2024 Speakers

Since childhood, I've had a passion for tech and companies. I love challenges, and I believe that you can learn pretty much anything if you set your mind on it.I self-learned AI in 2017 and now building a startup in knowledge management: my goal is to make your knowledge ready for you when you...

With over 10 years’ telecoms industry experience, Ali has been at the forefront of BT’s small cell technology roll out – having pioneered the ‘Open Access’ approach to securing agreements with local authorities – resulting in BT having the largest portfolio of street assets via 40 bilateral council ...

Principal Telecoms Consultant with expertise in service and network architecture, data migration and systems analysis.With a PhD in computer networks, Red brings a wealth of experience and knowldge in telecoms and IT.

Elizabeth is the CEO of the Digital Poverty Alliance, a national charitable initiative to end digital poverty once and for all by 2030.  The DPA works with government, industry and charities on sustainable solutions through advocacy and research, as well as delivery projects to help individuals in...

Since 2013, Ste has led the Broadband, 5G and Connectivity team and programmes at Worcestershire County Council, he was the senior responsible officer of the Worcestershire 5G project, focussed on Industry 4.0 and Security by Design that built the first 5G network in a UK factory. Ste’s led the...

                                             Giggle is born of a simple belief: That great broadband shouldn’t be a luxury. So Giggle aims to build an exciting and affordable new network across Glasgow because it wants to empower communities with the fastest connections around. Dave is an...

Batuhan Ozcan is the founder and CEO of Syntonym. He is responsible for the development of Syntonym’s technology as well as business operations.  

Roderick Beer, Managing Director, UK Business Angels Association (UKBAA)Roderick’s career spans over 17 years of managing, founding and growing angel groups and investment platforms, collectively deploying over £100m of equity investment in more than 500 startup and scaleup businesses. He started...

Rob Benson is the Project Manager for Digital Inclusion at Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, helping deliver support and co-ordination across this vital agenda for LCR residents across six local authorities – to ensure no one is left behind. 

Keith joined the DSW Corporate Finance team in February 2012 from KPMG’s Preston office. He is a graduate in Mathematics and Economics from the London School of Economics and a qualified Chartered Accountant. Prior to joining KPMG, Keith spent 10 years working as a fintech software engineer based...

Alex Blowers has been Director of Regulatory Affairs at CityFibre since 2018. Alex has had a varied career including spells working within Government, regulators and for telecoms companies, focusing on policy and regulation. He was Director of Ofcom’s first Telecoms Strategic Review in 2004-5 and...

Currently leading on the roll out of full fibre deployments across the West Midlands Combined Authority region and beyond. Supporting ISPs to deliver to as many commercially viable premises as possible through best practice and barrier removal. Bringing together both Industry and Local Authorities...

Dejan’s work is focused on public and private sector collaboration, and shaping of propositions for development of telecommunications and data infrastructure at national, regional and local level. With technical background in engineering and strategic marketing, Dejan has helped a wide range of...

Eamonn Boylan was appointed Chief Executive of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority in January 2017.   Prior to that he was Chief Executive of Stockport MBC from 201o. While at Stockport Eamonn led the Council’s £1billon programme of investment in infrastructure and town centre regeneration. ...

Martin SFP Bryant is the founder of PreSeed Now, a newsletter and database identifying and profiling high-potential B2B and deep tech startups across the UK. He also edits the Geekout social media industry newsletter with Matt Navarra. Martin is a speaker, writer, and educator in the fields of...

Jon is the City Council’s Head of Enterprise Architecture working across the authority and with its partners to deliver on the priorities set out in the ICT and Digital strategy whilst embedding current and future digital, data & technology capabilities.  Jon also works with the Greater...

Richard is an experienced telecoms executive, with nearly 30 years in the industry, including 14 years in various senior roles in BT. He is the CEO of Grain, which he joined in 2020, a full fibre broadband provider in the UK that was at the time focussed on the UK house building market. In addition ...

Co-founder, angel investor, e/acc

I am a Reader/Associate Professor in Media Psychology at the University of Salford. I obtained my ‘Laurea’ degree in Psychology at the Universita’ degli Studi di Padova, where I worked under the supervision of Professor Anne Maass on my Master level project. In 2007, I obtained my PhD in Social...

Elizabeth has worked in the housing sector for a number of years specialising in Landscape & Public Realm regeneration, bringing a very different perspective to the challenge of delivering fibre connectivity for our residents. With a foundation in design and technical detail she has led a...

