Meet the Team
- Glen Banks
- Managing Director
Number of years with Kinspeed:
7 years
Industry experience/background:
A qualified accountant, who loves implementing systems and simplifying processes.
Education and training:
FCCA (Certified Accountant), every Sage 200 qualification in existence, NetSuite SuiteFoundation certified, Salesforce Certified Administrator.
Typical workday:
Every day is different, it can be helping to solve customer queries, devising business strategy, speaking to our teams to solve issues, or liaising with our various internal and external stakeholders.
Project I’m most proud of:
Ensuring Kinspeed retains the ethos of our founder and retired MD, Ian Wragg, whilst bringing some of my own personality and drive to the business.
Favourite part of my job:
No two days being the same, it adds to the variety.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me: Probably working at home since March 2020! Seriously, usually you find me either on a golf course, sat at Oakwell supporting Barnsley FC, or running silly distances – I have 3 London Marathon medals so far.
Likes:
Spending time with my family, walking or running on the Yorkshire Coast, a nice glass of Malt Whisky.
Dislikes:
Dishonest people, Marmite and vodka.
Personality in three words: Honest, considered, and a Yorkshireman!
- Marc Crossland
- Commercial Director
Number of years with Kinspeed:
17 years
Industry experience/background:
Warehousing, distribution and process.
Education and training:
Fully Sage and NetSuite accredited, BSC(hons) Computer Studies.
Typical workday:
Every day is varied, but essentially I deal with clients – existing and new – develop staff and support staff to ensure that our customers needs are met.
Project I’m most proud of:
There are several, but I am most proud of the relationships we’ve built up with some of the UK’s largest companies.
Favourite part of my job:
Being involved on a strategic level with clients, to discuss potential ideas and then turning those ideas into reality.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
On a golf course and spending time with friends and family…but mostly on the golf course!
Likes:
Holidays abroad
Live music
Family time.
Dislikes:
DIY
Losing golf balls
Sprouts.
Personality in three words:
Thoughtful, confident, fair.
- Chris Searle
- Development Director
Number of years with Kinspeed:
15 years
Industry experience/background:
Developer/IT Support.
Education and training:
BSc Computing Software Engineering.
Typical workday:
Coding and planning projects. Having project meetings and managing the Development department.
Project I’m most proud of:
GL Hearn – GLHIMS.
Favourite part of my job:
Developing or thinking of a solution to a problem or how a project solution might be achieved.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Spending time with my family and friends, walking, playing on the Xbox and anything football related.
Likes:
Football, football, football. Did I mention football?
Dislikes:
Not much apart from mushrooms.
Personality in three words:
Motivated, calm, approachable.
- Darren Brooke
- Technical Director
Number of years with Kinspeed:
Many
Industry experience/background:
Manufacturing and IT.
Education and training:
BEng (Hons), MEng.
Typical workday:
I don’t think there is a typical workday. Most days are different. Dealing with technical aspects of projects and resourcing to get the desired solution.
Project I’m most proud of:
There are many projects, large and small, contract and internal, which I’m proud of.
Favourite part of my job:
New projects and new solutions to problems. The industry is always changing and adapting to meet those demands is rewarding.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
With the family and the dogs.
Likes:
Marmite. MOT. ALAW.
Dislikes:
I used to dislike cauliflower, now I don’t.
- Abbi Timson
- Support Supervisor/Office Manager
Number of years with Kinspeed:
10 years
Industry experience/background:
I was hired during university.
Education and training:
Degree in Creative Writing.
Typical workday:
Organise people, fix issues, maintain the internal financial system and provide excellent customer service.
Favourite part of my job:
Coordinating tasks and people.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
In the gym.
Likes:
Cats, vodka and BTS.
Dislikes:
Clutter, inactivity and meat.
Personality in three words:
Determined, compassionate, workaholic.
- Scott Furniss
- Lead Developer
Number of years with Kinspeed:
11.5 years
Industry experience/background: Prior to Kinspeed, university and some freelance web projects.
Education and training:
Computer Science at Manchester Metropolitan University.
Typical workday:
Working and managing high-profile client projects or working on internal projects. Also meetings.
Favourite part of my job:
Finishing a project or working on new internal projects.
Project I’m most proud of:
boohoo.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
In the gym, at the cinema, in the kitchen, at gigs, on my PC.
Likes:
Video games, music, cooking.
Dislikes:
Talking about myself.
Personality in three words:
Funny, laid back, approachable (I asked for help on this).
- Daniel Wright
- .Net Developer
Number of years with Kinspeed:
2 years
Industry experience/background:
13+ years Software Developer.
Education and training: BSc (Hons) Computer Studies, HND Computing.
Typical workday:
A developer stand up meeting in the morning followed by developing new features and fixing issues.
Favourite part of my job:
Developing new software.
