The Sounding Board

Greg joined Birketts in September 2006 upon qualification. He is a Partner in their Corporate Finance and Banking and Finance Teams.

Greg specialises in corporate finance, acquisition and secured finance as well as corporate business recovery work. He has been involved in numerous acquisitions, mergers, MBO's and disposal acting for vendors, buyers and financial institutions.

Greg has also worked on a wide variety of other corporate transactions, including joint ventures and non-contentious corporate insolvency matters, including administrations and pre-pack acquisitions

Steve is a local businessman born in Suffolk, a county close to his heart. His career has taken many twists and turns to when he finds himself today. Starting his working life at the major UK Insurance company, Willis Faber and Dumas (now Willis Towers Watson), for the last 20 years he has developed his own business ventures. Steve was a founder of ‘Ansaback’, a leading UK call centre, and is currently Managing Director of the Hudson Group.

Working to help support aspiration and opportunity for all, Steve is a ‘Fellow’ of Suffolk New College, an active member of the Ipswich East Rotary Club and an Eastern Enterprise Hub ‘Superstar’ helping people fulfil their dreams of owning their own business. Until September 2017 he was Chair of the Dame Vera Lynn Children’s Charity.

Denise has over 25 years’ experience within creative industries. Known as a hybrid and a fixer she works at Board level, with an ability to think strategically without losing sight of the details that matter. Having trained as a coach and empathetic leadership assessor, she relishes the opportunity to nurture and develop all members of a business from leadership to those starting out.

Her experience spans film and video, experiential, marketing, operations, HR, talent and client success. Recently she has been involved with a technology start-up alongside delivering leadership training programmes.

Charles is a UK-based technology entrepreneur, executive, author and investor with over 20 years experience of digital currencies and online gaming.

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In 1998 he founded beenz.com, the web's currency, raising close to $100m from investors ranging from Larry Ellison to Hikari Tsushin and Apax Patricoff. Beenz opened offices in a dozen countries before being privately sold to Carlson Inc. in 2001

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In 2004 Charles created Probability plc, pioneering real money gaming on internet connected mobile phones. The company listed on the AM market before being acquired by IGT where Charles worked as a senior executive until his return to London in 2020.

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He is a non-executive director of Low 6 Limited (Ultimate Fan) and has a Bachelors degree from Oxford University in Politics, Philosophy and Economics; is married with two adult daughters and lives in London. 

Nick led an MBO team in a £26m deal in 1996. Through a series of acquisitions he built a business that was eventually sold for £180m (9 times EBITDA) in 2007, delivering a 400% return to shareholders. He then established a new business, funded by taking control of an AIM cash shell and built this by a series of acquisitions before selling in 2012 for £80m. Along the way he has used pretty much every funding option available, from fairly straightforward bank borrowing, through Venture Capital to floating on public markets

Andrew has a long history of identifying, developing and managing innovative solutions within corporate environments and notably created an implemented a comprehensive and international innovation management system while working for Reuters, the European media group. Subsequently working with Reuters Venture Capital, his career at the company culminated with a role as CEO of an Asian-based Internet trading corporate spin-out in Singapore which he took through initial VC funding and on to a trade sale. He has created and runs a number of smaller companies since 2004.

Vanessa qualified as a Chartered Accountant and joined Ernst & Young where she became a senior manager in corporate finance at 29. She has worked at Board level under the entrepreneurial leadership of brand specialist, John Murphy at St Peter Brewery PLC to create a UK beer brand from scratch and Coates & Co (Plymouth) Limited, to resuscitate the brand of Plymouth Gin with John and Charles Rolls (who went on to establish the Fever Tree brand of drinks mixers). In 1999, she joined Targetfollow Group as Finance Controller and became Joint Managing Director responsible for Finance & HR .Developed and recruited team members to match the growth in the business (from a portfolio size of £150m to £900m). Total senior debt funds raised in the period, circa £1bn and Acquisition of property portfolios and individual properties through corporate and asset deals, circa £250m.

She started FD Strategies in 2011, where, with  her team, she provides part time financial director resource to companies without a finance director

Saul is the Managing Partner of his own consultancy practice eponymously named as Saul D Humphrey LLP. He is  Chair of New Anglia LEP's Building Growth and also a Non Executive Director of Great Yarmouth Borough Council's housing development/property companies.

Saul has a Doctorate in Construction Procurement and Economics (PhD awarded from Loughborough University) and Masters Degree in Construction Management (MSc awarded with distinction from Heriot-Watt University).

He is a corporate fellow and professional assessor for the Chartered Institute of Building (FCIOB), a Chartered Construction Manager and he represents the CIOB with the Construction Industry Council (CIC). Saul is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (FRICS). He is a Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv), a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (MCIArb), a Qualified Adjudicator and an honorary Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers (FICE).

Peter co-founded Foolproof, one of the UK's leading Experience Design businesses, helping some of the World's best known brands create highly engaging end-to-end experiences.