Welcome to Peira Consulting. We are fully independent UK-based experienced consultants and industry leaders dedicated to providing business and technical consulting solutions for clients in the telecoms and adjacent digital sectors. Our credentials are solid and are cut from decades of experience...

Andrew is a Principal at Analysys Mason, having joined in 2007. Andrew is an expert in the capabilities of next-generation fixed and wireless broadband networks, and the associated commercial, economic and policy implications. Andrew advises operators, regulators, local authorities, and governments ...

Jordan Dargue, is senior executive and seasoned investment expert. Her boundless passion for innovation, coupled with a remarkable track record of achievements, positions her within the realms of growth and investment.Jordan's transformative influence is evident through her leadership in...

David is Carteisan's Management Consulting VP. Helping service providers manage their large customers, driving efficiency, customer experience, and profitability. Responsible for all aspects of Telecoms in EMEA, David is a seasoned consulting professional with more than two decades'...

Founding Brillband: A Response to Personal Frustration The inception of Brillband was born out of Duncan's own frustrations as a consumer. Overwhelmed by the opaque pricing and lack of accessible support in existing services, he envisioned a company that leveraged technology to enhance...

Nick’s early career started indigital electronics where he designed a motherboard for nuclear submarines and then transitioned his knowledge of data transfer to telecoms on dry land and worked with many multi-national companies as they expanded their global presence. Nick was an IT account manager...

Sarah is the Programme Director for Digital Infrastructure at Scottish Futures Trust, a centre of infrastructure expertise. She leads a team of industry and commercial specialist that support the Scottish Government in the development and delivery of their digital infrastructure strategies that...

A technology entrepreneur, having co-founded two technology companies (with very different outcomes!). I’m now helping other local technology companies become successful through investing and consultancy. I have so many routines and hobbies I would sound like a self-help blog if I were to list them ...

William Fish, a seasoned technologist and entrepreneur hailing from Silicon Valley, boasts over 20 years of experience in information and operational technology. With a diverse educational background that includes studies in engineering and computer science at Liverpool and Salford...

Bertrand Foing is the founder and CEO of Secretarium and Klave. He started his career in 2008 at Société Générale, where he worked on trading systems. He delivered both super-scalable, real-time solutions using tens of thousands of machines. Bertrand joined Société Générale’s Crypto and Blockchain...

Chris is the Founder and Managing Director of CJ Founds Associates, a business at the forefront of some of the most progressive and exciting local authority digital infrastructure projects across the UK. He has more than three decades’ experience within the Public and Private Sector, bridging the...

Katie currently runs two successful not-for-profit organisations, Manchester Digital and the North West Cyber Resilience Centre, both of which play a key role in the development of the region's tech and cyber ecosystem. She is also the chair of the UK Tech Cluster Group, which brings together...

Peter Griffiths helps people see and imagine cities differently. In 2022 he joined BABLE’s smart cities team to help more places transition to net zero and increased productivity. As an urban thought leader and city strategist, he most recently explored how the shared micromobility sector can...

Mia joined techUK in September 2023 as the Programme Manager for telecoms and net zero. Sitting across two teams, Mia works to ensure that policy and regulatory conditions promote investment and innovation in the telecoms sector. And, that policy enables technology and digital solutions to deliver ...

Dana Haidan, Chief Sustainability Officer, Virgin Media O2  Dana Haidan joined Virgin Media O2 in November 2022 as the Chief Sustainability Officer, leading the delivery of the ESG strategy, the Better Connections Plan. The plan reflects the company's long-term commitment to use the power of...

William Harris has 25 years’ experience in the telecoms industry helping education, research and local government to deliver significant telecoms infrastructure projects. Previous experience includes delivering mission critical telecommunications to a range of critical national infrastructure...

Conal Henry is Founder and Chair of Fibrus. Before co-founding Fibrus Conal was CEO of enet taking it from start up to its £200m acquisition by the Irish Infrastructure Fund in 2017, as CEO of Enet, Conal also lead what is now known as NBI to become the winning bidder for the €2bn Irish National...

Work in sensor-to-satellite communications for agriculture, energy, utilities, logistics and environmental monitoring. Experience in communications for investor and commercial business with a history of digital marketing and business development. Focussed on increasing productivity, reducing inputs ...

Stu Higgins  Stu is a member of the Manchester Digital Strategy Advisory Board. He is responsible for Cisco's Smart City and Public Sector IoT projects and is one of a hundred Global Cisco Sustainability Ambassadors. He is a passionate advocate for harnessing digital technologies to improve...

