Meet our Board of Directors

Kevin Harris

Kevin Harris Consulting Ltd

Kevin has been strong advocate of Leicestershire and the wider East Midlands region for many years.  He was previously Chair of the Leicester & Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP) has worked in the professional services industry at a senior level for more than three decades.

Dawn Whitemore

SMB College Group

Dawn has a track record of delivering significant business and quality improvements, along with sustainable financial turnarounds. Dawn has decades of experience as a senior leader in the further and higher education sectors and is Principal and CEO of SMB College Group.

Dr Cham Kang

Qinesis

Cham is passionate about innovation and developing new markets. As a business and marketing consultant/coach for the STEM sectors, he has worked with global multinationals and SMEs. Cham has expertise in chemicals, healthcare, biotech, pharma and cosmetics.

Eileen Richards MBE DL

Eileen Richards Recruitment

Eileen has won a series of accolades for her achievements, and her various roles include the Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Leicestershire. Eileen is Co-Chair of our Enterprising Women network, and is the founder and director of ER Recruitment Ltd.

Stuart Dawkins

Stuart has a broad range of business and banking experience, including strategic planning and corporate communications for a FTSE100 company. His portfolio of non-executive and advisory roles includes serving on boards for several large organisations.

Lindsey Williams

Academy for Leaders

Lindsey is co-chair of Academy for Leaders – a trusted and inspiring space for leaders. Supported by experienced speakers she facilitates leadership development and learning.

Lindsey is also an experienced NED, past president of East Midlands Chamber and former group chief executive of Futures Housing Group.

Scott Knowles DL

East Midlands Chamber

Scott represents the Chamber, our members and our communities, managing various capital and revenue generating projects. Scott has a proven track record in the communications technology sector, helping organisations and businesses embrace emerging technologies.

Mark Deakin

Turner & Townsend

Mark has taken an active role in leading local development, regeneration and people development projects, as well as large global projects for Rolls-Royce and Amazon. Mark’s high-profile responsibilities include various chair and director roles.

David Williams MBE DL

Geldards LLP

David has represented the region on a local and international level for many years. He holds several non-executive and trustee positions, including Deputy Lieutenant for the County of Derbyshire and Deputy Chair of D2N2 LEP. David is Chairman of Geldards LLP.

Anjuu Trevedi MBE

ATRII

Anjuu moved to Leicester in 2008 to work at the University of Leicester as their Head of Regional Business Engagement. In 2022, she joined Twycross Zoo as their Senior Partnerships Development Manager NSCC and in 2023 De Montfort University as their Head of Knowledge Exchange and Innovation.

In May 2025, after 25 plus years in the university sector, Anjuu took the exciting step to set up ATRII (Anjuu Trevedi Research Impact and Innovation), a consultancy dedicated to helping universities drive innovation and impact through Knowledge Exchange (KE) via university-industry collaborations. In addition to managing ATRII, Anjuu also serves as a Non-Executive Director of the East Midlands Chamber of Commerce and as a Director of LBV.

Outside of work, Anjuu enjoys spending time with family and friends, trekking, reading and whenever possible being a couch potato.

Emma Baumback

Amber River Leodis Wealth

Emma is passionate about supporting young professionals and helping them to succeed and grow, and she is Immediate Past-Chair of the Board for Generation Next.
Emma is Senior Financial Planner for Amber River Leodis Wealth based in North East Derbyshire.

Sandra Wiggins

Authentically Balanced, Manufacturing Mentor and Leadership Coach

Sandra has over 35 years of leadership experience within the corporate world of engineering, manufacturing, and international logistics.

Sandra is co-founder of DPI UK Ltd, an established East Midlands SME manufacturer of soft signage, as well as the CEO of Sandra Wiggins Consulting Ltd t/a Authentically Balanced. This new business aims to support manufacturing leaders to create cultural transformation, structure, and scale by engaging its team through psychological and behavioural safety. Sandra sold her majority shareholding in DPI in October 2023.