Project I’m most proud of:
The hereditament hierarchy tree view work for GL Hearn.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Socialising, growing vegetables in the garden, going for walks or playing badminton.
Likes:
Going on holiday, spending time in the garden and following football.
Dislikes:
Having nothing to do, watching reality TV shows and going shopping.
Personality in three words:
Happy, friendly, outgoing.
- Thomas Hanson
- Developer
Number of years with Kinspeed:
3 years
Industry experience/background:
Website & software development.
Education and training:
BEng (Hons) in Software Engineering.
Typical workday:
Discussing and planning upcoming projects. Providing support and liaising with clients. Working on daily set tasks.
Favourite part of my job:
Working on interesting projects with lots of scope for learning new skills and personal development.
Project I’m most proud of:
Existing and continued migration of legacy features for GL Hearn’s GLHIMS.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Playing Xbox, watching F1, golfing, washing the car, or on a walk.
Likes:
Chocolate, food, music.
Dislikes:
Rain, negativity, waking up early.
Personality in three words:
Relaxed, determined, friendly.
- Nick Jakeman
- Software Engineer
Number of years with Kinspeed:
1 year.
Industry experience/background:
Using C#/VB.NET
Education and training:
Computer Science for Games at Sheffield Hallam University.
Typical workday:
Check emails and tickets, morning stand-ups, and then work through any minor tickets that have come up since the previous day. Work through the bigger pieces of work in order or priority.
Favourite part of my job:
Releasing a new feature or project I created.
Project I’m most proud of:
New tools and features I’ve added to Sage for Boohoo.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Usually either at the gym or at home gaming.
Likes:
Gaming, weightlifting, travelling.
Dislikes:
>20c in the UK, wasps, cheese.
Personality in three words:
Friendly, competitive, positive.
- Connor McGarrigle
- Developer
Number of years with Kinspeed:
2 years
Industry experience/background: I recently graduated and began at Kinspeed as my first development job, with many years of personal development experience in a variety of languages.
Education and training:
Bachelor Degree (Hons) in Games Computing (BSc).
Typical workday:
My typical workday consists of working on various projects in .NET and SQL, assisting clients, developers and monitoring deployed integrations.
Favourite part of my job:
Releasing a finished project.
Project I’m most proud of:
Boohoo day-to-day tickets around custom form development and integration additions.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Playing games, reading a book or developing.
Likes:
Visiting friends, snowboarding and music.
Dislikes:
Long distance driving, hot countries and quizzes.
Personality in three words:
Impatient, eager and curious.
- Rebecca Brookes
- Company Accountant
Number of years with Kinspeed:
2 years
Industry experience/background:
Accountant, will writer, financial management.
Education and training:
MAAT, CIMA part, ACCA part, IPW
Typical workday:
Busy and varied.
Favourite part of my job:
The varied job role and bank reconciling.
Project I’m most proud of:
The company has many big projects, including boohoo, PRETTYLITTLETHING and Plumco.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Renovating houses, shopping, reading, football, with my family.
Likes:
Fashion, business, Netflix.
Dislikes:
sushi, walking and waiting.
Personality in three words:
Bubbly, strong minded and driven.
- Jack Waters
- Developer
Number of years with Kinspeed:
7 years
Industry experience/background:
Prior to Kinspeed, none.
Education and training:
College, apprenticeship level 3 and 4.
Typical workday:
Rotating lead developer on Boohoo & PrettyLittleThing workload, working on long term client/internal projects, daily stand-ups and meetings with clients, answering emails.
Favourite part of my job:
Internal projects.
Project I’m most proud of:
Fast Despatch 2.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Gaming – pre-COVID – travelling, hikes/biking.
Likes:
Gaming, music, cars.
Dislikes:
Standing in queues, traffic, slow computers.
Personality in three words:
At work: resourceful, adaptable, independent.
- Tom Kingswood
- Developer
Number of years with Kinspeed:
9 years
Industry experience/background:
No prior industry experience before joining Kinspeed.
Education and training:
College – Video Games development level 3. Apprenticeship level 3 and level 4 software development. University apprenticeship, year two of three.
Typical workday:
Check emails, morning stand-up, plan day… work on assigned tasks, keep up with emails and assist team throughout the day.
Favourite part of my job:
There is always more to learn! Also, seeing your work being used in real world scenarios to improve productivity and provide business critical functionality to clients is extremely rewarding.
Project I’m most proud of:
Accesspay (Bank) integration for Boohoo / PrettyLittleThing.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Gaming, fishing, walking in the countryside.
Likes:
Technology, holidays, dogs.
Dislikes:
Slow internet, cold weather, SUFC.
Personality in three words:
Friendly, driven, supportive.
- Trefor Teare
- Support Analyst
Number of years with Kinspeed:
2 years
Industry experience/background:
I have 20+ years experience in IT Support roles. I provide support, training, system design, development and implementations for hardware, software, databases and web-based IT systems.