Since September 2019 Nick has been CEO of Wythenshawe Community Housing Group, one of the Greater Manchester (GM) Social Housing Digital Inclusion Pilot Partners and he is the lead on Data, Digital and information Governance for the 25 GM Housing Providers. Nick has over 40 years’ experience in...

Marcel has work most of his working live in the telecom industry. Initially following his MSc in Telecommunications Systems Design Marcel joined in BT's Laboratories developing innovative transmission standards and satellite HD standards. Marcel then joined Energis to develop the data products...

Angel is an Associate Professor for Digital Transformation at the University of Salford. His professional career has revolved around management and digital innovation. He has a wealth of experience across University, Higher Education Quality Assurance agencies, the NHS and in the private...

Aileen is Executive Director of Investment and Delivery. She joined the Combined Authority in 2018 as Head of Evidence, Research and Intelligence and became Assistant Director of Policy and Strategic Commissioning in October 2019.Before that, she was Deputy Director of the Heseltine Institute at...

Megan Lawless is Senior Digital Strategy Officer at Manchester City Council. Manchester's Digital Startegy is the city's answer to smart cities and focuses on people, connectivity, prosperity and sustainability.  Megan works across projects spanning digital connectivity, to digital...

Mark Lawson's career trajectory spans from a PhD in engineering to over ten years as a management consultant, culminating in senior product roles where he spearheaded the launch and scaling of new IoT solutions across the global commercial real estate market. At Intellibin, Mark's...

Oliver Loveless (Principal), has been at Analysys Mason for over six years and in that time has built up expertise across transaction support, fibre deployment strategy and business planning. Oliver has managed multiple commercial and technical due diligences of fixed and wireless operators across...

Ileana Lupsa is the Programme Manager for Local Public Services and Nations and Regions, at techUK. Ileana studied electronics, telecommunications and IT as an undergraduate, followed by an MSc in engineering and project management at Coventry University and she is passionate about sustainability...

A former financial services professional, Fraser Lusty is Managing Director at Equity Gap and gatekeeper to business angel syndicate. With over 25 years of experience in the Scottish investment and business growth sector, Fraser brings his strong relationship management and business development...

Responsible for leading Technology Innovation, which facilitates, tracks and coordinates the use of new technology for innovation across Associated British Ports, working with business teams, Technology teams, startups and technology partners. Experienced leader with a demonstrated successful...

Seasoned professional, with 15+ years’ experience in Digital Transformation and Innovation, mainly in the Telecommunications industry. Currently serving as Senior Partner of Tomorrow Street, based in Luxembourg with a global remit. Tomorrow Street is an innovation centre that accelerates...

Angie Madara - Founding Partner and CEO, is a visionary three-time technology entrepreneur, is on a mission to transform the global business landscape. As the founder of Athena FundX, Angie is empowering women in technology through the pioneering 1 Million Women in Tech Entrepreneurship...

Alison is Chief Executive at Wigan Council having work in Local Government for the last 15 years and previously in the Civil Service for twenty years.  Alison is also the place lead for health and care integration.   Alison is the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) lead Chief Executive...

Anne is currently working as Technical Adviser primarily on 5GIR with DSIT.  She was formerly Head of Digital Economy in Glasgow City Council which was focused on ensuring Glasgow is competitively placed digitally to embrace opportunities and confront challenges in the City.  Anne was responsible...

Patrick Melia FRSA Chief Executive, Sunderland City Council   Focused on ensuring that opportunities are created for all in a connected, international, rapidly transforming city, Patrick is driven to deliver high-quality services and world-class infrastructure enabling residents to live...

Andrew's background is in RF and semiconductor design but his experience encompasses product strategy and engineering leadership in telecommunications product and operator companies. Currently Andrew is Telet's Chief Architect and part of the Technical Authority team for Liverpool HDD.

For the last 5 years, Morag has been Fife Council’s Programme Manager for strategic growth projects as part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal as well as the Tay Cities Region Deal. These are both capital and revenue projects. She was part of the team of Tay Cities partners...

A seasoned manufacturing professional turned company founder. Starting as an apprentice electrician and working up into senior engineering and management roles, I garnered the knowledge and insights to be able to start SQCDP. I recognised the limitatations of factory paperwork and its affect on...

Trafford Council has a clear agenda to grow the local economy in an inclusive and sustainable way and key to its success is addressing the digital divide. I am responsible for shaping Trafford's digital inclusion strategy, running high-impact projects and overseeing our innovative IT asset...

