Supercoaches

Dr Jim Adamson CBE

Dr Jim Adamson CBE ran the automated teller machine business of NCR in the late 1980s and early 1990s, from a base in Dundee, Scotland. When he arrived, product quality was so deficient that he was given six months to turn the operation around. If he failed, the plant would be closed. Dr Adamson did far more than fix product quality. Under his leadership, NCR went on to develop a new generation of ATMs, and to carve out a 53% global market share, surpassing rivals IBM and Diebold and generating business with revenues of over £1 billion.
Dr Adamson believes that the CEO's role is to foster intrapreneurship in a company and he dismisses the concept of "empowerment".

Anthony (Tony) Banks

Tony left school to start a BA in accounting and at the same time he joined the Parachute Regiment of the Territorial Army to earn extra cash to supplement his student grant. He left university to join the army.

Tony bought his first care home in 1991. Over almost two decades he has skilfully expanded to 20 care homes providing residential care to over 700 residents. Balhousie Care Group is now the fastest growing and the largest independent operators of care homes in Scotland.

Among a number of tributes to his success, Tony has been a finalist for Ernst Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the last two years , the National Business Awards Entrepreneur of the Year for the last two years.  He is now on the executive boards of Entrepreneurial Exchange Scotland and Combat Stress UK.

Tony Banks has become somewhat of a celebrity following his appearance on Channel 4’s “The Secret Millionaire” programme in October 2009.

Gary McEwan

Gary McEwan is Chief Executive of Enterprise North East Trust. This organisation operates 2 divisions, the delivery of business support services and the operation of 19 business centres containing around 400 tenants.
Gary has a deep understanding of business at all levels gained through many years of leading businesses and advising others. As a serial entrepreneur he has developed a variety of areas of expertise including raising funding for start up and growth, developing management teams and developing commercial strategies. He is renowned for his inspirational approach and dynamism and is well connected into the business community. Gary is a keen promoter of Enterprise particularly in areas of social deprivation and with young people who have less than straightforward lives.
Gary has been awarded a number of awards including ‘The Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion’ given by HM The Queen in July 2005. He was described by Professor John Parker, Managing Director of IBP Academy who lead the Premier Adviser accreditation process as ‘one of the best business advisers…..in the world’.

Dr Michael Voice

Graduated in 1989 from the University of St Andrews with an honours degree in biochemistry with microbiology and went on to do a Ph.D at the University of Dundee with Prof Ann Burchell at Ninewells.  Michael then did a two and a half year post-doc with Prof Jonathan Seckl at the University of Edinburgh at the Western General Hospital and followed that with a two and a half year post-doc at Ninewells with Prof Roland Wolf in the Biomedical Research Centre.  He then set up Cypex with Dr Mike Pritchard to commercialise the work that they had done at the BRC.  After a 16 month effort to get Cypex started, Cypex have been trading for the last eight and a half years.

Dr Paul Ajuh

Dr Paul Ajuh is co-founder of Dundee Cell Products Ltd. He has over twenty years experience working in the several areas of the key technologies, services and products being developed and commercialised by the company.
He is a former Royal Society of Edinburgh/Scottish Enterprise (RSE/SE) Enterprise Fellow and has been working as a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Dundee before creating Dundee Cell Products Ltd in 2006.
He holds two BSc (Hons) degrees in Natural Sciences and in Computing&Information Technology. He also obtained a PhD degree in Biochemistry from the University of Liverpool and a Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Dundee in Scotland, UK.

Ken Allstaff

Ken spent most of his early years in Dundee where he joined Ferranti as an apprentice after leaving school, followed by an honours degree from Paisley University (Paisley 'Tech' as it then was), Ken moved on to take up several senior executive positions within companies all trading in the high frequency electronics arena. He has lived in Cambridge in Ontario, Tampa and Montreal. He has overseen facilities in the Far East and the Far West and places in between. In addition to global marketing responsibilities with a Dundee High Tech company he is now assisting several start up companies in Dundee and beyond in raising funds and getting market traction.

