Category: 2017 Delegate

Jeremy Barlow

As Director of Standards Jeremy leads on the development and management of professional standards for BCS. These standards currently include the BCS-owned Chartered IT Professional (CITP) and Registered IT Technician (RITTech) as well as other licenced standards such as Chartered Engineer (CEng) and Chartered Scientist (CSci).

Jeremy has been at BCS since 2003 and has previously managed the development of some of BCS’ leading qualifications and managed relationships with key stakeholders in the qualification sector. More recently Jeremy led a number of high profile projects within the BCS Academy of Computing before moving on to the role of Director of Standards in August 2015.

Professor Hassan Azzazy

Dr. Azzazy is a tenured full professor of Chemistry (2003-present) at the American University in Cairo (AUC). He served as the Chairman of Chemistry Department and Associate Dean for Graduate Studies & Research at the School of Sciences & Engineering, AUC.

Prior to joining AUC, Dr. Azzazy was a postdoctoral fellow and assistant professor at University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD (1995-2002). He holds two board certifications in Clinical Chemistry and Molecular Diagnostics from the American Board of Clinical Chemistry, Washington, DC. Dr. Azzazy has over 26 years of experience in biomedical research and currently leads the Novel Diagnostics & Therapeutics research group at AUC. Dr. Azzazy authored 77 publications in refereed journals, 70 conference presentations, and 25 book chapters. He has co-edited two books on “diagnostic enzymology” and “Innovation & Entrepreneurship in Egypt”. According to Scopus, he has H-Index of 21 and 1887 citations. Dr. Azzazy is the co-founder & CTO of the startup company D-Kimia Innovative Diagnostics, LLC which develops affordable diagnostic solutions. He is also the founder and CEO of NanoEbers, LLC which focuses on development of biocompatible nanofibrous wound dressings. Dr. Azzazy is the recipient of several awards including State Prize in Advanced Technological Sciences, Excellence in Research & Creative Endeavors Award (AUC), Global Innovator Award (Texas Christian University), and Arab Innovation & Entrepreneurship Award (UAE).

Dame Mary Archer

Dame Mary Archer DBE started her career as a physical chemist and taught Chemistry at both Oxford and Cambridge Universities. She was chair of Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust for ten years and is currently chair of the Science Museum Group and Cambridge Early Music. She is President of the UK Solar Energy Society and the Guild of Church Musicians, a trustee of Britten Sinfonia and iCould, and a non-executive director of Hydrodec Group plc. In 2012, she was appointed DBE for services to the NHS.

Mrs Justine Andrew

Justine is part of the national Education and Skills leadership team for KPMG. Based in Leeds, until 2015 Justine led KPMG’s work across the Public Sector in the North, encompassing Local Government; the NHS; Higher Education and Social Housing. Since then, whilst keeping more than one foot in the North, her substantive role is a national one as the Market Director for KPMG’s Education and Skills practice – responsible for the development of our work in this sector, encompassing schools, 14-19, Higher Education and increasingly the wider skills agenda linked to Northern Powerhouse and devolution. She leads our work with some of the largest Education providers nationally as well as being at the forefront of our work in the skills space.

Justine is passionate about the evolving role of public service and the potential of working across an economic geography to change the way we currently deliver and receive services. She has a particular interest in the strategies cities and places can utilise to grow economically and the role of collaboration to achieve that.

Justine studied English Literature and Language at New College, Oxford and has a Masters from Essex in the Study of Contemporary Japan. She is Senior Independent Governor at Leeds Trinity University; on the Leeds and York Chamber of Commerce Leadership Board and a Fellow of the RSA.