Paul Munn is Managing Partner of Par Equity, founded in 2008, our investment model is designed to identify and back the most innovative, high growth technology companies in the North of the UK. We're based in Edinburgh and we're investing across Northern England, Northern Ireland and...

Nihal Newman is an experienced policy and programme director, leading strategic policy and technical programmes. She has a business management background, with extensive experience of working with technical specialists and leading large cross-disciplinary teams.​Nihal is currently the director...

Abigail Noonan is the Digital & Marketing Manager for Lifeshare, the oldest homelessness charity in Manchester. Abby helps to bring together partners that form the charity's digital inclusion arm, The Manchester Digital Collective, as well as overseeing their social media, fundraising...

Tom Nugent is the newsletter editor at Sifted, the FT-backed publication covering European tech. 

Helen is Co Founder of Lifted Ventures. Lifted exists to increase the flow of early stage capital to female founders and promote the significant business benefits of backing women whom research says generate twice as much revenue per pound invested, despite receiving half the capital. Lifted...

Parul is an accomplished entrepreneur, impactful leader and business advisor based in London, UK. With a proven track record of taking products from ideation to successful launch, Parul is adept at leveraging data and consumer insights to deliver effective solutions. Her leadership in driving...

Award-winning Finance professional with 8+ years experience in investment, data analysis, project management, and strategic planning. Having acted in a Consultancy capacity for 100+ different clients, as well as having founded and raised investment for my own FinTech ventures, I have honed my...

Nimmi Patel is the Head of Skills, Talent and Diversity at techUK. She works on all things skills, education, and future of work policy, focusing on upskilling and retraining. Nimmi is also an Advisory Board member of Digital Futures at Work Research Centre (digit). The Centre research aims to...

Brian is a Policy Director in Ofcom's Networks and Communications Group with 35 years experience in, consulting to and now regulating the telecoms industry. He started his career with Hutchison through the early years of Orange before moving to PwC as part of its Global Telecoms Strategy...

Ed Prior is Head of Investor at SFC Capital, recognised as the UK’s most active seed investor and SEIS/EIS Fund Manager. In this role, he also leads one of Europe’s leading Angel Networks and has worked with hundreds of early-stage investors and founders throughout the UK. Outside early-stage...

Clive is a Senior Partner at Cambridge Management Consulting with a focus on the technology, media and telecoms sector (TMT).  He has extensive experience in the industry from his time at BT and AT&T, having held executive positions in strategy, transformation, and product management, and...

Professor Richards is the Associate Dean for the School of Health, Social Care and Sport and Research Lead for the Allied Health Research unit. Professor Richards' research includes the clinical application of biomechanics, the development of new assessment tools for chronic...

Development and Innovation lead for Transformation at North Yorkshire Council. Cath is responsible for the Council's Digital Strategy and over the last few years has lead on: digital infrastructure projects, the digitalisation of Adult Social Care including leading on the Yorkshire and Humber...

Josh leads External Affairs at the ScaleUp Institute, engaging directly with stakeholders to help grow and enhance the UK scaleup ecosystem. For over a decade he has advised both business and government on legislation, including the passage of three Energy Acts, the Localism Act and the best way...

Sean is a respected commercial executive with more than three decades of experience in the UK telecoms and internet service industry, much of which was spent at senior executive levels in both quoted and private companies. In May 2021, he assumed his current role of CEO at Quickline...

Trigan is the first societal operating system that aims to change how communities make decisions and solve problems. Our AI-enabled platform helps people work and live together more effectively, whether they're tackling local issues or global challenges.From empowering citizens to shape their...

Trigan is the first societal operating system that aims to change how communities make decisions and solve problems. Our AI-enabled platform helps people work and live together more effectively, whether they're tackling local issues or global challenges.From empowering citizens to shape their...

Working as the Telecoms Unit Manager for Glasgow City Council, Theresa is responsible for encouraging investment in connectivity across the City.  Theresa works directly with fibre and mobile network operators to understand their requirements and provides support for the infrastructure...

Grace has over a decade of experience working on digital infrastructure policy in the public sector. She joined Ofcom as a graduate, working on a range of policy areas including spectrum management, broadband rollout and consumer policy. Since 2019 she has held roles in the Department for...

Sarah Shepherd heads up the recently established Digital Phone Switchover function which is housed within techUK. The Digital Phone Switchover has been set up by Communications Providers and network operators to identify where common challenges to the IP migration program can be best resolved...