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He is a Non-Executive Director, and advisor to a number of companies, some large, some start-up. The common theme is a passionate belief in the power of people and the desire to create healthy and thriving cultures for their teams and their customers

Chris divides his time supporting Diss and Thetford Citizens Advice as CEO and as a growth, brand and innovation consultant with Sargisson Associates. This follows a recent and extremely successful 5 years as CEO of Norfolk Chamber of Commerce.

Chris is a disruptor with over 25 years’ experience within digital start-ups and consulting.
Chris worked in the 1990s shaping Norwich Union Direct before leaving to set up and launch its4me plc, one of the UK’s most successful online car insurance brokers and major Norwich employer. Chris also created House Revolution – one of the UK’s first online estate agencies, alongside running his own business consultancy practice which has helped organisations of all sizes across the UK. He also sits and chairs a variety of boards from business to education, the arts to innovation.

C.E.O of Cameron Ventures Group, Brian is a hotelier with a wealth of experience in all areas of hotel operations and management, having worked in both the corporate and private sectors. He has identified a niche in maximising shareholder returns through structured capital investment programmes.

Brian sold his first business to a national operator in 2005 He founded Cameron Ventures Group in 2012, initially with a single closed hotel. The business has developed into a group that owns and manages more than 14 hotels across England with a combined market value of £30 million.

Brian is a Fellow of the Institute of Hospitality and recipient of the prestigious Acorn Award. The Hotel Group has also won many industry awards. Brian believes the success has been through collaboration, partnerships and building the team from within.

Founder and former CEO of The Cotswold Company (UK) Ltd. A digitally led online home wares retailer. Grew the business to >£50m and made a partial exit to a PE firm in 2016. Left CEO role in Jan 2020 for a sabbatical, which hasn’t turned out as expected. Planning on becoming an active angel/non exec advisor/investor in September 2020.

Stuart has 35 years' experience in the banking and finance industry, most recently 12 years as a Corporate Relationship Director for Barclays working with SMEs turning over £6m-£50m, primarily in the manufacturing and logistics industries. His role involved looking after rapidly growing as well as established businesses, as well as supporting those in difficulty. He has worked with sole traders, partnerships, family businesses, company boards and UK subsidiaries of foreign companies.

Richard is a founding director of Chadwicks, a wealth manager based at the University of East Anglia, he is also a non-executive director of Anglia Capital Group – Norfolk and Suffolk’s leading angel investment group. A UEA economics graduate who has studied behavioural economics as a post-graduate, Richard also holds an MBA and a Masters in Wealth Management. He is a Chartered Financial Planner and a Chartered Wealth Manager, specialising in helping owners build value in their businesses in preparation for a sale or transfer. A past school board member of the UEA Business School, he currently sits on the Strategic Board of the UEA School of Economics and is a trustee of the Norfolk Community Foundation.

At UEA, Kevan is an Associate Professor of Strategy teaching undergraduate and postgraduate students in areas such as strategy, leadership, change, marketing and branding.  Previously he was Associate Dean for Admissions leading our Faculty of Social Science recruitment of students generating £60m cohort income each cycle (and becoming the largest faculty at UEA). He was also Associate Dean of Innovation. He used to be a scientist; has worked in the private, public and education sectors and has started and run small businesses.  Beyond UEA  he is a Director of a new company  providing leadership and management to schools and multiacademy trusts.  Perhaps relevant to our discussion here, in 2010 he led a Norfolk recession support programme (Evolve) which achieved 150% of targets and took the project to the final of the Times Higher Education awards.

A Chartered Accountant having worked in KPMG’s Audit and Corporate Finance teams.  I gained an MBA from Sheffield University Management School in 1998.  Since then, I have occupied a number of senior finance and operational roles in such diverse industries as building products, manufacturing, fashion design and retail and more recently as Finance & Operations Director of Jarrolds retail division in Norwich.  My work has taken me across 3 continents.  I was a key member of the team that built and ran a 600,000 square foot manufacturing site in Suzhou, China and was responsible for a manufacturing division in the US and Canada.  I led an MBO of a UK manufacturing business employing 120 people in 2008 which was subsequently sold to a trade buyer 2 years later.  I have recently retired from full time work to concentrate on my outside interests which include drumming, hiking and travel. 

Chris has specialised in insolvency and recovery related work most of his working life.

He’s advised directors of companies with no assets to those with a billion. He enjoys meeting people who have struggled , recognise their problems and want a solution.

He is known to be relaxed enough to put an arm around people, think around the whole problem and be realistic enough to make the best recommendation and most importantly make his clients understand what is the best solution for them in what may be a tricky situation.

Angela is the Sounding Board's Marketing guru and general miracle worker - if you've heard about us that's down to Ange. She's also your first port of call if you want to find out more about how the Sounding Board works.

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When she's not keeping the Board members in order she is busy developing new business opportunities for Chadwicks.