Commercial
Prologue
My consultancy company (Cochrane Associates) thrived from 2000 - 2020 and closed under the travel constraints and chaos of COVID. From that point on; I spread my activities across academia and freelance consultancy along with advisory roles. With a less hectic and pressured workload I devoted a portion of my time to further studies in AI and the quantum world , along with cyber security, IoT, and Industry 5.0 et al. This has been extremely productive with feedback into consultancy and advisory spheres.
In the listings below you will find the foundational appointments and experiences spanning 1990 to today that underpin My modern day application and capabilities. This is also reinforced by extensive publications, presentations, projects, and other activities, spanning a global list of companies, governments, and sectors.
“By 1990 it had become abundantly clear that my future lay in the transformation from specialist to generalist - from a narrow focus to broad understanding and an ability to join the dots - to seeing the fuller picture, and to help others grasp the wider implications”
Advisor and Non-Executive Director
A collection of starts and established companies saw my oversight responsibilities range from £5M to £5Bn. My positions spanned the provision of technical to strategic advice, the management of programs and major investment decisions.
It was often the case that companies were struggling with market and operational turbulence, with some prospering, whilst others were bought out, and a few being broken up. None of it was easy, but it exemplified the challenges of managing of almost anything in a fast changing and highly non-linear marketplace. Needless to say; I worked hard, contributed a lot, and learned so much about people, risk management/mitigation, and the creation of success!
Director and NED Board Memberships
- BT Network Operating Board 1990 - 1996
- eBookers Founding Director 1998 - 2003
- ConceptLabs CA Founding NED 1999 - 2006
- PicoSecond Pulse Labs CO NED 2000 - 2006
- Create Ventures (VC Fund) UK NED 2000 - 2006
- Motorola Visionary Board 2003 - 2005
- Cochrane Associates Ltd (founder) 2005 - 2020
Advisory Board Memberships
- Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) USA 1996 - 2002
- CSC TTI Vanguard USA 1998 - 2018
- CSC Concours USA1999 - 2005
- Mahindra BT Mumbai, India 2002-2007
- REGUS London, UK 2012 - 2014
- MIT Media Lab, Dublin 2002 - 2005
- IRDETO, Netherlands 2012 - 2016
- QCRI Doha, Qatar 2013 - 2018
- Facebook, CA USA 2017 - 2019
- University of Pretoria, South Africa 2022 - Ongoing
- Mighty Cursor Singapore 2025 - 2026
Ethos & Mode of Operation
In any capacity, I will always:
- Apply responsible management, engineering, and scientific decisions consistent with good working practices
- Search out the truth to improve the understanding of any situation or condition
- Seek to avoid conflicts of interest, and immediately flag potential conflicts to affected parties
- Be open, honest, and realistic in stating claims and/or making estimates based on all available data
- Establish the provenance of all data and research material
- Identify/flag potential consequences of all data along with predictions/decisions & proposals
- Identify and promptly disclose all factors that might endanger people, organisations and/or the environment
- Respect and guard all forms of customer data, confidences, and intellectual property
- Reject all forms of bribery, corruption and coercion
- Treat all organisations & individuals fairly, honestly, and with respect
- Strive to maintain and continuously improve our managerial, technical and professional competence
- Seek, accept, offer, honest/constructive criticism and acknowledge the contributions of others
- Operate in a safe and aware manner under all conditions
- Aid and assist others in their professional duties & aspirations
- Strive to deliver good value and positive change
Startup Rules
“As I closed-down all investment activities in 2010, this is retrospective just for the record”
In order to minimise risk and maximise my resources I employ 6 simple rules when starting any new business:
- I only work with colleagues and people I can really trust
- I never enter a sector where there is active/fierce competition
- I never start anything unless I can get it to market in < 9 months
- I never start anything unless it has the potential to grow significantly
- I only engage with an existing business if I can see unique opportunities
- I never engage with ‘me too’ operations unless it is to be transformational
Assignments and Relationships
To maximise my effectiveness and build for the future I:
- Never start anything if I don’t think I can make a significant contribution
- Always think in terms of long-term relationships, outcomes, and consequences
- Avoid working on the trivial or something someone else could pick up with ease
- Look at the potential for introducing some significant change and/or advance
- Try to create bridges for the future by ‘under promising’ and ‘over delivering