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Strategy

Ian, Bob, Emmanuel, and Iain

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Ian has a degree in International Marketing and an MBA and shares his time between homes in Austria and the UK. Born in England, Ian has lived and worked in England, Australia, France, U.S.A. and Italy.

 

He spent 16 years with BASF initially in Marketing, before taking on the role of a turnaround or restructuring specialist, working in several of their businesses across a number of countries. In his penultimate role at BASF (Divisional VP EMEA) he delivered 3 years of record profits and record sales in a division with revenues of €167m in the middle of a recession. His last role at BASF saw him turn a loss-making business into a profitable one in just one year.

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Subsequently Ian has continued his passion for the world of startups and turnarounds, and has recently spent 3 years successfully restructuring an ailing financial services business in the UK. Currently working as an Expert in Residence at Imperial College, Ian continues to mentor and coach early-stage businesses with a focus on ESG and related sectors, working directly with a number of them as an NED, Advisor or Consultant.

Bob has extensive experience in IT and is particularly skilled in AI and ML.

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Originally a developer, then later a project leader and Sales Director, Bob led development of two of the very first AI systems to be deployed commercially.

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The first, for General Electric, used AI reasoning to diagnose failures in electric power generators. The second, Nuance Communications, gave stock quotes over the phone to customers of Charles Schwab using Natural Language (NLP). Nuance was eventually sold to Microsoft for $26b.

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Emmanuel's commitment to innovation is evident in his remarkable achievements in developing new technologies.  

 

Emmanuel is a passionate entrepreneur with ventures such as Orb Connect, a telecoms research venture that aims to bridge the digital divide with last-mile broadband technology.

 

He also founded Moonlight Energy, an energy design lab that focuses on providing power and heating solutions for developing economies, and Sitigrid, which is a cleantech platform that supports local energy markets in transitioning to net zero.

 

Additionally, Emmanuel is dedicated to mentoring young entrepreneurs who are on a journey of exploring new technologies.

Iain has an extensive and diverse background in business development, marketing, sales, communications, operations, and systems and processes. 

 

His experience spans numerous geographies and involves working with a wide range of businesses, from startups and SMEs through to more mature organisations.

 

His portfolio includes roles where he is a resource for businesses looking to grow and innovate, as well as for academic institutions seeking to bridge the gap between academia and the business world.

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