Team

Craig has a wealth of experience working across both private and public sectors, with a career spanning more than 30 years.

His role as Leader of Rugby Borough Council was extended in 2010 when he became the first Executive Leader in the country. Praised for his strong and progressive leadership by the Prime Minister and Secretary of State, Craig is now at the forefront of the growth agenda within Coventry and Warwickshire.

Recognising the need for businesses to have a single point of contact for support, he instigated the nationally recognised model of account management alongside robust data to assist decision making across the sub-region.

Out of hours, Craig raises funds for The Motor Neurone Disease Association and likes nothing more than spending a few hours trying to manoeuvre a golf ball around Lutterworth Golf Club in as few shots as possible.

Phil spent more than 20 years in senior IT and sales and marketing roles delivering projects for manufacturing giants such as Rolls Royce, Rover Group, Jaguar, British Shipbuilders, GEC and GKN, and their supply chains.

In 2000, he moved into business ownership, taking three of his own businesses through the complete business lifecycle, from start-up, through growth and acquisition, to sale and exit.

Now Deputy CEO of CW Growth Hub, Phil has a great deal of real-world business experience to offer SMEs.

Phil’s spare time is spent with his family including two grandchildren, tinkering around with classic cars and following sports including Formula 1, and supporting Birmingham City Football Club.

Adam is a qualified accountant with more than 30 years' financial management experience, working his way up from trainee to the CEO of Rugby Borough Council, working as a Strategic Finance Manager at Northamptonshire County Council along the way.

Adam has been responsible for leading a whole host of major transformational projects and has cultivated successful relationships across the public, private and voluntary sectors throughout his career.

Outside of work, Adam enjoys socialising, is a keen quizzer and loves a wide variety of sports, especially football, rugby, cricket and golf.

Sarah joined the Growth Hub in September 2018 following completion of a master’s degree in legal and constitutional studies. Sarah has interned for various companies in the United States, including those in the public, private and non-profit sectors. Her duties in previous roles included legal and marketing research, dealing with insurance claims and bank loan processing for State Farm Insurance, as well as constituent profiling on a local mayoral campaign and guiding students at Indiana University through a community development course.

Outside the office, she enjoys travelling throughout the United States and Europe, following the latest legal and political news, going to the gym and watching American football!

Gary joined the Growth Hub from a key player within the Health & Wellness sector where he was responsible for the implementation of key elements of company strategy along with the operational management of call centre and customer service functions.

With roots in the automotive sector Gary has a mechanical background and has since accrued diverse and extensive experience across customer service and team environments within Financial, Health and Training industries.

Out of work Gary enjoys spending time with family and friends as well as following motorsports, especially Formula One.

Nic joined the Growth Hub in October 2022 after seven years working for Coventry & Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership, initially as CW Place Manager.

Nic leads the team that organises the highly regarded CW Champions, a leading business network of 150 Coventry and Warwickshire based organisations which meets regularly to help raise the profile of the region through its programme of well attended events and media activities.

Prior to working at CWLEP, Nic worked in a Strategic Engagement role at the IET and IMechE in London.

In his spare time, Nic is a keen cross-country runner and most weekends he can also be found on the touch line supporting his three football playing sons.

Helen is a Chartered Marketer, with an extensive background in digital marketing.  She is the Growth Hub Group's go-to marketing expert and leads the marketing activities across the business, including the business support programmes delivered through C&W Business Solutions. Helen also leads on our supply chain platform FinditinCW, on behalf of C&W Business Solutions, and is the Data Protection Officer for CW Growth Hub, C&W Business Solutions, and C&W Champions.

Helen has been a senior marketer for over 15 years and has worked in both B2B and B2C marketing roles for the private, public and not-for-profit sectors. In her spare time Helen enjoys reading, gardening and has a passion for writing.

Jim has over 35 years’ experience of building two privately owned manufacturing businesses, one from £500k to £5m turnover the other from £4m to £40m.

With a background in sales & marketing, Jim moved through his last business to become MD/Owner and along the way developed a good understanding of:

manufacturing, logistics, global sourcing, global sales, B2B sales with major retailers, and the successful completion of 2 management buyouts.

Since joining the Growth Hub in 2019, Jim has supported hundreds of SMEs with all aspects of their growth challenges. His support has included all aspects of a business’s lifecycle from inception to growth and also their sale.

Outside of work, Jim enjoys socialising with family and friends, walking, keeping fit, watching sport - mostly football and spending time with his two Grandsons.

