Meet the team

John spent three decades in commercial, retail and offshore banking before joining HM Revenue & Customs Criminal Investigation where he worked for over a decade as a Specialist Financial Investigator. For the last 18 years, as a Fellow of Teesside Business School, he’s also lectured on Criminal Finance to all branches of UK Law Enforcement and has travelled the world delivering training and technical assistance as a highly respected Subject Matter Expert.

The creator of the experiential learning platform, view360global and Director and CEO of Cognitas Global, Lawrie is a qualified Learning & Development Practitioner and has worked as a Subject Matter Expert in over 35 countries. He is also a Member of the Institute of Strategic Risk Management (IRSM) and L5 Award holder in Corporate Risk and Crisis Management.

Lawrie draws on 30 years in the Metropolitan Police, where he latterly specialised in financial investigation and economic crime. This has enabled him to work with clients including international aid organisations and foreign governments, designing and delivering training on national and transnational crime as well as designing and delivering diverse projects across all sectors.

Head of Co-investments at abrdn Private Equity and Chair of the European Investment Committee, Colin has been with abrdn and its predecessor companies since 2006. He’s now responsible for all aspects of its co-investments. Before this, he spent six years at Bridgepoint investing in mid-market European private equity, building on a previous role advising on mid-market buyouts with Andersen Corporate Finance. He also holds a LLB (Hons) in Law from the University of Strathclyde and a Securities Institute Diploma.

Jim has a wealth of experience across the Learning & Development industry. A qualified teacher, he’s also worked for government departments and agencies including the Home Office, FCDO, NCIS and Europol. During his time as the owner of a training centre specialising in business, IT and accounting, He honed his skills in creating bespoke programmes for the corporate sector and is an experienced e-learning practitioner. Jim is also a Member of the Institute of Strategic Risk Management (IRSM) and L5 Award holder in Corporate Risk and Crisis Management.

A qualified graphic designer, Nicola brings a wealth of management experience to her role as the leader of our design team. Before joining Cognitas in 2020, she worked for many years as a Studio Manager in a successful architectural practice. This gave her valuable experience in business and marketing and a talent for finding solutions to even the most taxing of design challenges.

Shaun spent three decades as Detective in the police before retiring in 2017. This included 18 years as a Financial Investigator playing a pivotal role in global investigations of money laundering, counter terrorism, drug trafficking, human trafficking and fraud. As a certified Learning & Development practitioner and Kirkpatrick New World Model Evaluator, he’s also spent the last three years designing and delivering blended training programmes for organisations across the world.

With over 18 years of experience in design and development, he brings a wealth of expertise to the table. Willy’s passion lies in crafting beautiful and functional designs, coupled with writing clean and efficient code.

Rob initially worked for us as an intern while studying graphic design. After graduating he joined the Cognitas Global team full-time and has since become an integral part of the design team bringing his flare and passion for design to all tasks he undertakes.

The smooth running of our office and training deliveries rely on Adina and her experience as a HR and Office Manager. An integral part of the team, she brings her passion and skill for problem solving, as well as efficiency and adeptness in maintaining and monitoring our CRM, liaising with our clients and providing logistical support to our busy team and specialist consultants.

Michael is a passionate video producer and editor who is skilled in capturing, editing, and enhancing visuals for compelling content, including professional lighting and sound recording. He holds a BA in Content, Media & Film Production from Met-film School and a Diploma of Education in Audio Production from SAE Institute. Detail-oriented and proactive in ensuring project quality and accuracy, Michael is dedicated to creating impactful visuals that resonate with our audiences.