Home > How we can help > Our Board
Our Governing Board plays a strategic role in our aim of increasing technology innovation and adoption across Scotland. Comprising experienced industrialists and leading academics, the Board has accountability for all financial and funding activities.
Board observers are Fiona Bates, Scottish Funding Council; Stuart McDonald, University of Glasgow, and Mark Western, Scottish Enterprise.
Jacqueline Redmond has over 25 years’ international experience in senior positions with energy majors, with particular expertise in risk management, business development and innovation.
She graduated from the University of Strathclyde with a PhD in Energy Economics, Jacqueline joined ScottishPower in the mid-1990s. She led the company’s risk management team as it began to grow, adapt to de-regulation, and re-define the role of a utility, latterly becoming director of corporate strategy.
In 2006, Jacqueline was appointed by Royal Dutch Shell to develop its global LNG (liquefied natural gas) strategy. She moved on to become the vice-president of technology strategy at the energy major, working with a $1.3 billion research and development (R&D) budget to find, fund, and mature innovative new energy technologies.
Following three years as Shell’s head of commercial power and senior deal lead, Jacqueline was appointed as chief risk officer at the then-UK Government owned Green Investment Bank. She continued to develop sustainable energy projects across the world with Macquarie, following its acquisition of the Green Investment Bank, where, until April 2019, she helped identify disruptive emerging technologies in the energy sector.
Jacqueline is currently Non-Executive Chair of CENSIS (the SME-focused Innovation Centre for Sensing, Imaging and Internet of Things technologies), Non-executive Director and Risk Management and Conflicts Committee Chair of the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB), and Executive Director of PNDC, Strathclyde University’s industrialisation centre focused on delivering whole energy solutions.
Paul is an entrepreneurial technologist with a substantial track record for applying innovation across multiple market sectors spanning academia, government, SMEs and international PLCs.
Paul’s early career was with UK MoD, then with QinetiQ where he held a number of leadership roles CEO of QinetiQ Inc. Subsequently, Paul has founded and ran an SME and then was the inaugural Executive Director Innovation and Investment at the UK Defence Solutions Centre. He joined CENSIS in 2019 where he has been pivotal in the development and implementation of digital solutions across the public and private sectors in Scotland.
Paul’s business skills include leadership, substantial international P&L experience, capital raising and realising value from technology.
Paul is a member of the Board at South of Scotland Enterprise, Scotland’s Scotland’s enterprise agency for Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Borders. Earlier in 2022 the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) appointed him to its Science Engineering and Technology Board (SETB). The SETB is responsible for identifying and championing new research challenges at the cutting edge of engineering and physical sciences for future investment.
Paul is a co-founder of the Smart Things Accelerator Centre, a dedicated Scottish IoT accelerator for SMEs, scale up and start up companies.
Executive Director for Student and Academic Services at the University of Glasgow
Prior to his current role, Dr Neil Bowering was Deputy Head of the College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences with a focus on strategy development and Programme Director for the £90M Strength in Places funded Living Laboratory for Precision Medicine. Neil was also Director for Professional Services in the College of Science and Engineering.
Non Executive Director and start-up advisor
Professor Steve Beaumont is Vice Principal Emeritus at the University of Glasgow. He has a portfolio of responsibilities including chairing and holding a number of NEDs on the governing boards of technology companies.
He is the former Director of Quantic, the UK Quantum Technology Hub in Quantum Imaging, and the former Vice-Principal for Research & Enterprise at the University of Glasgow .
Steve’s research background is in nanotechnology and nanoelectronics for which he was awarded the OBE in 2002. Steve is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
Ecosystem CTO, IBM Technology
Sharon’s mission is transforming industry with technology; her purpose is to make a difference, for the better. She is Technical Director and CTO in IBM UKI’s Ecosystem business, helping IBM’s Services partners succeed.
Recently, Sharon was IBM’s CTO for Global Government and she has 20+ years of experience working in outsourcing, consulting, and sales, across multiple sectors and diverse technologies. You’ll often find her on stage championing the positive impact of technology, shaping its role in making industry successful, and advocating for responsible technical advancement, especially when it comes to AI. She is also a Chartered IT Professional and BCS Fellow.
Sharon is a catalyst for change in inclusion through BCSWomen, formerly through Scotland Women in Technology, and other activity, and is a published co-author on the subject. Sharon was awarded MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in June 2018.
Sharon is a Trustee of BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT and non-executive Director of CENSIS Technology Solutions.
