan held senior marketing roles with Capital One, Ask Jeeves and Pepsi/Walkers.
Dan has been a speaker at the TED Conference, appeared as a technology expert on BBC's Tomorrow's World and helped Alan Sugar choose his 2014 Apprentice.
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Dan has mentored
Dan Cobley is an entrepreneur and investor in innovative tech startup businesses, focusing on financial services.
David is Chief Executive of Pi Capital, a unique investor network that finds investment opportunities for its members and negotiates participation in select private equity deals and funds. It allows individual investors to participate in transactions on an opt-in basis that are usually the exclusive preserve of institutions. In addition to investment opportunities, Pi Capital offers its members exclusive vibrant social and educational programmes. David previously founded, built up and sold several businesses and health club chains in the US and UK.
He has financial interests in several other businesses and industries (both as an angel investor or co-investor) and has been involved as an investor, advisor and board member of some of the largest and most successful fitness companies globally including Fitness First, 24 Hour Fitness and Zumba Fitness.
David is passionate about the power of education and encouraging entrepreneurial talent in the next generation. He is a trustee for Speakers for Schools, an organisation that provides free talks in state schools by distinguished and eminent figures. He is also a patron of Pro Bono Economics, an organisation that matches volunteer economists with charities wishing to address questions around measurement, results and impact.
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David has mentored
The Chief Executive of investor network Pi Capital was an early entrepreneur who foresaw the popularity of gyms, setting up his own aged 17.
David is one of the world's 50 most important marketing thinkers according to the Chartered Institute of Marketing. He founded the brandgym in 2002 and has grown it into a global network of seven senior brand coaches who help companies create an inspiring brand vision and action plans to turn into growth. Clients have included Sainsbury's, Philips, T-Mobile, SAB Miller, Kraft, Mars and Unilever.
David started his career in brand management in 1987 at Procter & Gamble, before leaving to do an MBA at INSEAD. He then started and grew the Paris office of marketing consultancy Added Value, now part of WPP, before leaving in 2001 to start the brandgym.
He is the author of six acclaimed books including Where's the Sausage? and Grow the Core. His blog, Brandgym Blog, is one of Europe's top 10 branding blogs. He has also published many articles, appeared as a brand expert on TV and spoken at conferences globally.
His philanthropic work involves coaching social businesses and charities on how to bring to life the vision for their brand to enable more effective marketing. He has worked with Save the Children, The School for Social Entrepreneurs and Helping the Burmese Delta.
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David has mentored
Diana Hunter is a leading c-suite executive in the high-quality food and drink retail and wholesale sectors with over 25 years' experience.
She has worked with some of the UK's most successful and best-known supermarket brands, such as Waitrose and Sainsbury's Plc, before becoming Chief Executive Officer of Conviviality, the UK's largest independent drinks wholesaler with revenues of over £1.6 bn.
More recently Diana has built on her Non Executive experience by taking up a number of Non-Executive Director roles with a range of businesses, imparting her years of business experience from the top of some of Britain's best known brands.
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Diana has mentored
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer for Berry Bros & Rudd
Emma Fox is Chief Executive Officer for Berry Bros & Rudd, the world's oldest fine wine and spirit merchant. A retail veteran, Emma's broad functional experience has been shaped during a career spanning over 30 years, working in high-profile roles for several major retailers.
Before stepping into her current role in July ‘20, Emma was CEO of a £200m turnover private equity backed retailer based in Lancashire. She led the business through a major turnaround which included a refinancing and a credit valuation adjustment (CVA) driving profitable growth and at the same time achieving the company's highest engagement scores.
Prior to that Emma has held many senior commercial roles both in the UK, including Commercial Director of Halfords and Chief Marketing Officer of Walmart Canada, based in Toronto. During Emma's tenure in Canada, she chaired Walmart's inaugural Diversity and Inclusion Council, sponsored by the Global CEO for Walmart, leading the D&I agenda across 28 countries and 2.2m associates. Before relocating to Toronto, she spent 12 years working at Asda in a number of Director roles.
Emma was a Non-Executive Director for Berry Bros. & Rudd for three years and held the same role at Punch Taverns until the business was sold in 2017.
