Alumni in the media July to September 2021

Here is your quarterly summary of some of the successes of Cranfield alumni:

• Francisco Javier Sanchez Segura (MSc Aerospace Vehicle Design 2001) features in a profile on the Airbus website - he is Executive Vice-President Engineering, Airbus Defence and Space.
• George Mavrocostas (BSc Aeronautical Engineering, MSc Aerodynamics 1978) has been appointed CEO of Cyprus Airways.
• James Vowles (MSc Motorsport Engineering and Management 2001), Strategy Director at Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team, features in an article explaining why the team’s car had a much larger rear wing than opponent Red Bull’s car at the last race.
• Obinna Anyaegbu (MSc Logistics and Supply Chain Management 2008) features in an interview with Naira Metrics. He is raising capital to buy his father’s transportation empire, Chisco Group, so that he can position the company for its next growth phase, with a focus on digital.
• Tom Enright (MSc Engineering Structures 1988) is a member of the Government of Ireland’s Anti-Racism Committee.
• StepEx, founded by Daniel George (MBA 2014), has secured £1.1 million funding to develop machine learning models, user platforms and expand its senior team. The company aims to remove barriers to graduate education by developing an alternative source of student finance using AI-generated future income estimates, rather than loans being based on past income.
• Lara Morgan (Business Growth Programme), winner of the School of Management Entrepreneur Alumna of the Year Award in 2009, has written an article for Elite Business: ‘An open letter of appreciation to my team’ – including tips on being a better boss and how to deal with others.
• Chris Day (MSc Logistics and Supply Chain Management 2017) is Chief Financial Officer at Lords Group Trading, who have announced in a press release today their intention to float shares on the AIM market.
• Olivier Boubert (Leadership – Strategic Management 2014) has been appointed Sales and Marketing Director at Kuehne + Nagel France.
• Dr Maxine Mayhew (PhD School of Applied Sciences 1998), Managing Director of Natural Resources for Costain, is a member of Business in the Community’s Climate Action Leadership Team.
• Jason Powell (MBA 2003) has been appointed to the Board at Radcliffe Group Ltd as a Non-Executive Director.
• Lieutenant General Sir Benjamin Bathurst KVCO, CBE (MA Military Studies 1996, Defence Strategic Leadership Programme 2007) features in a blog post discussing his military career and education.
• Emmanuel Wekem Kotia (MSc Global Security 2005) has been promoted to Major-General – one of the highest ranks in the Ghana Army.
• Miriam Olusanya (General Management Programme 2011) has been appointed as the first female Managing Director at GTBank in Nigeria.
• Gavin Pommernelle (Advanced Project Management) has been appointed as the new President of Werq, an executive and team performance coaching firm based in Austin, Texas.
• Aisha Ahmad (MSc Finance and Management 2007) and Miriam Olusanya (General Management Programme 2011) feature in an article on the four women leading Nigeria’s biggest banks.
• Lord Karan Bilimoria (Business Growth Programme 1998) featured on BBC Radio 5 Live on Friday 16 July discussing the government’s plans to relax Covid-19 restrictions.
• Steven Clapperton (Executive MBA 2023) has been appointed director of marine operations at the Port of London Authority.
• Brigadier Phil Prosser (BEng Mechanical Engineering 1996), a British army officer, is leading the government’s efforts to deliver hundreds of thousands of coronavirus vaccines per day.
• Arul Sivagananathan (MBA 1998) has been announced a new board member of Kelsey Homes, a premier housing developer in Sri Lanka.
• Athanasios Dedousis (PhD in Agricultural Engineering 2007) General Manager of an agricultural estate in Marathon, Greece, is mentioned in an article about Saranti Group.
• Melanie D’Mellow (MSc Automotive Product Engineering 1996) features in an article about the Cambridge University Careers service, saying they guided her towards her Master’s degree at Cranfield. She is now Head of Engineering at Animal Dynamics. 
• Oscar Camacho (MSc Applied Bioinformatics) a Statistics & Modeling manager, talks about his recent research on tobacco and its potential population impact.
• Gita Amperiawan (MSc Advanced Materials 1997, PhD in School of Applied Science 2001) now has concurrent positions as Director of PTDI (PT Dirgantara Indonesia) and Dean of the Defense University (IDU) in Indonesia.
• Investor and entrepreneur Ankita Vashistha (MSc Finance and Management 2009) will be speaking at Let’s Fund Femtech, an event series discussing female health.
• Lynn von Koch-Liebert (Master’s International Security 2014) has been appointed Executive Director of the California Strategic Growth Council by Governor Gavin Newsom. 
• Miriam Olusanya (Cranfield General Management Programme 2011) features in an article on prominent banking women in Nigeria.
• Nick Haggar (Executive MBA 1991) CEO of Czech pharmaceutical company Zentiva, is number 3 on a list of the ‘top 25 healthcare technology CEOs of Europe’.
• Dr Seyed Mohseni (PhD School of Engineering 2012) CEO of SAMAD Aerospace (based at Cranfield Technology Park) talks about their recently completed hover tests with the eStarling prototype aircraft, which will be the world’s fastest hybrid-electric aircraft.