Sharon Bamford, CEO, SIE

Sharon has had an interesting and varied career so far, ranging from VSO in Nigeria to setting up and managing 3 Montessori schools to working in the oil industry to stimulating enterprise and entrepreneurship in Scotland's universities through her directorship of SIE.

Nick Baxter

Social Entrepreneur and former social worker Nick Baxter founded learning disabilities charity Cornerstone Community Care in 1980.
25 years on Cornerstone is one of the leading providers of services for people with learning disabilities in Scotland. The charity supports almost 1,500 people, employs over 1,000 staff and in 2005/6 turnover was in excess of £26 million.
As Chief Executive, Nick Baxter still leads the charity and the implementation of Cornerstone's Strategic Plan. Cornerstone's most recent strategic plan 'Even Better Quality' sets objectives with the intention of Cornerstone becoming the leading provider of services for people with learning disabilities in Scotland by 2007.

John H Beaton MBE

John Beaton was born in Dundee and left school at 15 to work for Bonar Long&Co Ltd, firstly as an apprentice mechanical fitter and then as a draughtsman. Following his national service, he returned to Dundee and worked for various companies, including Firestone Tyre Co, GKN/Mills and Bovis Group. In 1973 he founded Kolfor Plant Limited with £250 capital and, despite being its sole employee for the first six months, the company's first year turnover was £450,000. Kolfor went on to become the largest privately owned equipment company in the North Sea Oil Industry and also operated in Norway, West Africa, the Far East, USA, Brazil and the former Soviet Union. Kolfor was sold to Atlas Copco in 2004. Throughout his long career John has played an active part in the commercial life of Dundee and Tayside as a fellow of the Institute of Directors, a member of the Chamber of Commerce and Chairman and Founder of the Dundee and Angus Oil Venture Group. He was awarded the MBE in the 1994 New Year's Honours List for services to the City of Dundee and the Oil Industry.

Melfort Campbell OBE

Melfort Campbell is Chairman and Chief Executive of Imes Group, which he established in 1985. During the last 20 years he has evolved the company from its origins as Water Weights - a novel methodology for testing crane-lifting integrity - to one that has diversified and expanded into many other markets. Imes' growth accelerated as it created new markets for its solution-orientated technology, and by astute acquisition. Melfort was awarded an OBE in the 2003 New Year's Honours List for services to industry in Scotland.

Bob Doak

Bob Doak has now worked for WL Gore&Associates for the last ten years. Before this, his career included 18 years with Weir Pumps Ltd in Dundee, four years as Operations Director then five more as Managing Director in Holo-Krome Ltd, moving to become Executive Vice-President with Greenwald Industries, New York until his return to Scotland to become Scottish Enterprise's Director of Training and Company Development.

Ron Gillies with his wife Judith run the award winning Cairn O'Mohr fruit wines company, using berries, flowers and leaves that grow around the farm. They remind us that the pleasant fermented drink we call wine can be made with all kinds of produce, but for various historical reasons, it’s the stuff made using grapes which has become famous. All the Cairn O'Mohr wines have a distinctive rolling flavours, juicy and aromatic.

The result is one of Scotland’s most original and characterful business ventures. Cairn O’Mohr attended the first-ever National Fruit Wine Awards in 2003 and practically swept the boards, and have maintained their high profile there in subsequent years.  The company continues to grow, their wines appearing not just in Scottish gift and speciality food shops but also on ‘High Street’ supermarkets.

Ron Gillies is in charge of a fast-expanding business but he’s never lost his enthusiasm for wine-making - which he’s given a uniquely Scottish flavour.

Colin Macdonald, Studio Manager, Realtime Worlds

With an Honours Degree in Computing from the University of Abertay Dundee, Colin Macdonald has worked in games for 17 years, starting as Software Manager for the manufacturer of the Sam Coupé, the last British home computer. He then spent seven years running a small outfit bringing around twenty titles to market, mostly original IP, but also including ports of some of the Lemmings games.

