ENTREPRENEURIAL SCOTLAND - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Founder and CEO of a. Brown
- Founder and President Alan Brown Company Limited
Alan Brown is the Founder and CEO of A. Brown + Company Ltd. that provides independent strategic advice to leaders amongst corporate, institutional and government clients globally.
He spent the majority of his career in investment banking, latterly at Deutsche Bank and has led the Natural Resources Group since its formation in 2007, with responsibility for Deutsche Bank's corporate finance activities across a number of global sectors.
A GlobalScot, Alan relocated from London to Toronto in 2016, is a Director of Entrepreneurial Scotland Foundation and Chair of ES in Canad a
Job Titles:
- Member of the ES Team
- Programme Executive
Alison is a Programme Executive with Entrepreneurial Scotland, providing support for the Saltire Scholar Internship Programme.
With a background in Recruitment, Graduate Selection, and connecting and supporting Ayrshire's entrepreneurial start-ups, Alison has a passion for seeing people progress in their careers.
Job Titles:
- Senior Programme Executive
Anna Rafferty is a Senior Programme Executive at Entrepreneurial Scotland, focusing on sourcing world-class internships for Scottish university talent.
With over 10 years' experience in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, she has held positions across the public and third sectors, including the Scottish Government.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive, Inspiring Scotland
Celia is passionate about building a better Scotland. She has been with Inspiring Scotland since its launch in 2008, as Head of Funds before taking on the role of Chief Executive in 2013, and has been instrumental in shaping its values and vision.
Celia brings 20 years of management experience from the private sector and is passionate about the potential of people and communities to create lasting positive change. She is a champion of collaborative working to tackle deep-rooted social problems.
Celia leads from the front with commitment and dedication, both with Inspiring Scotland and as a member of several community and advisory groups. She sits on the Scottish Violence Reduction Governance Board and is an Advisor to Common Purpose Scotland.
Celia is also an enthusiastic advocate of the power of sport to break down barriers and inspire people. She is a British Cycling coach in track, road and time-trial and founded the Clydesdale Colts youth section of the Royal Albert Cycling Club, of which she is a Trustee and Secretary. She is a Trustee of the Winning Scotland Foundation which uses education and sport to encourage young Scots to be their best.
Charlie Livsey joined Entrepreneurial Scotland as Head of Commercial in October 2023.
He will primarily be focused on developing and managing a wide range of commercial activities across the charity whilst engaging with businesses globally who wish to be part of the Entrepreneurial Scotland network and attract the best young talent to their organisation.
Charlie brings over twenty-five years of senior commercial experience leading highly successful teams focused on customer acquisition and retention.
He is passionate about organic growth within Scotland and has spent the past decade within the senior management team of the s1 group of companies with key operational and commercial responsibilities of their flagship brand s1jobs.
Cheryl joined the Entrepreneurial Scotland team in November 2023 as a Programme Executive, supporting our Saltire Scholar Internship Programme.
While her career to date has been predominantly focussed on Marketing, Communications and Public Relations, Cheryl feels passionate about supporting, facilitating and encouraging students and young people to fully maximise the fantastic opportunities available to them through our programme and can share her own experience of living, studying and working abroad.
Job Titles:
- Member of the CFA UK Society
- Partner at Turcan Connell
Chris Sheldon is a partner at Turcan Connell where he specialises in tax and succession advice for entrepreneurs, as well as charity law.
He has served on numerous boards including the Court of Aberdeen University, Families Outside and Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce.
Chris, a member of the CFA UK Society and Chartered Management Institute, read psychology and law at university.
After founding, creating and running one of the UKs most successful Property Investment and Management Companies, Colette knows about the challenges of Leadership, team building, team wellbeing and retention. After selling her business in 2018 she decided to dedicate her life to her passion for Performance and Leadership Coaching. The skills required to make this a reality have been honed over decades of Professional Training and Learning. Also being on the front line as a founding Trustee of Entrepreneurial Scotland and the Leader of a business for over 20 years through recession and economic turmoil.
Her time is now spent Coaching Business Leaders, entrepreneurs and organisations both in UK and around the world. She has dedicated her professional life to highlighting and applying the transformative potential of a new understanding of the mind to her clients' current challenges and limitations. Helping leaders move forward has enabled them to create real, sustainable change by connecting more powerfully to their creativity to unleash their best ideas, improve their performance and reach their full potential, therefore creating a healthier, clearer state of mind for themselves and their teams.
