Our Judges

With over 15 years commercial experience in professional Sport, James heads up the Sales & Events team at Northampton Saints. Previous to this he spent time at both Leicester Tigers and more recently Wasps before joining the Saints in April 2022. Much of James’ time away from the club is taken up being a Dad and trying to keep as active as possible

Amy is a Partner in Tollers employment team with over 16 years’ experience in providing practical and commercial advice to business both small and large on all areas of HR and employment law.  She particularly enjoys getting to know her clients so her advice is tailored to meet their individual needs.  Amy has 2 children and much of her spare time is taken up acting at their taxi driver and managing their social calendars.

With over 15 years’ experience, David heads up the Northampton office audit department specialising in the legal, charitable and healthcare sectors, alongside advising a general practice portfolio of varying sizes. He trained and qualified at Hawsons, having worked in both the Doncaster and Sheffield offices before being promoted to manager and subsequently a partner at the firm’s Northampton office.

He is married with two young children and during his spare time, likes to go out running and enjoys a variety of music. He is a keen supporter of Leeds United although recently he has spent many Saturdays at the Sixfields stadium following Northampton Town.

Will is a Chartered Accountant and Partner at the Hawsons Northampton office with over a decade of experience in the profession. He joined the practice in 2012 after working for one of the Big 4 accountancy firms in Birmingham. Will has a wealth of experience in supporting his clients with audit, accountancy and taxation services. He provides proactive advice to corporate entities, sole traders, partnerships and charities on a wide range of business and taxation matters.

Much of Will’s time away from the office is now taken up with being a Dad. He also enjoys keeping fit and active, playing the guitar, and travelling abroad.

Sam joined SEMLEP in August 2019, having previously worked as an Office Manager for over five years in the horticultural industry, Sam has experience in planning, organisation and executing a range of events, from trade shows to conferences. In education, Sam achieved a triple distinction diploma in Business and was awarded ‘business student of the year’ and ‘highest achiever’. In her spare time, Sam enjoys spending time with loved ones and is a competitive figure athlete.

Patrick joined the Growth Hub in 2023. Patrick’s focus is to ensure all businesses across the South East Midlands are aware of the support, advice and resources the Growth Hub provides to the local business community. Having spent over six-years working agency side, supporting clients such as Lenovo, Zoom and Sage, Patrick brings experience in developing strategic marketing programmes for global organisations. Away from the Growth Hub, Patrick is Head Coach of Wellingborough Old Grammarians RFC.

Louise has worked with leading global organisations in FMCG, Tech, and Healthcare industries, leading major recruitment and HR projects. As Co-Founder and Director of Four Talent, she delivers executive search and HR solutions with a passion for creating exceptional client and candidate experiences.

Outside of work, Louise is a mum of two boys, a keen cook, and is currently trying to master the frog balance in yoga—progress pending!

Fred Ojigbani, MBA is the director of Mainstream Careers Limited; a muti-award winning consultancy and tech training provider that supports organisations with their staff recruitment needs, Business Process Documentation requirements, as well as their tech training needs.

Fred has over 15 years’ experience working in various consulting positions across various sectors; more specifically, he has consulted for FTSE 100 companies such as Barclays Bank, Lloyds Banking Group, Royal Bank of Scotland and EDF Energy.

With 14 years as a media director, I love forging new business strategies, product marketing, and sales promotions across diverse platforms like print and events. Leading Your Business Expo, Business MK, Business Times and MK & NN Pulse Magazines, I ensure engaging content and manage partnerships for influential campaigns. I’m committed to elevating customer engagement and loyalty through top-tier media services.

Martin has been the Station Manager of NLive Radio for over 5 years, taking the station from strength to strength, now being Northampton’s most local – local radio station. He’s passionate about local people, local organisations, and local business, a philosophy that is threaded throughout the station. In addition to that, he’s the Co-founder and Director of the UK Community Radio Network the national trade body represents, supports, and develops Community Radio across the country

Adrian has a career spanning banking, travel & tourism, the food & drink industry and not for profit sectors. He holds an MBA from IESE, Spain. Fluent in Spanish, he has 30 years’ international experience in both established businesses and start-ups, as well as one year with the World Bank. Adrian is a trained B Corp Leader and advises companies on their social impact strategy. In 2017 Adrian was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant (DL) of Northamptonshire for services to business and charity. He is Chair of  the Institute of Director’s National Sustainability Group.