ducAlto provides startup founders and CEOs with fractional COO services, tailored to their stage, budget and operational needs.

Neuville Grid Data is an energy-tech start-up developing critical deep-tech capabilities, artificial intelligence tools, and services needed to monitor electric power network stability, improve renewable energy generation, and enable the grid's transition to Net-Zero carbon emissions.In early 2020, Neuville commenced initial activities including key personnel recruitment, seed-funding equity raise, equipment deployment and commissioning, and hardware development.Key responsibilities:• Direct accountability for all day-to-day operational, administrative, recruitment/personnel, design and infrastructure deployment project activities.• Lead negotiator for all commercial contracts with renewable energy developers and operational and maintenance (O&M) organisations.• Provide support to CEO in all other functions including strategy, finance, fund-raising and commercial.Key achievements: • Established key Neuville foundations including office facilities, team recruitment and pension scheme, significant commercial contracts, and Home Office sponsor licence.• Successfully developed detailed proposal that was competitively selected for a £1.4m+ Innovate UK Smart Grant supporting the development of the next generation of our hardware technology.• Supported CEO and CFO in raising our second seed funding tranche of £506k (total seed raise of £1.8m) in mid-2021 to support our ongoing technology and commercial development. • Developed and led Neuville’s application for Shell’s New Energy Challenge, resulting in Neuville being selected as a ‘Top 5 Scale-up’ finalist for 2021 and multiple investor connections being made.• Brought together and led 8-person multi-disciplined project team to safely deploy and commission Neuville’s electrical and digital infrastructure across multiple UK-based utility-scale solar farm sites.Key stakeholders:• CEO; Neuville Board; CFO; CCO.

Sloan Masters in Leadership and Strategy - Class of 2019London Business School’s elite global Sloan Masters in Leadership and Strategy is specifically designed for a diverse mix of experienced, high-calibre professionals and executives, focusing on organisational strategy, leadership and general business skills. The programme delivers the latest insights in business practice and research to enhance leadership skills, sharpen strategic thinking and enable students to lead change in their organisation. It is a 12-month full-time programme offered at only three business schools worldwide – MIT, Stanford and London Business School.

BHP is the world’s largest mining company, by market capitalisation, with metals, mining and petroleum operations throughout the world (FY18 group revenue of US$48.6b, 27161 employees).Prior to departing for my Sloan studies at London Business School, I was headhunted to lead a time-critical, short-term engagement to implement an organisational mastery framework for BHP's Operations Services (OS) department. The role involved mastery standard development, assessment tool development and initial rollout to OS production and maintenance personnel in the Western Australian Iron Ore asset. The Mastery programme is investing in developing BHP’s OS workforce whilst transitioning them to internal positions, thereby reducing knowledge loss experienced with temporary contractors and providing employees with the benefits of full-time employment.

Origin Energy, through its Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG) JV, supplies approx. 30% of the Australian east coast domestic gas demand in addition to producing 9 mtpa of LNG for export (FY18 group revenue of A$14.8b, 5565 employees). 

The Exploration and Appraisal (E&A) programme is essential to ensuring APLNG continues to produce sufficient LNG to meet its long-term supply contract obligations. E&A exists to mature reserves, retain tenures and appraise gas fields for development. 
The Shallow Gas programme is essential to meeting regulatory obligations and maintaining Origin Energy’s social licence to operate. It is focused on studying and mitigating the occurrence of methane gas seeps across the APLNG development fields. 

Key responsibilities: 
• Plan, align, develop and implement respective Shallow Gas and E&A annual business plans.
• Direct accountability for all budget, project delivery, safety, environment and operational aspects in delivering annual workscope (capital budget of approx. A$150m to A$200m pa). 
• Participate in extended leadership team, including collaboratively developing and implementing business improvement initiatives for the Integrated Gas business unit.

Key achievements: 
• Led and developed 30 person multi-disciplined team (project managers, project controls, engineers, drillers, finance, construction, community liaisons, environmental) to safely deliver A$150m CY17 workscope, resulting in early identification of gas reservoirs for new, accelerated development.
• Brought together and collaborated with diverse team (engineers, environmentalists, lawyers, drillers, media specialists) to address urgent community concerns about methane seepage into local river as featured in national '60 Minutes' coverage of activists lighting the river on fire (https://youtu.be/vTberrqThpg). 
• Successful implementation of plan addressed seepage phenomena and maintained social licence to operate for Upstream gas operations.

Key responsibilities:• Management of various infrastructure projects delivering new appraisal wells, assessing new technologies and developing novel mitigation solutions for the Condamine River seeps (capital budget of approx. A$85m pa). • Finance and contract management of various construction, procurement and services contracts.Key achievement: • Guided 16 person team to safely deliver Origin’s largest appraisal infrastructure project, enabling near-term gas development to benefit from recurring execution savings in excess of A$5m.

Virgin Australia Airlines is Australia’s second largest airline, operating a comprehensive domestic network coupled with international routes to New Zealand, South Pacific, SE Asia and USA (FY13 revenue of A$3.98b, 9200 employees). In late 2010, Virgin Australia commenced a large transformational ‘Game Change’ programme to commercially reposition the airline from a low-cost carrier to a full-service airline. The Fleet Realignment programme focused on the aircraft component of the ‘Game Change’ programme.Key responsibilities: • Accelerated acquisition, certification and installation of new cabin interiors in all domestic aircraft (capital budget of approx. A$35m). Key achievement: • Steered and collaborated with cross-functional team to deliver aircraft cabin and e-commerce updates on schedule/budget, resulting in increased business-class yields and corporate/government contracts that led to a A$149m (224%) increase in underlying profit before tax from FY11 to FY12.

The Australian Super Hornet Project was essential to maintaining Australia’s regional air combat capability following the early retirement of the F-111 strike aircraft. It was responsible for the accelerated A$6 billion acquisition of 24 F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter aircraft and associated engineering, weapons, logistics and training. Key responsibilities:• Project management and airworthiness certification of F/A-18F Super Hornet weapons integration, mission planning and aeronautical life support equipment.• Performance management of subordinate military and contractor personnel.• Finance and contract management of various international equipment and services contracts.Key achievement: • Led and developed team of Australian and US military and civilian personnel to deliver all weapons integration and aircrew equipment aspects on schedule and under budget, resulting in maintenance of critical air combat capabilities for Australia.

Various operational, maintenance, logistic and project engineering roles associated with the F-111 strike aircraft and F/A-18 fighter aircraft.