Maz Patel

Scope Construction

Possessing overall control of the business currently due to rapid turnover growth of £8m in 2023, Maz has been the driving force behind the growth, direction and focus of the business alongside his business partner who is focused on operational delivery.

Scope is an award-winning construction services provider, most recently the Chamber’s Leicestershire Business Awards, 2022 Business of the Year.

George Oliver

1284

1284 director George is a former Editor of The Leicester Mercury and Leicestershire Live. He spent 15 years in regional journalism, including nine years as a Senior Leadership Team member.

George founded 1284 in 2020 as a strategic communications agency, specialising in innovation and regional development.

Amit Sonpal

Barclays Bank

Amit leads the Barclays Mid-Corporate team across the East Midlands and has done so since September 2021, having previously led the local Business Banking SME Team in the East Midlands supporting businesses to scale up and grow across all sectors.

Working with key Micro Markets across the East Midlands, Amit is experienced in external engagement and business development collaboration.

Amit also works to support colleagues through career development, coaching and mentoring. He co-leads on the Barclays Race at work and Multicultural workstreams and is a multi-Award winner in Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion.

Richard Cohen (Co-opted)

Pennine Healthcare

Richard brings over 15 years of operational leadership, with a career rooted in East Midlands manufacturing. He began in the food and drink sector and, for the past three years, has led Pennine Healthcare’s operational strategy - driving transformation, efficiency, and excellence. Known for optimising processes and fostering cross-functional collaboration, Richard aligns operational delivery with strategic goals. He is passionate about building resilient teams, championing UK manufacturing, and embedding a culture of continuous improvement.

Richard also works closely with the Ministry of Justice, supporting ROTL (Release on Temporary License) program to reduce reoffending and assist offender reintegration post-release.

Stephen Grubb (Co-opted)

Natwest

Stephen Grubb is the Director of Commercial Banking for NatWest responsible for Leicestershire and Northamptonshire where he leads a large team of Commercial Managers supporting businesses across all sectors. Stephen has lived in Leicestershire his whole life and has 36 years of banking experience looking after businesses of all sizes. Stephen is passionate about supporting both his customers and the broader business community and his mantra is “we only succeed if our clients succeed”. He is also the lead for both High Growth Business and Climate/Sustainability for Natwest in the East Midlands.

Victoria Matthews (Co-opted)

Vaillant Group

Victoria is Head of External Affairs at the Vaillant Group, a global, family-owned company with 150 years of expertise in heating technology, operating in over 60 countries with 12 production facilities worldwide.

Victoria leads Vaillant’s engagement with policymakers, regulators, and industry stakeholders, ensuring the company’s voice shapes the future of heat and building policy. With more than a decade at Vaillant in Product Management and External Affairs, Victoria contributes to strategic direction across policy development, business planning, product innovation, and sustainability.

Victoria plays a key role in advancing Vaillant’s mission to reduce carbon emissions in home heating. Previously, she held marketing roles across diverse industries, bringing strong commercial insight and customer focus.

Tom Morgan (Co-opted)

trentbarton and Kinchbus

Tom Morgan is Managing Director of trentbarton and Kinchbus, two of the East Midlands’ most respected and innovative bus operators, and part of the largest independent bus company in England. Born and raised in the region, Tom has over 20 years’ experience in passenger transport and has successfully led medium-sized organisations through significant change, blending commercial acumen with a strong commitment to customer service and community impact. He also represents independent operators nationally on the Bus Centre of Excellence Advisory Board and the Confederation of Passenger Transport. Tom is passionate about sustainable, inclusive growth that strengthens the East Midlands economy.

Becky Rix (Co-opted)

Roadgas Limited

Becky is senior Director at Nottingham based Roadgas Limited with responsibility for leading the company’s strategic vision for sustainable growth

Roadgas supplies refuelling infrastructure to the transport and logistics sectors to dispense UK produced biomethane - bioLNG and bioCNG - into their fleets of vehicles to help decarbonise emissions

Becky is currently a member of EMCCA’s business advisory board helping to shape the future of the East Midlands and will support the Chambers’ goals to promote clean, low carbon economic growth, job creation and green skills development for businesses across our region