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Emma has mentored
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder of Global Venture Capital
Starting out in life as a coder, Frank is the co-founder of global venture capital firm SparkLabs Global Ventures. He also has unrivalled telecoms experience.
If you've ever used The Cloud, the free public access WiFi provider that your phone or laptop will pick up at places like airports, restaurants and leisure facilities, you've got George to thank as he was the founder of the company.
Since leaving in 2008 his focus has been on the environment. He founded the European Climate Foundation, dedicated to creating a net-zero greenhouse gas emissions society, and he has also worked as an advisor on climate change related investments to George Soros, the noted investor and philanthropist.
He now works on environmentally friendly investment. George is a partner at Vision Ridge, which aims to deliver financial returns and positive environmental impact through investments in sustainable real assets.
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George has mentored
George Polk was a pioneer in free WiFi and now a committed investor focused on driving money towards environmentally sustainable projects.
Entrepreneurial engineer and active angel investor, Gi co-founded global social technology leader Techlightenment (sold to Experian plc), the first company to provide a tool on top of the Facebook Ads API.
He is passionate about using tech to create a level playing field through unlocking digital skills in young people, and enabling greater diversity and social inclusion.
Gi is Chairman of Freeformers, which he founded in 2012, with a mission to use accelerated learning techniques to help young people, from all backgrounds, to develop high impact digital skills. He created an innovative 1-for-1 model whereby for every person a corporate pays to train, Freeformers delivers the same training to a young person who otherwise wouldn't have the opportunity.
He is a Trustee of Apps for Good, which works with nearly 100 schools across the UK to teach young people how to make apps that will change the world and give thousands of 11-18 year olds the chance to develop digital skills. He also sits on Nesta's Digital Makers Panel and is a Trustee of Cage Cricket.
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Job Titles:
- Managing Partner, Stage Capital
Graham is the Managing Partner of Stage Capital, a private equity firm backed by Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Glendower Capital.
He also serves as the Chairman of the Investment Committee of Menhaden Capital Advisors, the manager of Menhaden Capital PLC. In addition he is a member of the investment committee of Apis Partners, a firm which backs growth financial service innovators who create transformative impact in their communities.
Graham is a Fellow and Trustee of The Rivers Trust, and a Trustee of African Mountain Research. He is an investor in businesses in a number of sectors including travel, publishing, media, manufacturing and consumer.
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Graham has mentored
Gregg Freishtat is a technology executive with over 30 years of experience leading innovative and transformative companies.
Charly has mentored Douar Tech Douar Tech is a Moroccan organization that contributes to strengthening the resilience of vulnerable youth, especially women, from precarious backgrounds in rural and peri-urban areas, through training in innovative entrepreneurship and web development skills. Recruit For Spouses Douar Tech Link Your Purpose SEND Coffee Role Models Social Ark It's All About You Wellbeing CIC Truagh Development Association Tikvah Hope Sanctuary CIC Skate Cabal Charly was a fantastic sounding board to the concerns I have shared. She has provided us with very relevant feedback to achieve our strategic objectives in such a critical time for our organization, authentic advice I very much appreciate. Hanae Bezad, National Coordinator, Douar Tech
Job Titles:
- Founder and Managing Director of Biscuiteers
Harriet Hastings is the Founder and Managing Director of Biscuiteers, the original luxury biscuit company offering hand-iced biscuit gifts direct to customers worldwide.
Charly has mentored SEND Coffee SEND Coffee hires and trains people with special needs or disabilities into jobs in the coffee industry Recruit For Spouses Douar Tech Link Your Purpose SEND Coffee Role Models Social Ark It's All About You Wellbeing CIC Truagh Development Association Tikvah Hope Sanctuary CIC Skate Cabal Charly's insight into our culture made us realise what we really wanted to be, and changed our way of thinking about ourselves. It was one of the most useful moments in our journey so far, and we feel very lucky to have had the opportunity. Harry Graham, Managing Director, SEND Coffee
Job Titles:
- Head of Mentoring
- Solicitor With a Master of Laws
Heather is a qualified solicitor with a Master of Laws in Human Rights, Conflict and Justice and is accredited in Coaching and Mentoring with the European Mentoring and Coaching Council.
Heather has facilitated and led leadership development and group mentoring programmes that reached 1500 people over five years. She trains senior professionals in coaching and mentoring through the Executive Coach-Adviser course and has coached, mentored and trained leaders across Europe and Africa.
