Advisors

Rich Olsen

Over the last 15 years, Richard has successfully bought and sold various businesses, working at the helm to ensure productivity and profitability. He has held several director roles and currently leads a financial services business.

Richard’s comprehensive experience has spanned many sectors including engineering, manufacturing and service-based businesses. He currently holds a number of non-executive positions where he provides commercial advice and strategic direction to a range of businesses, as well as chairing the board in some cases.

Bob Clarke

Bob’s extensive experience lies predominantly in the logistics and industrial sectors where he has held managing director and board positions for over 30 years. He has worked with companies of all shapes and size to successfully improve business performance through growth, cost control, finance and organisational change.

More specifically, Bob has expertise in both growing, and turning around, businesses in the industrial, manufacturing and logistics sectors and recently set up his own consultancy business in 2011.

Nigel Garner

Nigel is an accredited ibd Business Adviser, with vast experience in providing valuable business guidance around e-commerce, international trade, funding and growth.

In his career to date, he has headed e-commerce teams, driven significant sales and productivity improvements through online and offline design and process optimisation for several companies, helping people to embrace digital and maximise opportunity.

Kate Goodman

Kate specialises in offering practical HR management guidance to businesses and enabling them to develop effective people strategies to fuel business growth. With experience at several well-known companies, Kate has managed large workforces and specialises in people development and employee engagement.

With this experience, Kate can empower businesses to improve their own people management and get the most from their workforce.

Sandy Hogg

Sandy has a wealth of experience, having worked as an investor, fundraiser and business development strategist. She has previously occupied senior R&D and business development roles at Synthelabo in Paris and Lundbeck in Copenhagen, and subsequently became the founder and chief executive of Angita Pharmaceuticals.

Her passion is enabling entrepreneurs and business owners to achieve their personal and professional goals.

Sue McCready

Sue has extensive senior management experience in SMEs, social enterprises and non-profits in the UK and globally across five continents and has particular expertise in start-up operations. She was most recently Chief Operating Officer for International Alert – a global organisation working on over 20 countries, including Europe.

She now works as a freelance management consultant and business coach, with skills in leadership, strategy and business planning, organisational development, change management, governance and operations.

Ian Rotsey

Ian is a skilled business advisor as well as a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accounts in England and Wales. He runs his own financial and business consultancy, providing SMEs across many sectors with advice on their finance, auditing and management processes.

Ian’s specialised knowledge in business finance and growth allow him to provide invaluable guidance for businesses looking to reach their goals and identify the right funding to get them there.

Nick Shanagher

Nick is a business advisor specialising in sales and profit growth, people development and change management. Throughout his career, he has helped several SMEs to create effective growth strategies that deliver increased revenue and rewards.

Using his expertise in overcoming business problems and growth obstacles, he can provide useful advice to companies as they embrace their growth ambitions.

Michael Wright

Michael is a business consultant, with experience in growing and transforming businesses of all types and sizes over his career. His expertise lies in strategy formulation, growth planning, operational efficiency and brand positioning.

His vast skills around the various areas of business planning and development enable him to provide valuable advice to companies for their next moves.

John Ogden

As an accredited advisor, John works with businesses of all sizes to help them better define their aims and their route to achieving them thorough, rigorous planning, disciplined processes, problem-solving, taut financial management and supportive leadership.

He has a strong track record in senior leadership, strategic planning and change management, programme and project management, and training and education.

Silu Ali

Silu has vast experience as a business advisor, having worked with start-ups and scale-ups across a wide and diverse ethnic mix of business owners to enable profitable growth. She has also worked in a broad range of sectors, including energy, retail, financial services, technology and supply chain.

Her expertise lies in coaching business owners to achieve their goals, as well as vendor management, strategy, process optimisation and change management.

Chris Walsby

Chris has years of experience working in senior leadership roles and across sales and marketing. He worked in UK and international markets, encompassing the defence, public and private sectors, including with a number of SMEs.

His specialities are market value position, sales campaigns, performance management, business transformation and coaching.