Professor Diana Anderson

Diana Anderson MSc, PhD, DipEd, C.Biol, FRSB, FRCPath, FRCS, FIFST, FATS, FBTS, FHEA

Professor Diana Anderson currently holds the Established Chair of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Bradford, UK. She obtained her first degree in the University of Wales and second degrees in the Faculty of Medicine, University of Manchester. After tutoring at the University of Sydney, Australia, she became a research worker in the Department of Cancer Studies at the University of Leeds and at the Paterson Laboratories, Christie Hospital, Manchester. In 1974, she was appointed as Head of Mutagenesis Studies at ICI’s Central Toxicology Laboratory. Professor Anderson joined BIBRA International in 1981 as Head of Genetic and Reproductive Toxicology and became Assistant Director and Group Forum Co-ordinator in 1987. In 1992, she became Senior Associate and Co-ordinator of External Affairs at BIBRA. She has served on the editorial board of 8 international journals plus 2 on line journals, has over 450 publications, has edited/authored 8 books and guest-edited 9 special issues of 4 international journals. She was a Series Editor of books in ‘Current Toxicology’ for John Wiley and Sons and is currently Editor–in-Chief for the Book Series ‘Issues in Toxicology’ for the Royal Society of Chemistry. She is an active Committee member and has been Vice-President of the Institute of Biology. She has successfully supervised 30 post-graduates [26 PhD, 2 MPhil and 2 MSc (Res) students] and is currently supervising 5 other PhDs and has managed several post–doc positions. She has been external examiner for 29 PhDs and was External Examiner for the Dept. of Genetics, University of Wales, Swansea. She has been invited to speak at many international meetings and chair many symposia. She has helped establish new research laboratories in India and Korea under the auspices of the British Council and UNIDO. Funded by various international agencies, scientists from America, Australia, the Czech Republic, Italy, India, Iran, Korea, Poland, Serbia, Spain and Turkey have received training under her supervision. She has organised both national and international meetings and is/was a member of various national (e.g. MRC Advisory Board, Veterinary Products Committee) and was of international committees, including the Chairman of the Scientific Committee of the Foundation of International Association of Environmental Mutagen Societies and the European Union Scientific Committee for Animal Nutrition (SCAN). She has hosted and participated in 56 meetings for WHO/IPCS. In 2011, she won a prize as an Enterprise Fellow from Yorkshire Forward. In 2015, she won the Vice Chancellor’s award at the University of Bradford for Outstanding Achievement.

Professor Abdulla Al-Hawaj

Dr. Abdulla Y. Al-Hawaj, the Founding President of Ahlia University, ranks in the top echelon of educational leaders in the Arabian Gulf. His incumbency in numerous managerial posts in prestigious organizations associated with educational development at a national level, combined with a plethora of academic accolades awarded to him by esteemed institutions, attests to Dr. Al-Hawaj’s being in the vanguard of higher educational reform in the Kingdom of Bahrain. In recognition of Dr. Al-Hawaj’s trail blazing contributions in the sphere of educational advancement in the Kingdom of Bahrain, he was appointed in the year 2000 — by royal decree – as a member of the Supreme Committee for the Kingdom National Charter, in which he serves as the coordinator of its Educational Committee. Dr. Al-Hawaj holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Applied Mathematics from the University of Manchester (UK) and a B.Sc. (Hon.) in Mathematics from the University of Kuwait.

Dr. Al-Hawaj launched his distinguished academic career at the University of Bahrain, in which he held the successive posts of Dean of Registration & Student Affairs, Chairman of the Department of Mathematics, and Chairman of the Department of Computer Science. He attained the rank of Professor of Mathematics at the University of Bahrain in 1993 and continued to serve the University of Bahrain in that capacity until 2005. Dr. Al-Hawaj’s profound contributions to the fields of Mathematics, Computer Sciences, and Education through numerous research papers, books, media debates, and public discussions are vast. His unstinting dynamism, paradigm-shattering innovation and superlative achievement in the academic and social arena have accorded him a number of prestigious awards and honorariums.