Joining DMA Design in 1997, Colin was Producer of Grand Theft Auto 2, before becoming Studio Manager for Realtime Worlds, one of the leading UK developers. RTW has more than 200 staff, and a philosophy of using only the best talent and design-driven approaches to creating original IP.

Earlier in 2007 RTW released the million-plus selling title Crackdown exclusively for Microsoft's Xbox 360. RTW is also working with Webzen, a leading Asian online game company, to develop APB, a Massively-Multiplayer Online Game due out in 2008.

Carolyn Maniukiewicz – Director, Ideas In Partnership

Educated at Peterhead Academy and at Aberdeen University, where she graduated with an MA (Hons) in Geography and English, Carolyn has over 20 years experience in marketing having worked for all the leading research companies such as MORI, Martin Hamblin and Systems 3.

Carolyn worked for the Scottish Enterprise Network for over 7 years, latterly as Head of New Ventures for Scottish Enterprise Grampian, during this time she was also seconded to Scottish Enterprise National.

Ideas In Partnership was set up in 2002 and has carried out work throughout the UK . The types of work carried out are Event Management, Project Management, Ideas Generation, Market Research and Schools Enterprise.

Carolyn firmly believes in "thinking out of the box" and adapting more of a can-do culture in the country. She is a good leader and her enthusiasm helps to motivate others.

Carolyn is married to George, a farmer and has two children, she cites her hobbies as reading and fine wines.

John Milligan

John started his working life as an apprentice fitter with the National Coal Board, subsequently returning to higher education as a mature student and becoming an engineer. He worked in a number of engineering posts, setting up Strathclyde Process Engineering in 1973. In 1982 he formed Atlantic Power& Gas, remaining its CEO/Chairman until 2000.

Margaret McCollam

Margaret McCollam was previously Director of Learning and Enterprise for the Scottish Executive and she is now part of the Scottish government for business and industry and is part of the Local response team for Tayside. The Local Response Teams (LRTs) have been set up in each local enterprise company area across Scotland and stand ready to offer the necessary support and advice in individual redundancy situations. Membership of LRTs varies in each area.

She has a long career history spanning form her education in Glasgow University to working for the government trying to help set up small businesses and make sure they are working hard and doing what it takes to keep themselves running well. Even though a job like this has its ups and downs Margaret has many truly successful stories and has shown real commitment and effort even when things haven't gone the best they could.

John Pool

John Pool is Chairman of IDMoS plc - a company based in Dundee which has a current market value of around £35 million. John joined IDMoS in 2001 and since then has put together the management team, raised working capital worth in excess of £10 million and given the original investors a ten fold return on their investment in two years. Coming from a background in medical jurisprudence, John has considerable experience in the management of major projects, initiating and managing start-up companies, and fund-raising through a network of contacts in financial institutions. In 1987 he founded Proteus Molecular Design Ltd which acquired a full listing on the London Stock Exchange in 1992 as Proteus International plc. Through the partnership Wellbeach Associates he has held and continues to hold a wide variety of posts, for example Life Science Business Adviser to Scottish Enterprise and HIE, consultant to 5 US-based biotechnology/device NASDAQ companies and Director of NesTech Ltd University Challenge Fund for the East of Scotland.

Charlie Taylor

Charlie Taylor is one of the UK's foremost hairdressers and a lifetime member of the British Hairdressing Hall of Fame. Scottish Hairdresser of the Year three times, Charlie trained as a stylist in Scotland before moving to London in 1984, where she joined fellow top British Hairdresser, Trevor Sorbie.

In 1987 Charlie returned to her Scottish roots to launch her own salon chain from the city of Perth. Working in partnership with her husband, Alastair Taylor, the company has grown over 20 years, driven by Charlie&Alastair's keen sense of business awareness specifically in the hair and beauty industries.

