Since graduating from Loughborough University with a First-Class Industrial Design & Technology degree, my career at Triumph Motorcycles has been driven by delivering the best customer experience, and thriving in the new product development process.
Over more than sixteen years in design, engineering and product development, I’ve learned that great outcomes rarely come from having all the answers. They come from asking the right questions, embracing uncertainty and helping people move forwards with confidence. Bringing clarity to complexity and helping teams make meaningful progress is what motivates me most. Whether developing products, aligning stakeholders through engaging and compelling presentations, or leading people through change, I enjoy the challenge of turning ambitious ideas into practical reality.
My i-style leadership approach is rooted in action, strong relationships and enthusiasm. I’m at my best when removing obstacles, creating momentum and helping talented people do their best work. Great engineering happens when technical excellence is combined with trust, collaboration and a willingness to learn. The most rewarding part of leadership isn’t directing people where to go, it’s helping them realise they’re capable of more than they thought possible.
Championing future talent
Outside of my day job, I am passionate about championing Design & Technology education and supporting future talent. That passion led me to establish the Triumph Design Awards, creating opportunities for GCSE and A level students of D&T to showcase their creativity, innovation and problem-solving skills. Through initiatives like this, I have seen first-hand that talent exists everywhere, but opportunity does not always find it.
More recently, I was appointed as a Trustee of the Design & Technology Association (D&TA), working alongside fellow industry leaders and educational visionaries to champion Design & Technology education across the UK. By working at the intersection of industry, governance, and education, I hope to play a small part in ensuring the next generation of designers, engineers, innovators and change-makers are equipped with the skills needed to solve real-world problems.
Design & Technology taught me to be curious, embrace uncertainty, and see problems as opportunities to learn. Those lessons continue to shape how I lead, how I solve problems, and how I support others to succeed
Serving the Local Community
Alongside my engineering and educational work, I volunteer on the front line as a Community First Responder in support of the East Midlands Ambulance Service. I’m the Hinckley District Scheme Coordinator and lead a team of ten Community First Responders who all respond to 999 emergencies in their own time. Often ariving before the ambulance, we are able to provide life saving treatment in those first critical minutes.
Responding to medical emergencies in my local community is a deeply grounding experience. It reinforces the value of calm composure, clear communication, and decisive teamwork when stakes are high – qualities that carry directly back into how I lead teams through complex engineering challenges.
I also actively contribute to local initiatives as a Corporate Rotarian with Triumph’s Rotary Impact Club, in partnership with Rotary Club of Hinckley Ambion.
Family, Climbing & Lasting Impact
Away from design offices, and patient’s homes, my priority is family life – raising the next generation, exploring the outdoors in our campervan, and rock climbing. Getting out and doing nice things in nice places is how I recharge, and continue to develop my appreciation and respect for risk.
Climbing, at it’s core, is an exercise in calm, honest risk assessment. It isn’t about being reckless; it is about reading the environment, understanding consequences, and making confident decisions when the margin for error is small. I carry that same philosophy into parenting. I am a strong believer in the value of “risky play” and giving children the freedom to test their own boundaries, and learn from failure, rather than wrapping them in cotton wool. Introducing them to risk, through the outdoors has been my way of doing this.
“They say you can judge a society by its prisons. I’d add its playgrounds…. Risky play teaches one of life’s most important rules: the ability to hang on tight and be brave.”
Andy Kirkpatrick
Learning to assess risk, face uncertainty, and build resilience starts early – and those lessons apply just as much in the playground or on a mountain as they do in an engineering studio.
Looking back at my career so far, I am most proud of not the products I have helped develop, but of the people, teams and initiatives that are stronger because I was involved. If I have achieved anything of lasting value, I hope it has helped others discover what they are capable of and given them the confidence to exceed their own expectations.
“Your purpose in life is to find your purpose and to give your whole heart and soul to it.”