While working for the United Nations' specialised agency, International Labour Organization (ILO), Heather worked on innovative entrepreneurship development, employment and employability programmes, creating inclusive and equitable solutions. Heather's remit involved working with governments, enterprise development specialists and other NGOs in a number of countries to implement gender and disability inclusive policies and practices.
Job Titles:
- Non - Executive Director, LADbible Group
Hugh has worked in the technology and publishing industries since 1976, joining Apple in the UK in 1979 when the personal computer industry was in its infancy.
In 1985 he established Taxan (Europe) Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kaga Electronics, Japan. In an 18 year period at the helm the business sold more than 5 million computer displays and graphics adaptors with turnover exceeding £50 million per annum.
His personal goal to own and manage his own business was achieved in 2003 when he founded TrustedReviews.com. In 2005 he acquired bit-tech.net. Both digital publications quickly became market leaders in their respective sectors. He sold TrustedReviews.com in October 2007 to Time Warner/IPC Media and bit-tech.net in October 2008 to Dennis Publishing.
Hugh has since been involved with several startups as an angel investor and/or advisor. He also works with more established companies in non-executive roles to provide advice and an independent voice on strategy, performance, risk and people.
He has invested in digital platforms across many genres including dating, parking, and publishing.
His non-executive Director roles include The LADbible Group, Time Out Group, Dennis Publishing and MyVoucherCodes. Hugh is also a Board Member E2Exchange.
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Hugh has mentored…
Charly has mentored Role Models Role Models is a unique service providing skilled & engaging ad hoc and ongoing part-time childcare. Recruit For Spouses Douar Tech Link Your Purpose SEND Coffee Role Models Social Ark It's All About You Wellbeing CIC Truagh Development Association Tikvah Hope Sanctuary CIC Skate Cabal I really enjoyed meeting Charly. She had some very useful, practical ideas that spanned board membership, sales techniques and recruitment channels. She also offered to follow up with me on a couple of things, which was extremely generous. Hugo Shephard, Managing Director, Role Models
Job Titles:
- Founder, the Purpose Restaurant Company
Iqbal Wahhab OBE has built a reputation for delivering world-class excellence through his highly successful restaurant businesses, Roast and The Cinnamon Club. He has exited both restaurants and is planning new ventures developing purpose-driven businesses.
He has won a number of major awards and accolades during his career. Iqbal was voted one of the Top 10 Restaurateurs in Britain in an Independent on Sunday survey and listed in the Caterer Power 100, GQ 100 Most Connected and The Sunday Times Maserati Top 100 business start-up mentors.
In 2019 he was High Sheriff of Greater London. He has also been featured in social enterprise magazine Pioneers Post's ‘Black Cab Interviews'. Watch it here.
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Iqbal has mentored
Iqbal Wahhab OBE is one of Britain's top restaurateurs with a reputation for excellence through his restaurants Roast and The Cinnamon Club.
Job Titles:
- President of Membership Organisation TechUK
- President of Tech Uk
Jacqueline is the President of membership organisation techUK and the President of the Digital Leaders board.
Described as a ‘titan of tech' by the Evening Standard, Jacqueline is one of the UK's most senior figures in tech and focuses on helping tech leaders to provide proactive and practical opportunities that encourage diversity and inclusion or that use tech for good to tackle the global challenges of our time.
"If we are to thrive in a digital future which includes everybody, we must ensure that we have all of our voices heard when it comes to designing technology. If we do not, we risk creating a world which is for the few and not for the many," she said.
She sits as a Non-Executive Director on the boards of UK technology business Rightmove and constructors Costain, and also serves on the board of skills and professional services business FDM Group plc.
Jacqueline has advised the government on post-18 education and is a business mentor at Merryck Group offering board and executive level coaching.
She is also the co-chair at the Institute of Coding, advises the board of accelerateHer to support female entrepreneurs and lends her support to the Girlguiding Association for technology transformation.
She is a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion which informs where she places her support.
Jacqueline was awarded a CBE for Services to International Trade in Technology in the Queen's New Year Honours list 2018.
Job Titles:
- Founder
- Co - Founder, Student Beans
James Eder is an entrepreneur, founder, speaker & life coach.
