Work experience
Natural Motion, Executive Producer (Central)
July 2017 - Present, London, GB
Reporting to the CEO, this role encompasses business strategy, operational management, people development and process improvement.
CodeClan, DEO
September 2015 - July 2017, Edinburgh, GB
CodeClan is Scotland's first Digital Skills Academy, set up with the support of Scottish Government to create the next generation of software developers. I joined this start up organisation as CEO to establish the business, build the team and to define then deliver our course offerings. Over a two year period, we trained over 200 career changers, finding new roles for 90% of those completing our intensive, 16-week course.
Scrum Alliance, Chairman of the Board of Directors
January 2014 - December 2015, Denver, Surrey
Having served on the board since 2008, I am currently Chairman and actively supporting the organisation achieve it's ambitious goals in support of encouraging and supporting widespread adoption and effective practice of Scrum.
HWC, Director
January 2014 - September 2015, Guildford, Surrey
Providing consulting, training and business coaching, primarily within the video games sector focusing on project management, Agile/Scrum and Leadership.
Supermassive Games Ltd, Studio General Manager
September 2008 - December 2013, Guildford, United Kingdom
Studio Manager and company Director for Supermassive Games, an independent games development studio in Guildford working primarily on Sony PlayStation exclusive titles. The studio is founded on Agile values and uses Scrum as the primary development framework. My role in the studio in relation to Scrum is varied and rages from Scrum Master to coach to trainer depending on the needs of each team and the company as a whole.
Electronic Arts, Development Management
March 2003 - August 2008, Guildford, United Kingdom
Working as a Development Manager, Senior Development Manager and latterly, COO of one of the games studios, I managed development of a wide variety of teams on some well known franchises including Harry Potter, Burnout (Paradise) and Orange Box (PS3). I worked at EA during a time when the organisation was transitioning to more Agile ways of working and adopting Scrum as the preferred framework for development. It was during this time that I gained my CSM and increasingly led the implementation and practise of Scrum in the UK studio.
JP Morgan (Scotland) Ltd, COO
February 2000 - February 2003, Glasgoe
I joined JP Morgan as a project manager, working on a range of core banking systems. At the time, the Glasgow office (European Technology Centre) was being set up to provide a low cost development service and as an integral part of the organisations outsourcing strategy. As part of the senior team, I worked closely with the CEO to persuade business units in London and New York to place work with us and to ensure the successful transition of this work to new teams. By the time I left we had grown from 20 to 200 people. The environment was at the waterfall end of the development scale with a large emphasis on CMM and Six Sigma.
Cap Gemini, Consultant/Senior Consultant
March 1997 - February 2000, Edinburgh
I worked as a Consultant and then Senior Consultant, primarily with banks in the Edinburgh area (Bank of Scotland, National Australia Group) to specify, develop, test, implement and maintain core systems for both UK and international business. Typically I was working on-site with clients and following a more waterfall development process, often managing teams made up of staff from the client, Cap Gemini and other suppliers. I was also involved in business development in the local office.
The Logic Factory,
March 1994 - March 1997, Edinburgh
I founded this company and spent 3 years providing consulting and PC-based development to large corporate clients as well as smaller, local businesses.
Astra Zeneca/ICI Pharmaceuticals, Developer/Project Manager
September 1994 - January 1997, Macclesfield, United Kingdom
I joined ICI as a graduate working initially as a database designer before moving on to systems development of proprietary systems using bespoke 4GL (for example laboratory systems). I increasingly took on project management responsibilities as well as design and programming in a highly regulated and formal (waterfall) development environment.