Justine has 30+ years consultative business development experience, working with both the private and public sector. Justine understands the challenges of starting a business after creating a software company with a US royalty partner in the 90’s. Her experience includes consulting with businesses to develop learning solutions, working for professional bodies, commercial companies, recruitment agencies, awarding organisations, certification bodies, training providers and learning & tech. providers. Justine has supported SME’s and blue-chip organisations to develop their online proposition to deliver training to global teams, achieve accreditation, professional status, and certification. Highlights include being part of award-winning journeys for companies such as Ernst & Young, Cap Gemini, Nokia, Apple, and Microsoft.

Out of work she enjoys spending time with family and friends, open water swimming, pilates, yoga and travelling to new destinations.

With over 25 years of experience in various technical and business development roles, Jim is a resourceful and quality-oriented account manager who provides government-backed business support services and advice to companies based in Coventry and Warwickshire. Helping local businesses grow and succeed by connecting them with relevant programmes, funding, and networks that can enhance their digital connectivity, innovation, and productivity.

At 19, was qualified to service military helicopters, being responsible for the lives of four people, after which he became a communication systems specialist.

Since then, he has sold over $80m worth of high security technical critical life solutions across the globe and has consulted the UK Government for 8 years.

Now, he 'sign posts to experts' for over 40 innovative clients with a collective turnover of around £2bn to help achieve an increase in their net profits and turnovers.

Linda has extensive experience in stakeholder engagement, business development and project management both in the charity and public sectors. In 2016, she successfully designed and led the very first non-profit organisation Fair in Bali, Indonesia. Since then, she has facilitated numerous collaborative efforts between non-profit organisations, businesses and local governments to promote financial sustainability and social impact. Having completed her undergraduate study in International Relations, she went on to pursue a master’s degree in Development Studies at the University of Melbourne, Australia. 

In her spare time, Linda continues to work with youth-led impact organisations in Indonesia, providing mentoring and skills training support to young people. She also enjoys cooking Indonesian food and baking sweet treats for family and friends.

Adam has years' of experience in many fields including recruitment, project management and internal process improvement.

Since graduating in 2014 with a degree in Business and Enterprise Management, Adam has gained experience working in multiple industries including automotive, healthcare, wholesale and construction. During this time he also gained experience setting up and running his own consultancy business. Recently Adam has completed additional study on Project Management and Change Management courses.

Outside of work Adam enjoys socialising with friends, going to the gym and playing a number of sports including rugby, squash and golf.

Laura joined the team in March 2017 as a support administrator, since then, she has progressed and been involved in a number of roles and projects at the Growth Hub.

Laura’s focus is now on supporting businesses across the Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough – working with them on their growth plans and future projects and making them aware of the services they can access to overcome their business challenges. On occasion, she is also involved in various internal projects and maintaining the Growth Hub CRM system.

In her spare time, Laura enjoys being creative, from cooking treats for friends and family to crocheting or sewing gifts to sell – she also enjoys spending time teaching her dog fun new tricks!

Ellie joined the Growth hub in July 2022 following the completion of 3 years' at Warwickshire College studying Public Service, culminating in distinction.

She has integrated seamlessly into the team as a trainee administrator and particularly enjoys helping both individuals and supporting businesses. A talented athlete, Ellie was ranked 5th in the UK for high jump in 2015.

In her spare time, she enjoys exploring new places, spending time with her family and admits to being a petrol head!

Nina began her career in the early years childcare sector & quickly rose to management level.

After years of management experience, Nina made the decision to start her own business.

Nina quickly became versed in all aspects of starting & running her fine art printing business & her hands on approach & attention to detail undoubtedly contributed to the success of her business over the span of 14 years.

Joining the Coventry & Warwickshire Growth Hub team in 2023 marked a new chapter in Nina’s career, where she brings her wealth of experience to support businesses in the region.

Outside of work Nina enjoys throwing clay & spending time with her sons.

Jon is CW Growth Hub's Finance Specialist. An experienced manager and administrator, with a background in financial services spanning 30 years, Jon was previously employed by NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland Group. He went on to become a business coach, membership recruitment executive and work and health project advisor at Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce. On leaving the Chamber Jon joined the growth hub in 2016.

Jon sits on the strategic oversight board  for the Midlands Engine Investment Fund II.

Outside the office, he stays busy with his role as Honorary Secretary of the Old Laurentian Society. As a keen socialiser, he can sometimes be found in the Dun Cow in Dunchurch with a pint of Bass.