Colin was Chief Executive of Alexander Dennis Limited, Britain's largest bus and coach manufacturer for 13 years, before being appointed to NFI's Board as Vice Chair in September 2020. He is also Founder of Robertson Campbell Investments.
In his role at Alexander Dennis, Colin led their transformation from a predominantly UK-focused business to an international player in the bus and coach sector, employing 2,600 team members, with annual revenue in excess of £600mn.
Colin has over 38 years of international manufacturing experience gained from global companies, including Cummins, Case and Terex Corporation, where he held a range of positions, including Executive Vice President Global Operations and President of the US$2bn Construction Division.
Colin was appointed Chair of Entrepreneurial Scotland in 2018. In May 2019, he received a CBE for his services to exports, and to the bus and coach manufacturing sector.
Job Titles:
- CEO
- Chairman
- Non - Executive Director
- Chairman of Capital Theatres
Dame Joan Stringer is a CEO, Chair and Non-Executive Director.
She has held senior appointments in education for 25-years, most recently as Principal & Vice-Chancellor of Edinburgh Napier University and previously with Queen Margaret University College, Edinburgh and Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen.
Dame Joan holds numerous board appointments, including trusteeship of The Entrepreneurial Scotland Foundation and Chair of Capital Theatres.
Job Titles:
- PRESIDENT
- CEO of GenesisCare
David Young is CEO of GenesisCare, a global oncology services provider in Australia, USA, UK and Spain with over 1,000 oncology providers. Prior to this role David was President & CEO of Physicians Endoscopy, Inc. a Gastrointestinal investment and management services solutions provider for independent GI providers with over 600 gastroenterologists. In previous roles, David was Chief Operating Officer of Privia Health, Inc., Chief Financial Officer and Interim President of Smile Brands, Inc., Senior Vice President of Operations for McKesson Specialty Health, and Chief Financial Officer of US Oncology, Inc.
David is originally from Scotland, holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting (Hons) and received his MBA from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst, Certified Public Accountant, Chartered Accountant and Corporate Treasurer.
Derek Blackwood OBE is a retired MD of Wood Group, previously working as MD of APG/Salamis JV Ltd.
He sits on numerous boards, is founder and Hall of Fame member of the Globalscot network and former president of the BABC in Houston.
Derek is actively involved in the Saltire Scholars programme and the Scottish Space School at NASA.
Forbes Alexander is a retired CFO and EVP, following a 27-year career at Jabil Circuit Inc.
He joined as Controller of Scottish Manufacturing Operations, previously holding financial positions within numerous high-profile companies, such as Hewlett Packard.
He is a Founding Partner of Steadfast Partners, a Fellow of CIMA and served on the Board of Directors for CB&I and McDermott International.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Director
- Non - Executive Chairman
- Chartered Accountant, Corporate
Graeme Bissett is a Chartered Accountant, corporate financier and experienced non-executive Chairman / Director.
His career includes Partner at Arthur Andersen and Finance Director at international groups, and a subsequent portfolio of boardroom appointments in entrepreneurial businesses, across diverse sectors and in both the privately owned and listed markets.
Graeme has also held many pro bono appointments, including Chair at Children 1st, Vice-Convenor of Court at the University of Glasgow and trusteeship at Citizens Advice Scotland.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Non - Executive Director
Jason qualified as a chartered accountant in Scotland prior to an international investment career, spending over two decades with global investment firm Bridgepoint. He now sits on the board of Scottish National Investment Bank as well a range of Chair/ NED roles with several consumer-tech and data related scale-ups. At the mission-led development bank he helped support the executive team through the launch phase of the bank and sits on their investment, valuation & audit committees. Jason's key expertise lies in Business Strategy, Scale-up, fundraising, international growth and business transformation
Job Titles:
- CEO, Crosswind Developments Ltd
- Principal and CCO of Edinburgh Airport Limited
John Watson joined GIP as Operating Principal and CCO of Edinburgh Airport Limited and is CEO of Crosswind Developments Ltd.
He was previously Managing Director of Lloyds Banking Group's $50bn SME lending portfolio and a founding Board Director of the Business Growth Fund plc.
John qualified as a Chartered Accountant and has subsequently held numerous executive and non-executive positions globally.