Dr. Al-Hawaj has extensive experience in leading large multi-dimensional institutions. His signature use of pragmatic and innovative thinking in solving complex educational and business issues stems from his strong managerial and educational background. He is widely acclaimed as a pioneering architect of the private university in the Arabian Gulf and a leading proponent of excellence in Higher Education in the whole of the Middle East. He is the Chairman of the Executive Office of The Association of Arab Private Institutions for Higher Education. In the year 2019, he was awarded the Doctor of Science honoris causa (DSc) from Brunel University London for his contribution to international education.

Adam Morton

Adam joined Rolls-Royce’s in 2007 to establish its multi-disciplinary Low Carbon Technology unit with responsibility for identifying and evaluating renewable and clean-tech opportunities across the group.

He is currently Head of Business for Rolls-Royce’s Future Technology Group – the unit that acts as the prime technological early warning system for the company as well as having responsibility for generating future concepts and developing, protecting and transferring cutting edge disruptive technologies across all of the Rolls-Royce businesses. This role involves considerable university and academic interaction, particularly on geared R&T programmes funded by the European Union, Innovate UK and the UK and US Governments. Other aspects of the role include technology road-mapping, business case development, relationship building, strategy buy-off and management of collaborative programmes.

As well as a Masters degree from Swansea University, Adam has an MBA from Imperial College and a Masters in Finance from Erasmus University, Rotterdam.

Executive Summary

Over the last 30 years, Rolls-Royce plc has developed a unique model of University-Business collaboration through its network of University Technology Centres (UTCs) and manufacturing research centres. This has delivered long-term capability and access to key talent and intellectual capability, essential for continuing success in extremely challenging technical fields. The company also benefits from the challenge and dialogue borne from diversity and a multi-sector perspective. In the session the speaker considers how this model may have to further evolve over the long term.

Professor Alastair Wood

Alastair joined Bradford from the University of Manchester in 1987, having spent 2 years previously working at the Universidade de Lisboa in Portugal.

Alastair is an applied numerical analyst by background, obtaining a PhD at the University of St. Andrews under the CASE Award system (with British Gas) before developing an classical research and teaching based academic career in modelling, simulation, and optimisation, that includes significant work with industry partners over the years. He has taught in Portugal, Canada, Pakistan, and China, activities that helped to develop a passion for TNE of all descriptions.

Having been Dean of the School of Engineering, Design, and Technology, Alastair is now using contacts and experience gained to support the University’s internationalisation mission, as chair of Academic Partnerships Sub-Committee and lead for his Faculty’s international developments.

Mr. Ilkka Virtanen

Ilkka Virtanen is currently working as International Relations Manager at Tampere University. His task is to create and manage university’s strategic research partnerships and networks and to facilitate the creation of new active research collaboration. In his work, he works closely with university’s top management and management of research and international offices across the world. Prior to his current post, he headed seven years university’s Research and Innovation Services, where he gained in-depth experience of research funding, research collaboration mechanisms, agreements and intellectual property rights. His unit also supported commercializing research results and the creation of new businesses and entrepreneurship. Virtanen has over 19 years’ experience of diverse research collaboration and research funding and of the support of prominent research groups. Previously he has also worked in support of business information management, medicine and biosciences.

Ms Rovani Sigamoney

Rovani Sigamoney is a chemical/environmental engineer from South Africa who started in the platinum refinery/mining sector and then moved on to researching bioenergy systems and biofuels for Africa.

She joined the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) HQ in Paris, France in 2007 in the Natural Sciences Sector and later ran the Chemistry programme and International Year of Chemistry 2011. She thereafter took over the UNESCO Engineering programme. The Engineering Programme is working with Member States (UNESCO has 195 Member States), international partners and program experts to strengthen engineering education through curricula development, hands-on training and capacity building. In line with UNESCO’s global priorities on Africa and Gender Equality, it focuses on women and Africa but also has activities around the world. Rovani is passionate about women in engineering and encouraging more youth to pursue careers in engineering.

She previously worked at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Paris on a biofuels strategy and also at the Wuppertal Institute of Climate Change in Germany on a policy document for the European Parliament on the security of energy supply.