Board of Directors

Skills, competence and experience

Neil’s former CEO experience and current roles as a plc Chairman and Non-Executive Director brings to the Board relevant knowledge, challenge and leadership.

Starting his career at Sandhurst and the Army, Neil spent much of his early career in the automotive and engineering industries. He was worldwide Sales and Marketing Director at Jaguar before being seconded to the UK Ministry of Defence to command 4th Battalion The Royal Green Jackets. He returned to the industry with British Aerospace, initially running Land Rover and then all of its European automotive operations. Neil was later CEO of the RAC, and former Director General of the EEF and a Home Office appointed Independent Member of the Metropolitan Police Authority. He was previously Chairman of Motability Operations and Centaur Media plc.

Skills, competence and experience

Steve’s proven track record of driving growth, and his in-depth experience of defence and technology industries is of essential importance and benefit to the Board.

Steve is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, the Royal Aeronautical Society, and the Royal Academy of Engineering. He was previously Co-Chair of the UK Defence Growth Partnership, a member of the Prime Minister’s Business Advisory Group, Co-Chair of the National Defence Industries Council Research and Development Group, and a Non-Executive Director of the UK MOD Research and Development Board. Steve has held various roles with MBDA, including as Managing Director, MBDA UK. Previously he held various roles with Matra BAe Dynamics and British Aerospace.

Skills, competence and experience

Martin has more than 25 years' experience leading multi-disciplinary teams in senior finance roles. He brings valuable global experience particularly in the UK, US and Australia, coupled with deep financial and operational expertise and significant experience in the capital markets. His detailed understanding of our sector and the markets we operate in will be instrumental in helping the Group perform and grow. Martin is a Chartered Accountant, having qualified at PricewaterhouseCoopers. He subsequently moved to Credit Suisse and then to BAE Systems where he held numerous finance roles over a 22-year career. These included UK Rest of World Financial Controller, Divisional Finance Director and Head of Investor Relations.

Skills, competence and experience

Steve has vast experience in both executive and nonexecutive roles across a range of sectors. In particular, his long and comprehensive international defence and security sector experience equip him to further develop the skill sets of our Board. Steve has a first class honours degree in astrophysics, maths and physics from London University. Formerly the CEO of United Utilities Group PLC, Steve started his career at British Aerospace. During his long career with them, he held a number of senior positions before being appointed COO and a member of the BAE Systems plc Board. Steve then joined Finmeccanica as Chief Executive of SELEX Galileo. He also served on the Board of G4S plc as Senior independent Director up to its acquisition in 2021.

Skills, competence and experience

Shonaid has widespread experience as an Executive and Non-executive Director spanning a variety of sectors, including industrial and technology-based businesses with international operations. This, combined with her extensive financial experience, is invaluable in her role as Chair of the Audit Committee. Shonaid is a Fellow of the ICAEW. Previously she was the Chief Operating Officer of CDC Group plc, the UK Government’s development finance institution, having joined from Unilever, where she was Senior Vice-President Finance and Information, Home and Personal Care, originally in Asia and later for the Group as a whole. Her early career was spent at KPMG, latterly as a partner. Her Board-level experience includes Non-executive Chair of Greencoat Wind plc, MSAmlin plc and Non-executive Director at GKN plc.

Skills, competence and experience

Dina is a highly experienced HR leader with over 30 years’ experience gained across both private and PLC business environments. She has a strong track record of working with international workforces, building high-performing teams to deliver change and drive results, whilst ensuring that strategic outcomes are balanced with a continued focus on people, culture and wellbeing as a core priority. Dina read Business Studies and gained a Post Graduate Diploma in Personnel Management from Teesside University. Dina is Chief People Officer of global technology provider Datatec Group and Logicalis International, accountable for its people operations and strategy. Previously she was Global HR Director at Truphone, responsible for driving a collaborative and innovationcentred culture. She has also held positions as Group HR Director for Teledyne e2v and Northgate Information Solutions.

Skills, competence and experience

Roger served as the Chairman and CEO of Leidos Holdings, Inc. from 2014 until his retirement in 2023. Previously, he has served as a Director of BorgWarner Inc. and of Mercury Systems Inc., and as President of Network and Space Systems for The Boeing Company from 2006 to 2014. He also held various senior programme management and finance positions at Boeing, McDonnell Douglas Corporation and General Dynamics Corporation. Roger is a Certified Public Accountant and has a bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, a master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington and a Master of Business Administration from the Harvard Graduate School of Business.

Skills, competence and experience

Gordon brings considerable experience from the armed forces having served for 37 years as a Royal Marine. Throughout his military career he served in key appointments in various UK and NATO headquarters, overseeing the planning and execution of UK and coalition military and humanitarian relief operations worldwide. He most recently served as Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, a position he held for three years until his retirement in 2019. His unique experience enables him to provide invaluable insight in his role as the Chair of the Risk & Security Committee.

Skills, competence and experience

Ezinne has had more than 20 years of U.S. government service, most recently as Assistant Director at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy from 2021 to 2024, where she had overall responsibility for Space Policy. Her career has included contributions to U.S. national policy and more than 60 NASA missions and programmes, and her work has resulted in strategies for U.S. technological leadership and future economic growth. She earned an undergraduate degree in Computer Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and master’s degrees in Aerospace Systems, Space Robotics and Science & Technology Policy from John Hopkins University, MIT and Harvard University, respectively. She also earned a doctorate degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics from MIT.

Skills, competence and experience

James joined QinetiQ as an in-house lawyer in 2004, progressing through various roles to Head of the Group Legal and Intellectual Property team, before becoming Group Director Legal and Company Secretary. Prior to QinetiQ, James worked as in-house Legal Counsel at Transport for London, and has a background in London-based private legal practice.