James is of the mindset that we are always learning and in the last 20 years has engaged in personal development, leadership, training, coaching, being coached, reading hundreds of books, speaking to thousands of people all over the world.
Back in 2005 he co-founded Student Beans, a lifestyle platform for university students, which includes the latest deals and discounts, providing student verification technology to brands across the globe from the USA to Australia and beyond.
James built the business on the foundation that people do business with people. He boot strapped the business with his brother Michael and was responsible for all the commercial activities of the business, driving the sales and partnerships that enabled the business to grow to turn over millions of pounds and helping tens of millions of users over the years.
James is a frequent speaker at conferences, schools and universities across the UK and internationally on subjects including marketing, entrepreneurship, resilience, establishing a successful brand & networking.
Most recently James focuses his time leveraging his experience and expertise as a Work/Life Coach delivering transformation for his clients. Focusing on entrepreneurs & founders he gives them SAS - Space, Accountability & Support to help them be the best they already are.
Over the years he has worked with The Princes Trust, Young Enterprise, One Young World and The University of Birmingham.
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James has mentored
Charly has mentored Skate Cabal At Skate Cabal, we believe that roller skating is more than just a sport or hobby - it's a source of creativity, inspiration, and mental wellbeing. We are dedicated to empowering the skating community by providing safe and inclusive spaces for all skaters to express themselves and connect with others. Recruit For Spouses Douar Tech Link Your Purpose SEND Coffee Role Models Social Ark It's All About You Wellbeing CIC Truagh Development Association Tikvah Hope Sanctuary CIC Skate Cabal I had a great mentoring session with Charly Young. Charly is such a great mentor and I learned so much from her as she provided valuable insights, helpful advice, and a wealth of knowledge in the Social Entrepreneurship space. I feel motivated and empowered after our conversation and I look forward to putting into practice what I've learned today. James Kaguima, Founder, Skate Cabal
Job Titles:
- CEO, Halpern PR
- Founder and CEO of Consumer PR & Brand Consultancy
Jenny Halpern Prince is the founder and CEO of Consumer PR & Brand Consultancy agency, Halpern. The company has created hugely successful campaigns for world class brands in the agency's 25 year history.
Jenny was deeply involved with the ‘Britain Stronger in Europe' Campaign, sitting on the board and being the founder and creator of the network Women IN to ensure women's voices are heard and at the centre of the debate that will shape the future of our country.
In addition to her business successes, Jenny dedicates a huge amount of her time to philanthropic pursuits. In 2012, she co-founded the youth charity Access Aspiration, to improve social mobility in areas of high deprivation by providing aspirational work experience placements in over 200 of London's leading businesses and reaching over 3500 students.
Jenny co-founded the Lady Garden Foundation in 2014 with seven other women. The charity's mission is to increase awareness and raise funds to fight gynaecological cancers, supporting the Royal Marsden Hospital and they have raised over £1million to date (2019). They have run charitable campaigns with the likes of TopShop and Selfridges.
Jenny is the founder and CEO of Consumer PR & Brand Consultancy agency Halpern.
Job Titles:
- Founder & CEO, Beautiful Destinations
Jeremy is a serial technology & media entrepreneur, with more than a decade of experience in online marketing and social media.
He is the Founder & CEO of Beautiful Destinations. The award-winning nation branding agency works with countries & cities across the globe and has built the largest tourism community in the world on social media, with over 20 million people following on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Weibo.
Prior to Beautiful Destinations Jeremy founded and ran the UK arm of an eCommerce Saas business, which grew to over 300 employees, over 70M users and revenue of $2BN.
He also co-founded a digital health company, set up a venture capital fund, sat on the board of the Entrepreneurs Organization (EO) and was an ambassador for Her Majesty's Government in the UK Trade & Investment's Global Entrepreneur Program. He has a background in elite sport having played rugby for Scotland at school and is an ambassador for the city of New York.
He is also a passionate advocate for sustainable tourism giving keynote speeches & advising the UNWTO, SKIFT Global Forum, World Travel Market and as an ambassador for the World Wildlife Foundation.
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Want to meet Jeremy?