Alongside the growth of the salon business, Charlie has continued to develop her international career as a stylist and educator and the Charlie Taylor Artistic Team are frequent travelers, educating and entertaining both trade and consumer audiences across the globe.

Charlie's impressive media profile sees her frequently appearing in print, on television and on radio, offering hair and beauty advice. In 2006, Charlie was featured in a national advertising campaign for haircare brand TREsemme.

Stephen Thompson

Stephen Thompson is the Director of Dundee United Football Club and has enjoyed many years of success with the team using his valuable business expertise to drive the club forward. However, Thompson had already made a name for himself in and around Dundee before his work with the football club via his chain of successful convinience stores. This gave him invaluable experience in the business field and through his own hard work and determination his venture was truly a success and we were lucky enough to have him share some of his secrets in acheiving real business accomplishments when he came to talk to us during enterprise week, and his words of wisdom and encouragement have undoubtly influenced anyone who was lucky enough to make the event on the day.

Tim Allan

Tim Allan is one of the founding Directors of Unicorn Property Group. Unicorn came together to acquire and develop the Dundee Central Waterfront. Two years on with developments across Scotland, Unicorn is rapidly establishing itself as one of Scotland’s most dynamic new property companies.

Tim comes from a background of private wealth management and has worked with some of the most prominent entrepreneurs and families in the US and the United Kingdom. He joined Citigroup Private Bank in Mayfair in 1998 and established an Edinburgh office for the US giant in 2000.

In 2003, Tim was tempted across to UBS in Edinburgh, the world’s leading private wealth manager, as a director, but the entrepreneurial urge was too great and in 2005, he helped to create Unicorn Property Group, where his expertise in banking and investment is a key element.

Tim Allan is Chair of Young Enterprise Scotland, taking over from Dundee’s Chris van der Kuyl in June 2006. In addition, he is on the BIG Lottery Fund Scotland Committee which distributes @ £80 million a year to community causes as one of the largest intelligent funders in the UK.

Tim graduated as an MA in History from St Andrews in 1988, attended RMA Sandhurst thereafter, and served in the British Army across the world and as Equerry to The Duke of York for his last two years. Tim retired from the Army in 1998 as a Major.

Tanya Ewing

Tanya Ewing was recognised as “British Female Inventor of the Year 2008” for her creation of a real time energy monitor Ewgeco (pronounced You-gee-co). Tanya wanted to bring meter information out of cupboards for all to gain a greater understanding of household&small business energy and water consumption. Unable to find such a device, she took it upon herself to develop one using a unique traffic light display system.

With no previous engineering or design experience, Tanya worked with technicians who could make her idea a reality. This all came at a hugely challenging time in her personal life. Due to a debilitating illness, Tanya had been unable to work for 7 years and was undergoing IVF treatment.

Now with a two-year old son, Coll, and Ewgeco now on sale to businesses with the consumer market due for launch early next year, her business is expanding and her story is held up as an example of pure determination in pursuit of a good idea. Tanya is passionate about the impact that Ewgeco can have on reducing the utility bills alongside the environmental benefits of reducing consumption and taking energy-conservation methods. She won the prestigious Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Award for the Environment in 2008.

Dr Steve Otto

Dr Steve Otto (Director - Research&Testing, The R&A) has been working for The R&A for ten years, firstly as a consultant at the same time as being a Senior Lecturer in mathematics at The University of Birmingham in the UK and then latterly heading up The R&A's Research and Testing group in St Andrews. Together with The R&A's engineering staff, he is responsible for testing golf equipment to check that it satisfies existing regulations as well as working to understand the fundamental physics of golf. He runs The R&A's testing facilities in St Andrews, which includes a range of technology which is used to analyse both existing equipment and also future developments in technology. Dr Otto has worked in a variety of different fields as well as supervising 15 PhDs he has written two books and over one hundred scientific articles.