Served for 35 years in the British Army’s Intelligence Corps before retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2019.  During that time he served in Northern Ireland, the Balkans, the Gulf, Afghanistan and Pakistan.  After leaving the Army he joined Somerford Associates in a new post as the Strategy Director, a role that sees him straddle the public and private sector through senior stakeholder engagement, translating strategic business risk to current and emerging technologies.  Whilst he does not profess to be a cyber SME, he does know the importance of information and its criticality to support the decision-maker.

In 2019, John joined Somerford Associates in a new role, leading the company’s strategic outreach and engagement capability. He also serves as the head of the Somerford Veterans Network. John has been instrumental in providing free job placement support, mentoring, and networking assistance to members of the Defence Military Intelligence community; in the last 12 months, he has assisted approximately 350 personnel of all ranks and service backgrounds, into employment.  Additionally, he manages a closed LinkedIn networking site with over 1600 members, both Regulars and Reservists. John spearheaded Somerford’s application for the Bronze and Silver Defence Employer Recognition scheme. Prior to Somerford, John served for 35 years in the British Army’s Intelligence Corps, joining as a Private soldier and progressing through the ranks to Lieutenant Colonel. His service included operational tours to Northern Ireland, the Balkans, the Middle East, the Gulf and South Asia.