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder & CEO, Corbin & King
Jeremy initially pursued a career in merchant banking but gave that up to go into catering, becoming Searcy's youngest ever manager at the age of 21. Although headhunted to run a restaurant, wine bar and wine importing business, he soon returned to his passion for restaurants with the arrival of American restaurant Joe Allen in London, where he was Maitre d'Hôtel. Whilst there, he met Chris Corbin and they launched their business partnership in 1981, which has now lasted over 35 years.
Job Titles:
- Founder / CEO, Jimmy 's Iced Coffee
Jim Cregan created his own brand, Jimmy's Iced Coffee after an inspiring trip to Australia. He returned home not wanting to work on building sites any more and decided it was time to try something truly worthwhile.
With a loan from his parents, Jim and his sister Sooz set about on a mammoth journey to bring awesome, ready-to-drink iced coffee to the UK and beyond. They have since gained listings in most major supermarkets and have recently began exporting. Their team, based in Christchurch are a legendary bunch and they have big ambitions to become the greatest iced coffee money can buy.
Jeremy brands nations! The founder of Beautiful Destinations, his branding agency works with countries and cities worldwide. Jeremy Jauncey Beautiful Destinations Jeremy is the man behind many of London's most famous restaurants, including The Ivy, The Wolesley and the Belgo chain. Jeremy King Corbin & King The ‘Jim' in Jimmy's Iced Coffee, Cregan has gone from delivering his own product to shops to being stocked in every major supermarket. Jim Cregan Jimmy's Iced Coffee An expert in transition services and resilience-building, Joan works with leaders, teams and organizations to help them learn to navigate change. Joan Ball WOMB Lab
Joanne Baban Morales Nunude A strong advocate of social and environmental responsibility, Jochen is Director of Kering, the luxury goods brand. Jochen Zeitz The B Team Once a celebrity hairstylist to the stars, John went on to create a range of hair care products that sold all around the world. John Frieda John Frieda Hair Care A serial entrepreneur who has created companies worth several billion dollars, John now has investments in several well-known brands. John Hunt Archimedia
Josh Turner is the founder of multi award winning social enterprise Stand4 Socks, a leading brand changing the world one pair of socks at a time.
Job Titles:
- Alumni Network Board Member
Julian is the UK Managing Director for Lemonaid Beverages, the Social Enterprise behind ethical soft drink brands Lemonaid & ChariTea. Beyond supporting Fairtrade and a sustainable agriculture, over £4 million have been raised for social projects in the Global South.
Previously experienced in the banking and publishing worlds, Karen is the former CEO of one of the more successful social enterprise brands Belu water.
Karen Lynch is an experienced business leader, entrepreneur, and mentor. A champion of profit with purpose, the circular economy and of collaboration for positive progress.
Following a corporate career in media, automotive and finance, Karen moved into the world of social enterprise in 2010, becoming CEO of Belu Water, one of the UK's best known and most awarded social enterprises.
Under Karen's leadership Belu demonstrated that putting the environment first, being highly profitable and impactful is indeed possible. During her tenure Belu delivered £5m net profits to Water Aid, helping to transform the lives of over 270,000 people through access to clean water and decent toilets.
Karen's personal mission is to inspire others that there is ‘a better and kinder way to do business', ‘that through business we can solve some of the world's problems at the same time'.
Job Titles:
- CEO and Founder of Occamz
Katharina Sophia Volz is the CEO and founder of OccamzRazor, a startup using machine learning to find treatments for brain ageing related diseases.
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder
- Alumni Network Board Member
- Equal Education
Kim is the co-founder (with Paul Singh) of Equal Education, an ambitious and growing social enterprise targeting inequality in education around the globe. Her experience is rooted in senior leadership teams and Headship of two inner City London Schools.
Kim has been recognised by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan as a prominent educator and rising prospect to tackle some of our most difficult education problems in London.
Following that she was invited to the Mayor's International Programme where she has spoken about her work in three different continents.
She is passionate not just about social mobility but social justice.