• Aspiring author and entrepreneur Mark Dawson (MSc Marketing and Product Management 1999) talks about his “dystopian sci-fi thrillers” on the Green Energy Futures podcast.  He is also the Managing Director of Abstract2Construct, a solar farm development business.
• Article about Hawaiian Airlines by Matteo Giardini (MSc Air Transport Management 2021).
• Doug Kobayashi (PhD in Aircraft Design 1983) will be a Liberal Party candidate in the next Esquimalt-Saanich-Sooke district election in British Columbia, Canada.  He has served as president, vice-president, and CEO at several major aeronautical engineering firms in Canada and the United States after retiring from the Canadian Air Force.
• Tatiana Ostashchenko has become the first female Commander of the Armed Forces in the Ukraine. 
• Julian Richardson (MBA 2001) CEO and founder of Parhelion (an energy and climate risk finance company) is going to focus on underwriting climate-related investments, and seeking to raise $500 million for his business, “the world’s first sustainable insurance company”.
• Elliot Parnham (MSc Astronautics and Space Engineering 2018) founder of Skyfarer, a drone operator, has become Minerva Business Angels’ 100th investment. Skyfarer is conducting trials to deliver medical supplies between hospitals in the West Midlands, and initial flight trials will take place at Cranfield Airport.
• Elite Business has an article about Lara Morgan (Business Growth Programme 1999), winner of the School of Management Entrepreneur Alumna of the Year Award in 2009, who talks about her daily routine and keeping a positive mindset.
• Seán White (MSc Information Management & Technology 2011), Brigadier General with the Irish Defence Forces, has been appointed as Director of Communications, Information Systems and Cyber Defence of the European Union Military Staff (EUMS) within the European External Action Service (EEAS) in Brussels.
• Neil Morgan (PhD in College of Aeronautics 1991) Senior Technical Expert at Syngenta, an agricultural tech company, talks about his role.
• Kamran Razmdoost (MSc Strategic Marketing 2010, PhD in Leadership & Management 2014) Dean of ESCP Business School, London campus, discusses ‘Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Turbulent Times’
• Mohsen Ahmad (MSc Logistics and Supply Chain Management 2007) CEO Logistics District, Dubai South, features in Construction Business News’ ‘Power 25 2021’ list, at number 14.
• Libby Jackson (MSc Astronautics and Space Engineering 2003) has published a children’s book about space explorers and space exploration.
• Peter Watson (MBA 1999, BGP 2008) Director of Corporate Finance at Prism Corporate Broking and lecturer on the BGP course, has written a blog about the Olympic Games and how athletic performance relates to business, including the ‘marginal gains’ philosophy, similar to a concept he was introduced to at SOM by David Molian (Director of BGP).
• Rebecca Stephen (MSc Environmental Risk Management 2018) Environmental Engineer and Mine Closure Manager at Barrick Gold Corporation in Tanzania, talks about the importance of environmental protection in her role. 
• Dr Lynette Nusbacher (Defence Strategic Leadership Programme 2010) a historian and specialist in military affairs, discusses her career and transitioning from a male to a female.
• Dr John Hallsworth (PhD in Institute of BioScience 1993) has recently done research on whether microbial life could thrive on Venus.
• Annamaria Garden (Executive MBA 1981) has written a book on burnout, which she believes started when she did her Cranfield MBA.
• Peter Rose (MBA 1997) is Chief Revenue Officer at Forbury, an Auckland based software company that have recently established a London office. 
• Leopoldo Rodriguez (MSc Aerospace Vehicle Design 2013) founder and CEO of Helgen Technologies, an industrial automation company, talks about his career and future plans.
• Article about Flight Lieutenant Ben Lindsay (MSc Explosive Ordnance Engineering 2020)
• SAMAD Aerospace, co-founded by Seyed Mohseni (PhD School of Engineering 2012) and based at Cranfield Technology Park, has strengthened its team with several new appointments.  They will shortly be moving to new larger headquarters, SAMAD House, also at CTP.
• Eastspring Investments has appointed Bill Maldonado (Executive MBA 1992) as Head of Equities, and he will commence the role on 6 September.
• Alan Brown (Diploma in Aircraft Design 1951, Honorary Graduate 2001) has been awarded the 2021 Daniel Guggenheim Medal for his innovation and design of the F-117, the first stealth fighter/bomber aircraft.
• Siddhartha Lal (PG Diploma in Mechanical Engineering) has been reappointed Managing Director of Eicher Motors for a further five years. 
• Neil Carson (BEng Software Engineering 1997) CEO of Silicon Valley-based Yellowbrick Data, is number 33 on the Software Report’s top 50 SaaS (software as a service) CEOs.
• Ife Ibitokun (MBA 2015) CEO of BizNurture, is profiled in The Street Journal.
• Dr Jose Greses (MSc Marine Technology 1999) has joined Velo3D as Managing Director of European sales.
• Garry Copeland (MSc Thermal Power 1986) has been appointed by the UK Civil Aviation Authority as a Non-Executive Director.
• Profile of Omobola Johnson (DBA 2013) and her career achievements.