Kat joined the Growth Hub in September 2023 after working at a well-established PR company in Coventry, where she completed her level 2 and 3 in Business and Administration. In 2019, Kat won the Coventry and Warwickshire First, Young Professional Award for Apprentice of the Year in Coventry and Warwickshire.

Kat has been event coordinator for Coventry and Warwickshire Champions since September 2020 where she helped lead the events from online back to face-to-face meetings, following lockdowns and has helped the membership grow and reach a wider audience within the region.

Kat supports on marketing and events for CW Champions and C&W Business Solutions.

Outside the office, Kat enjoys playing video games, watching Japanese animation, spending time with her nieces and nephews and going for long walks with her husband.

Cathy joined the Growth Hub in March 2018 as a business administrator and PA to the CEO. Her role is to provide organisational support to the Growth Hub team and act as the customer interface.

Prior to joining the Growth Hub, Cathy worked in the public sector for 13 years supporting the leadership team and she has a wealth of knowledge and experience in this area. 

In her spare time, Cathy enjoys walking, especially caddying for her son on the golf course. She also likes to cook and spend time socialising with friends and family.

Richard joined the Growth Hub as an account manager, managing CW Employment Solutions, and offering recruitment advice to businesses across the region. With a background of over 20 years' in the recruitment sector, including running his own recruitment business, he has covered a wide range of sectors and can offer businesses free advice on their recruitment strategy, as well as advising candidates on their career options.

Outside of work Richard is involved in a wide range of projects, including being Vice Chair of Trustees at Kenilworth Multi Academy Trust and is working on a project to build a new secondary school in Kenilworth.

A seasoned business professional, Paul has been involved with many successful start-up projects some of which have developed into multinational companies, and has formed, owned and managed companies of his own.

His career of over 40 years has been in business development across a variety of sectors working with some of the most iconic brands in the world including Jaguar, Aston Martin, Ford, BMW, Bentley, Volvo in Automotive, He has extensive experience in Body Structure and New Vehicle Development from concept design to product launch. His knowledge of the Automotive sector is recognised within the UK and European sectors. Having worked for OEMs and extensively in the supply chain he has a vast amount of knowledge in car construction processes, senior management, business development and strategic partnerships.

Following on from various successful project placements at the University of Warwick, including the Eutopia Alliance programme, the Teacher Researcher Network, and the Institutional Teaching and Learning Review, Sebastian joined the Growth Hub in August 2023.

With both BA (Hons) and MA degrees in History and Film from the University of Southampton and Warwick respectively, he has balanced his Made Smarter project commitments with his own independent academic endeavours, including authoring various chapters for film-based journals and books and independently starting up his own screencast series on YouTube for audiences.

Along with being a passionate Newcastle United fan, Sebastian is an avid podcast listener, a lover of nature, and can be found making a lot of noise at his local gym.

Andy joined the Growth Hub in October 2022, after two years at Coventry & Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership, as Strategy & Analytics Executive Officer.

Before joining CWLEP Andy held partnership roles at both the University of Warwick and Coventry University. Prior to these the bulk of his career was spent leading the research, insights, and analysis team at Warwickshire County Council, promoting the use of data, insights, and evidence within the council and across local partners in Coventry & Warwickshire.

He is also one of two independent members of the Warwickshire Police & Crime Panel, and is the Treasurer of LARIA, the Local Area Research & Intelligence Association.

Outside of work Andy enjoys cycling around south Warwickshire, running around a badminton court, cooking, and socialising with friends.

Shilpa joined the team as a Data Executive in November 2023. She completed her graduation in Computer Science and Engineering and started her career as a Quality Analyst, accumulating around 2 years of expertise. Later, she completed an apprenticeship in Customer Service, achieving level 2 proficiency. Along with her apprenticeship, she worked as a Data Quality Apprentice for the NHS.

Outside of work, Shilpa likes to spend time with her friends and family. Being passionate in cooking, she treats her kitchen as a canvas where she unleashes her culinary creativity.

Jana joined the CW Growth Hub in January 2024, after graduating from MA Global Journalism and Public Relations at Coventry University. Originally from the Czech Republic, she has arrived in Coventry in 2019 to study BA in English.

Jana has had a passion for art and design from an early age. Not only does she support the Growth Hub in administrative tasks, but she also supports the design, production and distribution of marketing material. She also regularly updates the CW Growth Hub’s website and social media with new content.

In her free time, Jana likes to play games on her Nintendo Switch, visit local historical sites and museums, watch Netflix and do all kinds of arts and crafts.