Charly has mentored Link Your Purpose Link Your Purpose is an online career development platform and social enterprise that uses innovative technology to improve the way career education is offered in schools in Jamaica. Recruit For Spouses Douar Tech Link Your Purpose SEND Coffee Role Models Social Ark It's All About You Wellbeing CIC Truagh Development Association Tikvah Hope Sanctuary CIC Skate Cabal Charly was an amazing mentor, she listened keenly and offered sound advice based on her skills and expertise. She asked questions that got me thinking deeper about my business. Lanisia Rhoden, CEO, Link Your Purpose
Lee first became aware of needing a job with purpose whilst working as a photo editor at UK national newspaper the Daily Mail. On his half-hour walk to work he passed multi-million pound houses and a man begging for change on the pavement.
After volunteering with a homeless charity and becoming increasingly interested in solutions to inequality, he discovered the concept of social enterprise.
After completing a Careershifters course, he spent several years working as a journalist, writing stories about social enterprises around the world for Pioneers Post and the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Charly has mentored Social Ark We support working-class young people to set up social enterprises guided by their own lived experiences. Recruit For Spouses Douar Tech Link Your Purpose SEND Coffee Role Models Social Ark It's All About You Wellbeing CIC Truagh Development Association Tikvah Hope Sanctuary CIC Skate Cabal My time with Charly was really useful. She shared her experiences and tips relevant to my own work and I'm looking forward to implementing some of the things we talked about. Thank you Charly. Lisa Stepanovic, CEO, Social Ark
Marie co-founded Goldfinger, creating sustainable furniture and educating people in craft and sustainable woodworking, and offering free training to the economically vulnerable.
One of our youngest experts, Joanne has been an entrepreneur since she was 15 and now runs campaigning inclusive shapewear company Nunude.
Job Titles:
- CAO and General Counsel at Starling Bank
Charly has mentored It's All About You Wellbeing CIC Therapy and wellbeing for LGBTQ+ people in SW England. Supporting, resourcing, and celebrating LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans+, queer and questioning) communities in South West England. Recruit For Spouses Douar Tech Link Your Purpose SEND Coffee Role Models Social Ark It's All About You Wellbeing CIC Truagh Development Association Tikvah Hope Sanctuary CIC Skate Cabal Many thanks to Charly for connecting and helping me focus on key areas that will improve our organisation's vision and theory of change. I feel more confident about what I'm doing as a Director and also the steps we can take in order to grow. It was a valuable and meaningful conversation. Max Cohen, Director, It's All About You Wellbeing CIC
A former lawyer, Matt Newman is CAO and General Counsel at Starling Bank, responsible for overseeing all legal affairs at the bank. Matt Newman Starling Bank Having successfully steered several fashion brands into profitable waters, Meg is now advising others how to do the same. Meg Lustman OC&C Consultants With vast experience in communications, Michael is the EMEA CEO of global integrated communications agency Weber Shandwick. Michael Frohlich Weber Shandwick Thinking he could do a better job of managing the 70 apartment block he lived in, Michael took over in 2008. He's now taking care of 11,000 residents. Michael Howard urbanbubble
Serial entrepreneur Oke Eleazu is the CEO of Many Pets, a disruptive customer focused pet insurance products; and founder of Black in Business, helping people of colour, ‘arrive, survive...
Panthea is a business consultant for public good. She is an Expert in strategy and partnerships and is astute in co-designing processes involving multiple stakeholders.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Chief Executive of Social Enterprise UK
Peter Holbrook is Chief Executive of Social Enterprise UK, the key activities of which are centred on promoting the benefits of social enterprise, informing and influencing government policy for the sector and undertaking research to expand the social enterprise evidence base.
Prior to taking on this role Peter was CEO of Sunlight Development Trust which works to tackle long-standing health and social inequalities. Starting out as project manager, Peter developed ‘project sunlight' from its inception to become one of the country's most high profile and award winning ‘community anchors'.
In 2007, Peter was appointed to be one of the UK's Social Enterprise Ambassadors - a scheme supported by the Cabinet Office and coordinated by Social Enterprise UK. In this role he advocated for social enterprise through lobbying politicians, speaking at events and representing the sector in the media.
