Meet our associates

KEY SUPPORT AREAS: Executive coaching | Personal development | Experienced FD & CFO | Raising capital funding | Development of finance function | Strategy development & business planning

Robin is a professionally trained executive coach and experienced finance director. He also lectures in finance and entrepreneurship at the University of Bath. Over the last 30 years, he has helped develop a wide variety of organisations from the size of the BBC and an NHS mental health trust to start-ups and growing businesses. These days he focuses on helping people and organisations build lives that share:

• a more sustainable environment
• more cohesive communities
• better health, mental and otherwise.

He works with curiosity combining extensive knowledge of financial management, business planning and personal development techniques to enable people to gain clarity and develop themselves and their organisations.

KEY SUPPORT AREAS: Sustainability Strategy | Grant Application Support | ‘Critical Friend’ and Mentor | Resilience Planning | Climate Change & Circular Economy Advice

Callum has more than 20 years experience developing pioneering strategies & plans in waste management, environmental sustainability and the circular economy.  

Callum was the Head of Policy & Research at Zero Waste Scotland for over seven years. He chaired an evidence programme identifying the potential business opportunities to underpin the Scottish Government’s Circular Economy Strategy. He is passionate about helping organisations make resource use and sustainability integral to their activities.

Callum is a charity Trustee, a Non-Executive Director with a national NHS Health Board and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Waste Management (CIWM).

KEY SUPPORT AREAS: Business Strategy | Board Engagement | ‘Critical Friend’ and Mentor | Strategy Development | Governance and Risk

Marcella’s early career was in economic development before joining a global talent management company where she was UK & Ireland Client Services Director. For the last 10 years she has worked as an Interim Manager undertaking assignments across the third and public sectors:- initiating and implementing new projects, supporting Executive Teams in the development and execution of strategies and undertaking Board governance reviews.

Marcella has worked with SIS for 3 years on a range of assignments including SIS funding design and development and directly with social impact organisations on board development, Trustee recruitment, governance, funding/fundraising reviews and development of strategic business plans.

She is an experienced charity Trustee, a Non Executive Director with a national NHS Health Board and (part-time) CEO of an independent UK grant-maker.

KEY SUPPORT AREAS: Creative Sector | Business Development | Public Speaking | Storytelling | Strategic Planning

Rachael is a seasoned leader in the creative industries and social enterprise sector with over twenty years of experience. She is the CEO of the Creative Entrepreneurs Club - a member-driven community designed to help creative people grow sustainable businesses in an authentic and empathic way. 

Rachael was previously Chair of the Board for Youth Theatre Arts Scotland. She is experienced in supporting impact-led businesses and creative enterprises to flourish and grow.

KEY SUPPORT AREAS: Coaching | Leadership and Team Development | Experienced CEO | Trading and Business Growth | Charity Operations | Engagement with Boards | Board Development

Jane Bruce is the Founder of Founder at Brilliant Leaders a transformational coaching & development for mission-driven leaders and teams. She offers a model of modern leadership that is accessible and effective for the challenging times we are living in.

Jane has been operating at an executive level for the past 17 years including the role of CEO of Social Bite, a charity and social enterprise focused on ending homelessness where she led a team of 100+ staff and 90 volunteers to run a chain of social enterprise cafes, mass fundraising events and innovative housing programmes.

KEY SUPPORT AREAS: Business Planning & Corporate Strategy | Commercial Contracts & Tendering | Procurement & Supply Chain | Legal & Risk Management | Real Estate & Asset Management

Chloe Cannon is a qualified solicitor who has worked with both SMEs and FTSE-listed companies in commercial and strategy leadership roles across the engineering, energy and defence sectors. She has supported leadership teams with development and execution of corporate and commercial strategy. She has worked all over the world supporting multi-million-pound tenders, commercial contract negotiations and procurement activities. She has also been involved in multiple special corporate projects including Mergers & Acquisitions, partnerships and real estate developments.

Chloe is passionate about using her corporate and commercial skills to support impact-driven organisations to successfully develop their strategies to deliver maximum impact.

KEY SUPPORT AREAS: Placemaker | Social Impact | Social Innovation | Leadership | Coaching | Fundraising

Claire Carpenter is a social entrepreneur and expert in shaping public space that harnesses the ideas and assets of the people who use it. She is the founder of Scotland's Centre for Social Innovation, The Melting Pot.

After 20 years of leading The Melting Pot, Claire transitioned in late 2023 to focus on coaching and mentoring others in their own leadership roles. She is also involved in social impact consultancy and facilitation. In her free time, Claire enjoys climbing.

KEY SUPPORT AREAS: Property Development | Leasing | Capital Projects Governance and Structure | Business and Management Strategy | Raising Capital Funding

David Cook runs Cook Creative, a consultancy which supports creative, social and commercial companies with business change, property development and management support for social, cultural and community use. 

Over 3 decades, David has led charities and social enterprises, raising and investing over £30m in capital finance. He has developed numerous projects, from small community facilities of £100k up to complex multi-million-pound historic building refurbishments. He has served as trustee and chair on numerous charities and social enterprises and sat on boards distributing grants and loans.

David is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland and a previous winner of the EY Social Entrepreneur of the Year Scotland award.

KEY SUPPORT AREAS: Circular Economy | Sustainability Policy | Social Entrepreneurship | Partnership Development

Naomi is passionate about the circular economy having started her career managing operations for a recycling social enterprise in 1997.

She has worked on UK Waste Policy, recycling, reuse and repair strategies and overseen business support services for social enterprise and charity waste and recycling enterprises. Chair of Circular Communities Scotland, she is also currently working on various upscale reuse, repair and alternative consumption initiatives.

Outside of the circular economy, Naomi established a start-up social enterprise agency, Firstport, and its Social Entrepreneurs Fund developed the Buy Social Scotland initiative.

Naomi is also a published author relating tales of her two-year world cycling tour!