Job Titles:
- Member of the ES Team
- Senior Programme Executive
Katrina joined Entrepreneurial Scotland as a Programme Executive in 2021, providing support to facilitate the provision of world class internships to Scottish university talent.
She has extensive commercial experience in business development, focusing on income generation through strong partnership relations, gained in a large multinational telecommunications company in Dublin and more recently in the purpose-built student accommodation sector in Scotland.
Job Titles:
- Head
- Head of Saltire Scholar Programme
Kelly Glass is the Head of the Saltire Scholar Programme.
With extensive experience working with young people, she has worked in Youth Organisations across Renfrewshire and Glasgow, as well as national youth charities.
Kelly has driven change within specific youth communities, in sports clubs and with young offenders in prison, offering learning and development programmes to emerging young and future leaders
Job Titles:
- Executive
- Programme Executive
Lindsey Izzard is Programme Executive for our Entrepreneurial Leaders Division.
She has a background in project management and business management for Healthcare and Information Technology sectors
Job Titles:
- Member of the ES Team
- Programme Manager
Lisa Ferguson is part of the Entrepreneurial Leaders Division, holding the role of Community Manager.
With a background in project and event management both domestic and internationally, she focuses on the management of all the Entrepreneurial Leadership Development Programmes.
Lisa has a BSc in Business from the University of Strathclyde.
Lisa is an experienced entrepreneur, business coach and HR specialist, with a passion for diversity, inclusion and helping others to achieve their goals and potential. In 2014 she founded Purpose HR, a niche HR consultancy focused on early stage and innovation driven clients in the technology and life sciences sectors, which she grew, scaled and sold to the AAB Group in 2021. Having operated as a Partner and member of the AAB leadership team until 2023, Lisa exited the business and is now an independent consultant and non-executive Director. She is a qualified executive coach and NLP specialist, a former Saltire fellow and a proud Ambassador for Women's Enterprise Scotland. Lisa is a Mum of 3, lives in North Berwick East Lothian and enjoys wild swimming, reading, cooking and walks with Lola her cocker spaniel.
Job Titles:
- Financial Controller
- Member of the ES Team
Louise is Entrepreneurial Scotland's Financial Controller.
After qualifying as a Chartered Accountant in 2002 she gained a breadth of experience in various senior finance roles, most notably in the aviation industry and recruitment sector.
Mark Bamforth is a serial entrepreneur, having founded, built and sold three companies. He is currently mentoring and investing in Scottish and US-based entrepreneurs.
Bamforth founded Arranta Bio to build the best-in-class advanced therapeutics contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) in May 2019 with a focus on microbiome, plasmid and mRNA vaccines. Arranta was sold to Recipharm in April 2022.
Previously, Bamforth founded Brammer Bio, a best-in-class viral vector CDMO for cell and gene therapies. Brammer's team grew from 110 in 2016 to over 600 in Florida and Massachusetts, at the time of its acquisition by Thermo Fisher Scientific in April 2019.
In 2010, Bamforth founded a biologics CDMO, Gallus BioPharmaceuticals, and acquired a world-class facility and team in St. Louis, MO, with a commercial supply agreement with Janssen. Gallus tripled through organic growth and merging with Laureate Biopharma. Gallus was sold to DPx Holdings B.V. in 2014.
Bamforth previously spent 22 years in the UK and USA at Genzyme Corp., latterly running the 12-site global manufacturing operation and a pharmaceutical CMO business and serving as a corporate officer for 9 years. He began his career as a petroleum engineer exploring for North Sea oil with Britoil, then as a chemical engineer in the whisky industry with Whitbread
Bamforth serves on the boards of Continuus Pharma, Pneumagen, Enterobiotix, Inceptor Bio, and Entrepreneurial Scotland. He has a BS in Chemical Engineering from Strathclyde University and an MBA from Henley Management College.
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder and CEO of Celtic Renewables
Mark Simmers is co-founder and CEO of Celtic Renewables, having raised over £50m of funding to establish its first manufacturing plant and grow the company from its inception.
His career began with International Management Group, commercialising and managing its global golf assets, before he founded and managed his own events and promotions company in Scotland.
Mark has over 30 years' experience as an entrepreneur and commercialisation specialist.