• Ian Cummings (SOM 1989) has been appointed Global Head of Meetings & Events by CWT.
• Praveen Vetrivel (Air Transport Management 2005) Chief Financial Officer of LCI Aviation, has been named as one of Airline Economics’ 40 under 40.
• Omobola Johnson (DBA 2013) assumes office as the first female Chair of Guinness Nigeria, having been appointed in July.
• Anthony Dutton (MBA 1991) has been appointed interim CEO at MJardin Group, a Canadian cannabis cultivation company.
• Dr Thomas Kissinger (PhD in the School of Engineering 2015) is the new junior professor at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the Technical University of Ilmenau and head of the new department of nanofabrication and nanomeasurement technology.
• Career profile of Dikshana Kiddinan (MSc Advanced Materials 2016), Industrial Transfer Project Manager at Safran. Her interest in aeronautics started when she visited the Safran Aircraft Engines site in Paris, towards the end of her degree course.
• Nikhil Shahane (MSc International Human Resource Management 2013) Vice President Global Talent and Engagement at TechnipFMC, will be the session moderator for an upcoming discussion titled ‘Making diversity intentional using technology in the workplace.’
• Hania Mohiuddin (MSc Autonomous Vehicle Dynamics and Control 2015), a Systems Engineer, is currently working on a project which will see a combat aircraft designed and built faster and at lower cost than previous generation fighters.
• Ezra Carlson (DBA 2019) an innovation and corporate venturing consultant, has written an article about his field of work, partly drawing on his research at Cranfield. 
• More news about Dr Seyed Mohseni’s (PhD School of Engineering 2012) company Samad Aerospace, who recently completed a successful conventional take-off and landing flight test of the company’s electric aircraft, the Starling.
• Interview with Dr Stelios Kyriacou (PhD School of Mechnical Engineering 1990), Chief Technology Officer at ERMA FIRST, a manufacturer of ballast water treatment systems.
• Dilshan Rodrigo (MBA 1996) has been appointed company Chairman and a Non-Independent, Non-Executive Director at HNB Finance (HNBF).
• Giuseppe Dell’Anno (PhD in the School of Applied Sciences 2007), a Visiting Lecturer at Cranfield, is a contestant on the Great British Bake Off 2021.
• Aquis Exchange has re-appointed Glenn Collinson (Exec MBA 1994) to its Board.
• Faz Chowdhury (MSc Microsystems and Nanotechnology 2006) is CEO and Chairman of the Board at Nemaura Medical, who design glucose monitoring systems for people with Diabetes.  The company has been named by NetworkNewsWire as ‘one to watch’.  
• Profile of Dr Obafemi Hamzat (PhD in Agricultural Engineering 1991), Deputy Governor of Lagos State in Nigeria.
• Lotwina Farodoye (BSc Marketing and Food Management 1994) is a newly ordained Priest at the Oxted Team Ministry.
• Janet Manning (MSc Water Pollution Control Technology 1995) features in an article after developing a garden for this year’s Chelsea Flower Show, which encourages gardeners to make better use of rainwater. Janet was appointed the UK’s first garden water scientist by Cranfield and the Royal Horticultural Society in 2018.
• Arnaud Despierre (MSc Thermal Power 1996) has been appointed Global Industrial Practice Leader at Kingsley Gate Partners, a global executive search consulting firm.
• Ian Rydin (General Management Programme 2001) has been named General Manager at Mövenpick Hotel Ibn Battuta Gate Dubai.
• Julia Mitchell, (MSc Astronautics and Space Engineering 2012) Senior Spacecraft Systems Engineer at SITAEL Australia, will be speaking at a ‘Women in Space’ panel session as part of World Space Week.
• Silly Goose Coffee, founded by Patrick Swinburne (MBA 2020), has secured investment from Dragons’ Den entrepreneur Touker Suleyman. During his MBA, Patrick tested and refined his business plan with the help of resources within the Bettany Centre.
• Will Anderson MBE (MBA 2004) has been hired as Chief Communications and Marketing Officer at Feaurespace, a crime prevention software company.
• Lahar Appaiah, a corporate lawyer at IBM in India, took part in a 10-week programme on cybersecurity at Cranfield University (Shrivenham Campus) in 2019.
• Owen O’Connor (MSc Forensic Computing 2006) has been named one of the top 100 Chief Information Officers working in Ireland today.
• Zak Hydari (MBA 2004) has stood down as Chief Executive of Rasmala Group, and become Chairman.
• Three Cranfield alumni have been included in a list of leading exceptional real estate CEOs in Nigeria: Hakeem Ogunniran (Strategic Leadership Programme 2005), Jide Odusolu (Business Leaders Programme 2007), Umar Abdullahi (Cranfield Directors Programme 2016).
• Aglow Aviation, a Nigerian aviation company, has joined the air cargo organisation Cargo iQ. Aglow Aviation’s Managing Director is Odutayo Ojuri (Msc Airport Planning and Management 2007).

If you've been featured in the media, don't forget to share your successes with us so we can include them in our quarterly roundup. Email our Alumni Communications team including a link to the web site or press release.

Check out last quarter's summary (April - June 2021) here.