Craig is currently a UK board member of Edinburgh based Sofant Technologies (Phased Array Antennas), UK FinTech company InfinitX, Oxford based Alzheimer’s Diagnostic and Therapeutic company Neuro-Bio and Chairman of Highlands based Ava Innes (focused on Quality Sleep using natural & sustainable materials). He is a Board member of XPRIZE Foundation in Europe with a focus on creating global collaboration Hubs in the UK, Europe and across the Globe. Craig was previously Chair and Board Member of Glasgow based Krucial Technologies. As Sr. Vice-President for JT Americas (Jersey Telecom), and Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) of JT IoT responsible for the growth and expansion of JT’s IoT business solutions and alliances globally, he co-led a highly successful £200M spinout and private equity sale. He is an active mentor of technology company founders across a diverse cross-section of technologies and geographies with two portfolio companies having listed on the NASDAQ exchange.
Craig has co-founded or been a principal in a number of UK and US startups in the areas of IoT, expert systems, imaging and, machine learning search, eLearning, advanced wireless and satellite communications as well as cloud/virtual computing, security, AR/VR and big data. Craig was previously a senior executive in the UK, Ireland and the USA for multinational corporations including Compaq, HP, Unisys and BP PLC.
Born in Scotland, Craig is an active ‘GlobalScot’ and currently lives in Phoenix AZ but works nationally and internationally. Craig holds a First Class Honors Degree from the University of Aberdeen and conducted graduate research in model simulation at Stanford University. Craig was previously President for five years of the Institute for Innovation (IIIP). An active venture philanthropist, he has collaborated and supported various non-profits and charities including the XPRIZE Foundation, Alzheimer’s Research in the UK, the President Eisenhower Foundation, Reforestation of Mount Kilimanjaro and constructing a regional hospital in the East African Rift Valley.
General Counsel – EMEA/APAC/JP at Life Technologies
Born in Scotland, Genoffir is General Counsel and VP of Innovation Partnership for the Life Science Solutions Group of Thermo Fisher Scientific and is currently based in Southern California.
Genoffir has over 20 years’ experience in deal making and negotiating with both academic and industrial partners with the intent of accelerating innovation and increasing access to innovative solutions to customers. Her deal experience includes complex M&A deals, licensing, innovation and other strategic partnerships across Europe and Asia as well as the UK and the US.
Digital and cloud enablement technologies are a strategic focus for Genoffir and Thermo Fisher Scientific, in addition to continuing innovation in its core life sciences portfolio.
Based in Amsterdam, Sophie is the co-founder of GumCare companion – a tech start-up focused on the dental care market. She previously held roles in the oil and gas industry in Dubai with DNO ASA – the Norwegian operator – and in Iraq, Nigeria, Kazakhstan, and Japan with Royal Dutch Shell.
Sophie’s skills and experience were recently recognised by her peers when she was included in the NextWomen to Watch 2020, which highlights the 50 most promising female company founders. She brings a broad set of experience and skills to the CENSIS board, including in business development and innovation.
Non Executive Director, North
Scott was co-founder and Managing Director of Boston Networks and Executive Board Director of North (formerly Boston Group). North designs and delivers integrated technology solutions for complex and critical environments throughout the UK and internationally, with expertise in IoT, networking and connectivity, and safety and security.
Scott led the strategic expansion of the company into a national business through a series of targeted acquisitions. He rebranded the business and developed its offering. In 2023, Scott stepped down from the day-to-day running of the business to become a non-exec director at North and to pursue a wider non-executive career.
He has over 30 years’ experience in the technology, network infrastructure and ‘smart’ building services sectors. Scott specialises in business start up / scale up, business leadership, business management and operations, strategic p, strategic business development, brand, proposition and market development, business acquisition / M&A, strategic growth and private equity.
Founder and CTO, Ubisense
Dr Andy Ward has designed, built and worked with in-building location systems for over twenty years. He studied at Cambridge University, receiving a MA in Computer Science and a PhD in ‘Sensor-driven Computing’, and led research into location technology at AT&T Laboratories Cambridge from 1998 to 2002. In 2002, he co-founded Ubisense Limited, one of the first companies to commercialize UWB in-building tracking products, and as CTO he now leads technology planning and development for Ubisense. He is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and a Chartered Engineer, and was awarded the Royal Academy of Engineering’s 2015 Silver Medal for his contributions to this field.
Global Head of Hydrogen Business Development, Shell
Gåurāb Chatterjea develops and executes growth and innovation opportunities for Shell, the world’s 11th largest company. He has played key roles in three significant, long-term, global growth initiatives – new energies, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and hydrogen.
Gåurāb holds a BA from University College London, an MSc from the London School of Economics and a qualification in innovation and entrepreneurship from Stanford University.