Job Titles:
- & SENIOR PORTFOLIO MANAGER, PNC WEALTH MANAGEMENT
- Head of Business Development for PNC Wealth Management
Mike Smith is currently Head of Business Development for PNC Wealth Management and Hawthorn, The Family Office division of PNC Bank, for the Mid Atlantic Region. Prior to joining PNC in 2019, Mike held similar roles with Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Private Bank following his return to the United States in 2013.
Mike spent the majority of his career based in Edinburgh and London UK working for major European Private Banking operations, Société Générale Private Bank and Dresdner Kleinwort Benson. He founded both the Kleinwort and SG Hambros Office in the Scottish Capital where they previously had no presence, and developed the business North of the Border and in Northern Ireland, recruiting teams and establishing relationships with the Scottish Business Community and Professional Intermediary Sector.
Natasha joined the Entrepreneurial Scotland team as a programme assistant in March 2022 supporting the Saltire Scholar team.
Natasha graduated University with an Honours degree in Human Resource Management in 2020.
Rebecca joined the team as a Programme Executive in February 2023. She will support the provision of world class internships through the Saltire Scholar internship programme .
Rebecca has experience in customer service in a variety of sectors with a focus on mentoring, coaching and training. She believes in encouraging everyone to grow and develop while remaining true to themselves.
Job Titles:
- Principal and Vice Chancellor, Heriot - Watt University
Richard Williams is an academic and entrepreneur working in chemical and mineral engineering. He is Principal and Vice Chancellor at Heriot-Watt University based in Scotland, UAE and Malaysia. He is a Fellow of Royal Academy of Engineering, Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences.
He has experience in mentoring innovators, and funding for radical innovations that challenge existing business models. He is a director of British Geological Survey, the UAE-UK Business Council (Education and Culture) and on the Advisory Board of the Lloyds Register Foundation.
Job Titles:
- Head of Business Development
- Head of Business Development ( USA )
Rory Hedderly serves as the Head of Business Development (USA). Rory joins the Entrepreneurial Scotland team after 15 years of public service on behalf of the Scottish Government. Most recently, Rory held the position of Deputy Head of the Scottish Government USA (2018-2023). In that time, Rory worked to grow Scotland's reputation in the US by showcasing Scotland as the best place to Live, Work, Study, Visit and do Business. A vital part of that success was his ability to build networks across business, political and wider interest groups will the sole purpose raising awareness of what modern Scotland has to offer the world.
Prior to his move to the USA, Rory spent over 10 years working in Private Office as Deputy Private Secretary to the First Minister of Scotland as well as several other Cabinet members.
Rory also volunteers in support of the Washington Tattoo, a charitable organization modelled on the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, that focuses on cultural exchange, support for veterans and education of the arts. Rory resides in the Washington, DC area with his wife and goldendoodle where he enjoys golf and travelling.
Job Titles:
- Programme Executive ( MATERNITY LEAVE )
Rosalie Turbett is Entrepreneurial Scotland's Programme Executive, providing support for the Saltire Scholar Internship Programme.
Sean joined the Entrepreneurial Scotland team in March 2022 as a Marketing Executive.
He is responsible for all things marketing and shares the engaging story of Entrepreneurial Scotland, our programmes and our vibrant community which help to shape Scotland as one of the most entrepreneurial societies in the world.
Sean has a BA in International Business from Glasgow Caledonian University, and experience in both private and third-sector roles.
Sean McGrath was appointed Chief Executive on 1 July 2021.
He is on the Advisory Boards of Scottish EDGE Fund and Glasgow City Innovation District and is a member of the Advisory Council for Economic Transformation, chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Economy.
Sean is a Chartered Accountant and joined the Foundation in May 2019 as Finance Director. Prior to this he worked with leading brands including Red Bull, NorthgateArinso and Monster.com and held a number of financial management roles within organisations such as Deloitte and London & Scottish Investments.
A passionate advocate of entrepreneurial thinking, Sean firmly believes that Scotland's future will be shaped by those who think, act and lead in an entrepreneurial way.
Vicki Wells is Business Support Manager at Entrepreneurial Scotland. She provides operational support to the Chief Executive and our non- executive teams. She also operates in an office manager and HR support role for the ESF team.
With a career in HR, she left London to spend 10 years living abroad in the Middle East, the Bahamas and South Africa. She has also undertaken a variety of volunteer roles, supporting vulnerable children and young people.
Vicki has a BA in Interpreting and Translating and is a Graduate of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.