A marketing guru for the new cyber age, Pranav finds connections between product, communication, and the consumer. Pranav Yadav Neuro Insight Preyal is passionate about all things people, culture, and change-related. She is the founder of Wildfire and is challenging the profit-driven culture and business model of traditional consulting businesses. Preyal Dewani Wildfire With long standing experience in financial technology, Richard is an active investor and mentor and is widely respected for his market expertise. Richard Carter Equiniti Credit Services A true maverick, Richard boasts experience in the music, telecoms and blockchain sectors. He's currently active in the CBD and tech space. Richard Skaife The Conscious Fund
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder of Crowdfunder
With a career that takes in Big Brother and River Cottage, Rob Love, co-founder of Crowdfunder, has a reputation for being a knowledgeable businessman and social entrepreneur. Rob Love Crowdfunder After building a creative agency with globally recognised clients and working with President Obama, Robert set up creative agency for good Matter Unlimited. Robert Holzer Matter Unlimited A skilled musician who set out on a spiritual path and nearly became a philosopher before building a business reinventing musical instruments. Roland Lamb ROLI Having grown up in private equity, Rowan went on to establish Virgin Money and online retailer Naked Wines; he's now CEO of Majestic Wine. Rowan Gormley Majestic Wine, Naked Wines
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Director of Finance and Corporate Services for Social Enterprise UK
Sabira is the Director of Finance and Corporate Services for Social Enterprise UK, responsible for Finance, HR and IT along with facilities.
She brings a vast amount of senior experience across a range of sectors - private, healthcare, charities and not for profits. Sabira is a Fellow Member of CIMA and has an Executive MBA from Cass Business School and is a qualified trainer.
Sabira has held a number of directorships and company secretarial positions, including non-executive and audit committee roles as part of Corporate Governance requirements.
Starting with one physical shop in 1987, Ruth co-founded what was to become Matchesfashion.com, a one-stop shop for designer clothing. Ruth Chapman Matches Big on buildings, Ryan boasts considerable experience in real estate and is now busy transforming the home rental sector in the UK. Ryan Prince UNCLE Having run her own communications company since 2002, Sandy made it an employee owned business in 2017 and is now focused on the next generation of talent. Sandy Lindsay MBE Tangerine PR One of the first to see the potential in tech, Saul was part of the original executive team at Skype and now gets excited about seeding new ventures. Saul Klein Index Ventures
Job Titles:
- Carphone Warehouse
- Chairman, Carphone Warehouse, Talk Talk
- Founder and Chairman of Both Carphone Warehouse Plc
Sir Charles Dunstone is the founder and Chairman of both Carphone Warehouse plc & TalkTalk plc. In 1989, Dunstone started Carphone Warehouse (CPW) with £6,000 of his savings and began selling mobile phones out of his flat in Marylebone.
The company grew rapidly and today has over 2,400 stores across Europe, principally under the Phone House brand. In 2003, he launched TalkTalk, which now has over 5 million customers. He was a non-executive director of The Daily Mail and General Trust Plc from 2001 until 2012 and a non-executive director of Independent Media Distribution Plc (now Independent Media Distribution Limited) from 2002 until 2011.
In June 2012, he received a Knighthood for services to the telecommunications industry and his charitable work. He was recently appointed chairman of the Royal Museums Greenwich, is a high profile ambassador for the Blue Marine Foundation and supports many other organisations through his own grant making charity the Charles Dunstone Charitable Trust.
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Charles has mentored…
One of the first to see the opportunities in the mobile phone market, Charles founded Carphone Warehouse and broadband provider Talk Talk. Sir Charles Dunstone Carphone Warehouse A keen environmentalist and advocate of social enterprise, Sir Tim Smit is most famous for creating Cornwall's Eden Project. Sir Tim Smit The Eden Project With 25 years experience to offer, Stephen Brown has overseen marketing for several recognised FTSE businesses. Stephen Brown Hammerson As a creative director, Steve has won every marketing award going in the advertising sector and went on to make coding accessible for all. Steve Henry Decoded
Tikvah Hope Sanctuary is a not for profit organisation created to bring hope and encourage resilience in the lives of young women aged 16-28 years across the United Kingdom. At Tikvah we work with young women irrespective of race, nationality or religious inclination.
With over 20 years' experience of talent, event and business management, Venita has worked for some of the UK's best-known talent agencies including PBJ & KBJ Management, Avalon and Troika, representing a variety of household names from all sectors.
She has personally negotiated and managed over 3,000 live appearances across the corporate, private, commercial and television sectors in the UK and worldwide, and been headhunted by several of these major talent management agencies to establish, consolidate and grow standalone divisions, each time delivering year-on-year growth.