Board of Directors
Sushila Khoot, FRSA
Chair of Board of Directors & Non-Executive Director
Sushila was former Head of Youth Service at the London Borough of Newham. She has operated as a Youth and Community Education Practitioner, Manager and Adviser within an inner-city environment for twenty years, both in the Voluntary and Statutory Youth and Community Service. For more than a decade she has worked as an external examiner/assessor with Higher Education Institutions and has been an Additional Inspector for Ofsted.
Sushila's involvement in the wider services for young people over the years include becoming an elected fellow at the Royal Society of Arts in 2004 and being the Chair of the Confederation Heads of Children & Young People's Services (formerly APYCO) in 2005. Over a career spanning 35 years, Sushila is regionally and nationally recognised for her contribution to youth and community work.
Rachel Elnaugh
Non-Executive Director
Entrepreneur
Former Dragon on BBC's Dragon's Den TV Show, Entrepreneur, Writer & Author, Business Speaker, Consultant & Mentor
Rachel Elnaugh is one of Britain's highest profile female entrepreneurs. Having started her working life as an office junior, at the age of 24 she created the market leading experiences brand Red Letter Days on a shoestring budget from the front room of her home. Red Letter Days went on to generate over £100million in turnover in the 16 years that she ran it, and in doing so pioneered the UK's £250 million experiences sector. In 2005, Rachel shot to fame as one of the original Dragons in BBCTV's BAFTA nominated cult business show Dragons' Den. Rachel has spent the past four years working in the Enterprise Sector inspiring, motivating and empowering entrepreneurs on their journey towards success.
Simon Carter
Non-Executive Director
Marketing Director, UK Government Division, Fujitsu
Simon Carter is a member of the senior UK management team of the largest division within the £27bn IT services company, Fujitsu. He has responsibility for marketing across UK Government, since joining in June 2009.
Simon started his career at NatWest, within 18 months understanding how retail branches integrate with both customers and "Head Office". He then joined that "Head Office" for 5 years marketing their flagship Current Account, Loans and Savings products. He moved to London Electricity to set up their marketing department, prior to the onset of deregulation in the UK utilities markets in the late 90's. From here he moved to Virgin, and was founding Commercial Director of their Home Services business - Virgin Home - helping them become the fastest growing gas and electricity company in the UK
After a spell in Australia, looking to extend the concept there, he spent a short period with EdF Energy (as Sales & Marketing Director), tasked with revamping their sales force, before joining the Post Office, as Marketing & Direct Sales Director for 3½ years as that business sought to re-invent itself from being an "outpost of Government" to becoming a competitive retailer, with the fastest growing telephony business in the UK, an impressive Financial Services arm, and quickly established itself as the UK's No.1 provider of foreign currency and travel insurance.
In 2006 he joined the main UK Executive Board of the global travel business, Thomas Cook, leading a central marketing team of 50 responsible for all marketing activity for the best-known and most respected name in travel, across its full range of brands (Thomas Cook, Airtours, Direct Holidays, Neilson, Club 18-30 etc.), and across the full product set - holidays, independent travel and financial services.
Dan McGuire
Non-Executive Director
Co-founder Broadbean Technology & Award Winning Entrepreneur
Dan has worked in the recruitment industry for 11 years, eight of those in the online sector running Broadbean Technology a company he co-founded in 2001, which has been ranked by Deloitte as one of the fastest growing technology companies in Europe, Middle East and Asia.
In November 2007 Dan won the CBI/Real Business Magazine Young Entrepreneur of the Year award, featured in the Growing Business Magazine Young Guns Class of 2008 (top 30 entrepreneurs under the age of 35) and in 2009 was named Online Recruitment Personality of the Year.
In October 2008 Dan and his business partner sold Broadbean to the Daily Mail and General Trust plc, a £2bn UK based media company. Dan left the company in November 2010 to pursue other ventures.
As well as being a founder Non-Executive Director of The Small Business Consultancy, Dan runs The Two Hour Initiative, a social enterprise created to help promote business in schools. Alongside this, Dan is a regular public speaker both on the professional business circuit and in schools and colleges.
Amar Lodhia, FRSA
Founder & Managing Director
The Small Business Consultancy CIC
Amar is the founder and Managing Director of The Small Business Consultancy. A passionate young serial entrepreneur, who runs and has investments in several businesses. Amar has a unique style and charisma that engages and draws people toward success. Having triumphed over much adversity in life, Amar has built this social enterprise to give something back to the community and has dedicated his life to supporting those in need. An alumni of the prestigious Cass Business School, Amar has sat on various steering groups including the Cass Entrepreneurs Network and in September 2010, Amar was shortlisted for the Shell LiveWIRE Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.
Amar's experience began from being long-term unemployed and being a disaffected and disenfranchised young person, to working with entrepreneurs and being part of Channel 4's Make Me a Million documentary and then being employed in senior sales roles to turn around failing businesses. As well as heading up The Small Business Consultancy, Amar is also a philanthropist, volunteers on many social regeneration related projects and recently launched a social enterprise fashion brand, London Swagga a youth led clothing label that will employ and allow young people to see their clothing designs in top retailers.
Amar is a board nominated fellow and elected Committee Member of the Royal Society of Arts and regular public speaker on social entrepreneurship and enterprise. Amar sits on the board of the undergraduate Business Studies and Management degrees at Cass Business School where he has a scholarship fund supporting two students from income deprived backgrounds every year to study a Business Studies or Management degree, during which scholars receive free mentoring and internships within The Small Business Consultancy.
Amar is also currently undertaking an MA in Lifelong Learning at the Institute of Education, University of London
