Principal, Wayfinder Innovations, Dublin​, 2019 - present

​

• Wayfinder Innovations is a product innovation company serving clients in the UK, Ireland and the USA 

• The main focus is on helping clients leverage technology to develop products that enhance learning and deliver behavioural change

• At Wayfinder, I help clients devise effective solutions by starting with the problems the innovation needs to solve and the outcomes the client wishes to achieve.  In this way, I help clients develop products that hone in on the intersecting needs of their company and their customer.   

• The process is always iterative and, using methodologies drawn from Design Thinking and Lean Startup, I help clients figure out the right thing to do and the right way to do it

​

Centre Director, Learnovate Centre, Trinity College Dublin, ​2017 - 2019

 

• ​I returned to Ireland in 2017 to run a research centre  focused on Learning innovation at Trinity College Dublin

• The Learnovate Centre focuses on supporting commercial product innovation in Irish EdTech companies

• I focused on making the centre sustainable by developing a range of commercial offers

• I transformed the centre's commercial fortunes, more than quadrupling revenue

 

 

Consultant, Mentor, Investor, EdTech Futures, London​, 2015 - 2017

​

• I created EdTech Futures as a consulting vehicle to support companies and investors in the UK and Europe

• From 2015-2017, I worked Emerge Education, Europe's leading Edtech accelerator, to enhance their mentoring programme and corporate engagement

​

Digital Strategy & Innovation Director, Pearson UK, London​, 2010 - 2014

​

• I created a dedicated strategy and innovation group for the newly enlarged (£500m) business following the integration of Pearson Schools with the Edexcel exam board

• I devised the strategy to consolidate multiple platforms into a set of API services, presenting the business case and gaining approval for a multimillion pound investment

• I led the innovation initiatives designed to address the company's challenges in a rapidly changing environment: from new business models (e.g. Free) to new development models (e.g. Lean Startup) and a variety of initiatives to obviate the risks of digital disruption

​

Chief Technology Officer, Pearson UK, London​, 2008 - 2010

​

• Following Pearson's acquisition of Harcourt, I devised and led the Central Digital Group, which brought together all the digital technologists in Longman and Heinemann into a single group under my management.  

• The Central Digital Group was 75+ strong and delivered over 300 digital products per year

• I built out the Technical Operations and Infrastructure functions to support a move from a point product business to an online services business

• I created a discrete Platforms team to abstract platform functionality from product features, so we could effectively do more, better for less

​

Digital Director, Pearson Longman, London​, 2006 - 2008

​

• I was brought in to catalyse and lead a transformation from a traditional print publisher to an ambitious digital publisher

• I personally created the ActiveTeach product range that went on to become the template for digital publishing throughout the educational publishing industry

• I led the adoption of a range of digital production systems and project management practices

• The Central Digital Group was 75+ strong and delivered over 300 digital products per year

• I championed the development of innovative products that went on to win BETT awards

​

​

Managing Director, Pearson KnowledgeBox, London​, 2003 - 2006

​

• I was recruited by Pearson (the world's largest education company)  to run the KnowledgeBox business - a large and ambitious investment by Pearson to create a market-leading digital business in the UK schools market

• I managed over 100+ staff and grew the business from zero to £3 million within two years

• I learned a lot about running a digital business in a large, traditional corporate environment!

​

Career Break, 2001-2003 - ​

• Following the sale of re-Animate I took a break with my family in the United States, stood back and learned new things 

Founder & Managing Director, re-Animate, London​, 1998 - 2001

​

• I had a vision for a new type of educational software company and that vision found expression in the creation of re-Animate. 

• Based on a content-licensing business model, re-Animate grew rapidly to become one of the UK's most prolific and acclaimed developers of digital learning content with a relatively large portfolio of learning objects and learning products

• I successfully sold re-Animate to Sherston Software, at the time the UK's largest publisher of primary curriculum software

​

General Manager & Director,  New Media Ltd, London​, 1995 - 1998

​

• I think it's fair to say  I transformed the company from an digital studio into the market-leading publisher of secondary science CD-ROMs and Web products

• I devised the company's publishing strategy, oversaw the production of new product ranges and managed a 12-strong London office