Sivanathan leads the advanced industrial connectivity research at AMRC. Sivanathan comes from a multidisciplinary background of manufacturing, electronics, and computing. He received an MSc in Mechatronics engineering from King’s College London and a PhD from Heriot-Watt University. Sivanathan has...

Kieran is the Head of Digital Transformation at the Greater Manchester Combined Authority. Kieran leads on regional public sector digital transformation,  supporting the delivery of the strategic objectives set out in Greater Manchester’s Digital Blueprint, and in particular supporting GM in...

Stefan Stanislawski is a highly accomplished professional with a distinguished career in telecoms across many countries. As the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Connect Fibre, he has led the company's growth and success over the past four years, establishing its presence in...

Natalie has been working in the telecommunications industry for 10 years and became the General Manager of RPS Telecom in 2021, where she plays a pivotal role in steering the company towards its strategic vision and objectives. She is dedicated to fostering an environment where every member of the ...

Dave is a business owner, Technical Director, Enteprise Architect and Software developer with over 40 years of experience, the last 25 of which has been almost entirely in the communications industry. Specialising in complex, business critical projects, Dave has spent the last five years...

In 1995, I was sat in the pub with my brother Dan, and I asked him “do you think the Internet will take off?”  He said “yes”.  That chat led me to set up Zen Internet, initially selling dial-up Internet access to techie home users who had an interest in this new technology niche. Wind forward...

Alastair has been closely involved in NYnet’s evolution, working in both technical and management roles before becoming CEO. He is committed to developing NYnet’s range of services and delivering innovative technology solutions to businesses, communities and the public sector.  Alastair has...

With an impressive 17-year tenure in the telecommunications sector, Mark Toman stands as a seasoned professional renowned for his expertise in crafting mobile networks ranging from 3G to the latest 5G technologies. Mark's proficiency extends to the intricacies of Edge MEC (Multi-Access Edge...

CTO for alternative broadband provider Airband, focusing on design and delivery of FTTP and FWA networks for rural areas across the UK. Executive with over 25 years of experience in telecoms, IT services and infrastructure. 

Ben Walker has worked for Shropshire Council on the Connecting Shropshire broadband programme since 2013, initially taking the lead on stakeholder engagement before moving over into project management. Ben has a wide range of experience gleaned from UK-based study, working in Africa & Asia on...

Nigel is Deputy Director, Lending & Investor Partnerships at Innovate UK, where he is a senior member of the team delivering Innovate UK’s innovation loans and investor partnerships programmes. He is a director and member of the credit committee of Innovate UK Loans Ltd.  Prior to this role, he ...

I'm a the chief opperating officer of Starting Point Community Learning Partnership, a digital inclusion social enterprise based in Stockport. In addition, I am proud to be a trustee at Good Things Foundation. I am passionate about the power of connections and building unity within...

Hannah Whelan is Advocacy Manager at Good Things Foundation, the UK's leading digital inclusion charity. With a strong background in activism, Hannah leads on the organisation's policy and advocacy activities - including influencing government and industry to help fix the digital...

Ann Williams Liverpool 5G Programme Director.  As a Commissioning and Contract Manager in Adult Social Services at Liverpool City Council she was the lead for Liverpool City Council in the two successful 5G test bed and trials funded by DCMS, she also led the successful EU funded STOP & GO...

Gareth is an experienced TMT consultant based in Fide Partners’ London office and has over 20 years of experience as a research analyst/senior consultant. He has worked on projects from printed circuit boards to satellites and many other technologies, infrastructure, products and use cases. He has...

Lynne Wilson is Senior Digital Programme Manager at CJ Founds Associates. Lynne has a wealth of experience and expertise from her position on the Berkshire Digital Infrastructure Group (DIG), a role where she was instrumental in delivering key initiatives such as the Digital Adoption...

Robyn holds a degree in Business Information Technology. She began her career working in a VC managing a grant fund for early stage businesses in Northern Ireland, later working as an innovation consultant, connecting start-ups with large retail and consumer brands. Robyn now focuses on sourcing...

Oliver Woolley. CEO and Co-founder EnvestorsEnvestors is a FCA regulated digital investment platform connecting entrepreneurs with investors.  Envestors has a network of 400 funds and 3,500 sophisticated investors who have invested £126m into 223 entrepreneurs and was ranked one of the UK’s most...

Tracey has been working in the communications industry for 27 years in traditional areas such as calling cards, PRS and IDA services before joining Magrathea in 2003 where the focus was the development and growth of the first UK wholesale IP Voice service to be introduced in what was a fledgling...