Startups have a new voice in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills as Simon Devonshire and Professor Timothy Dafforn join as entrepreneurs-in-residence.
The pair were unveiled by Skills and Enterprise Minister Matthew Hancock a summit in Liverpool where he outlined Government’s wider commitment to supporting British small business.
About the pair, Hancock said:
Both Simon and Timothy bring a range of experience and knowledge of the needs of small businesses.
It is that expertise that we are bringing into the Department to make sure that this country is the best place for a business to start up, scale up and thrive.
Simon Devonshire
Devonshire is an established figure in Britain’s tech ecosystem.
He is director of Wayra Europe, Telefonica’s accelerator programme, and has co-founded six start-ups, three of which now have multi-million pound revenues.
In his new advisory role he will act as ‘scale-up’ entrepreneur, advising BIS on how to help small businesses achieve the growth and exports.
Professor Timothy Dafforn
Dafforn works as the Director of Knowledge Transfer, Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Birmingham.
Having also founded two startups, he will work with BIS on the exciting new industry of synthetic biology, which is believed to have huge potential for the life sciences and energy sectors.