I have eighteen years of demonstrated success as a senior executive and director, delivering technology innovation and commercialisation across a broad range of sectors and applications.

Science and technology was my first passion, feeding my natural desire for difficult problems to solve.  The real buzz, though, is creating impact through those solutions. My career has enabled me to grow appreciation and understanding of how to adapt my analytical skills to strategic thinking and value creation.

After completing my PhD, I soon realised that the world of commercial innovation was more attractive to me. After experiencing the full blast of the dot com bubble, I found myself in the space between new technology, commercial innovation, and economic growth.

It is this ‘Triple-Helix’ space in which I have specialised, and spent over two decades of my professional life. In this time I have built a substantial track record of success, and first hand experience of the business models, stakeholder communities, challenges, and value of this unique space.

I enjoy delivering customer value in a range of roles with each and all of the stakeholders in this space.

Experienced Executive Director / 16 Years

• Startup / establishment / growth phase leadership
• Business model innovation and development
• New-Co build: structure, team, processes, pipeline
• Stakeholder engagement and collaboration
• Service design and delivery in innovation
• Legal, IP, finance, risk, HR, communications

‘Triple-Helix’ Innovation Models / 21 Years

• Proven business and science acumen
• Building effective cooperation between industry, research, and government to deliver value
• Deep experience of each community; drivers, needs, constraints
• Funding strategies, sourcing, business case development

Entrepreneur Leader / 3 Organisations

• Limited Company – progressed from design role to managing director, restructured and re-oriented to adapt to changing markets, built key stakeholder relationships to take organisation through significant periods of challenge and change.
• Unincorporated Entity – Key responsibility for delivering engagement model and pipeline relationships of successful pitch. Developed and implemented corporate processes through startup, and lead business development / marketing functions to successful round two funding.
• Limited Company to Incorporated Society – Translated business case to successful startup and high-performance team. Led strategic change in business model to incorporated society, increasing reach and engagement.

Innovation And Commercialisation / 23 Years

• Corporate R&D: capability establishment, process integration, New Product Introduction (NPI), IP creation
• Critical technology review and diligence
• Investment strategy and review

My professional life has taken me across Canada, into the USA, Scotland, and New Zealand. I’m driven to help other people grow their capabilities for success and I truly enjoy direct company engagement.

Over my 25-year career, I’ve focused on enabling individuals and organisations to achieve their goals. Simply put, I’ve supported people with great ideas to create new economic opportunities, helped companies expand their horizons to engage new international customers, and mentored post-secondary students building whole-life skills for workplace success.

In return I’ve developed deep competencies to work strategically with companies at all life-cycle stages, including accelerated company growth, investor and market readiness, stakeholder relationships, and international business development.

Here are my professional metrics demonstrating aligned capability with The Acceleration Foundry’s purpose of supporting ambitious, high-growth companies through critical stages of development. These are the areas I’m passionate about delivering impact in business:

Experienced Entrepreneur / 4 Companies

• Services: international market research, music industry, export training / consulting, business accelerator
• Personal accelerator engagement to build own business

High-Growth Company Support / 13 Years

• Startup / growth / scale business advisory
• Investor readiness
• Prepare company to export and develop export processes
• Route to market
• International market engagement
• Business model innovation
• Workshops and training
• Network development and connecting

Early-Stage Company Investor Market / 6 Years

• Investor readiness
• Business advisory
• Investment conference management
• Country-level risk capital market analyses
• Angel fund startup
• Stakeholder relations

Academic Entrepreneurship / 11 Years

• International science and technology partnerships
• Royal Society of Edinburgh Enterprise Fellowship Programme
• Scottish Government academic entrepreneurship research
• Workplace readiness at University of Waikato, Waikato Management School

International Trade / 15 Years

• Export sectors: life sciences and technology, food and beverage, creative industries, manufacturing
• Foreign direct investment
• Export skill development