Education and training:
Educated to Master’s degree level and have undertaken a large number of IT certificated courses over the years.
Typical workday:
The day begins with our morning Support Team meeting. Then it all depends on our customers. In between investigating ongoing problems or completing projects tasks for customer system implementations and upgrades. Every day is varied with the occasional surprise thrown in.
Favourite part of my job:
I enjoy interacting with customers and working to satisfy their requirements, be that resolving a problem or implementing a solution to make their lives easier.
Project I’m most proud of:
The most recent project is always my proudest achievement as it will be my best work, based on the culmination of experience and learning to that date.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Out in the woods or country parks with my family and our dog.
Likes and dislikes:
I never focus too much on the good and bad things in life as these tend to change with my mood and the hours of the day.
Personality in three words:
Ask my friends.
- Jack Creswick
- Apprentice Developer
Number of years with Kinspeed:
2 years
Industry experience/background:
Came straight from finishing secondary school.
Education and training:
Grade A* – C in all GCSEs, level 3 apprenticeship.
Typical workday:
Going through any assigned tasks and maintaining current software for clients, resolving any issues/bugs or adding any new features.
Favourite part of my job:
Programming and developing new apps or new features for current apps as I really like the feeling of knowing I contributed to creating something that is being used in real world scenarios.
Project I’m most proud of:
Ceramica Better Bathrooms report generator as it is the first one I made myself from scratch.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
At my home desk playing games, watching football or Formula 1, at SUFC matches.
Likes:
Gaming, football (SUFC), Formula 1.
Dislikes:
SWFC, seafood.
Personality in three words:
Observant, competitive, quick-learner.
- Liam Lenton
- Junior .Net Developer
Number of years with Kinspeed:
2 years
Industry experience/background: I’m on university placement and combing study knowledge with learning from client projects.
Education and training: After A-Levels, I changed my area of study to Software Engineering at university level.
Typical workday:
A developer stand-up meeting starts my day, ensuring that as a developer, I know what my focus is for the day. I usually spend the day assisting our support/technical team with bug fixes, in addition to new development projects. I also attend meetings to discuss work progress and testing, for colleague assistance and clarity.
Favourite part of my job:
Fixing bugs – especially the ones that have spent ages annoying me.
Speaking with colleagues.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Currently: Home. Usually: Anywhere that sells food and beer.
Likes:
Gaming, football, strong cup of tea.
Dislikes:
Spiders, slow internet and heights (but I enjoy plane flights).
Personality in three words:
Positive, outgoing, imperturbable.
- Gordon Clark
- Lead Generation
Number of years with Kinspeed:
2 years
Industry experience/background:
7 years at Sage in Sales and Business Development.
Typical workday:
Typical workday Prospecting new clients and data input.
Favourite part of my job:
Being part of a company that wants to help businesses thrive.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Knee-deep in grass looking for my golf ball or kids hanging off me.
Likes:
My Family, golf, and Newcastle Utd
Dislikes:
Rudeness, lateness and spending my money.
Personality in three words:
Outgoing, fun, and thoughtful.
- Steve Stratton
- Project Manager
Number of years with Kinspeed:
3 years
Industry experience/background:
21 years implementing systems from agricultural machinery dealers, through construction, manufacturing and retail.
Education and training:
AAT
All Sage Modules
Dynamics Nav 2015
Salesforce Admin
NetSuite Demo and Delivery.
Typical workday:
Since lockdown – Join/Leave/Join/You’re on mute.
Pre-lockdown – Site visits and implementing systems.
Favourite part of my job:
Handing over a site to support after a successful go live.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Fishing, playing football, cricket, petanque, reading, painting, quiz nights, puzzle books, cooking, pantomime, and babysitting grandchildren.
Likes:
New Evanescence album, wine, AFC Bournemouth.
Dislikes:
Child Maintenance Agency, soap operas, American Football – 1 hour of entertainment in just 4 hours.
Personality in three words:
Sarcastic and upbeat with serious undertones.
- Darren Clark
- IT Support Technician
Number of years with Kinspeed:
1 year
Industry experience/background: 20 years-plus in IT.
Education and training:
Typical workday:
Hard to say, as you never know what might crop up.
Favourite part of my job:
Every day is different, talking to customers, fixing their issues, and providing great customer service.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
Gaming, playing the guitar, spending time with family, watching football, listening to Talksport.
Likes:
Football, music, aviation.
Dislikes:
Mess, mustard, cricket.
Personality in three words:
Honest, genuine, kind
- Kulwinder Singh
- Support Analyst
Number of years with Kinspeed:
1 year
Industry experience/background: 20 years-plus in IT.
Education and training:
BSc (Hons) Computer and Network Technology
Sage 200 Installation and Configuration Product Specialist
Sage 200 Financials Product Specialist
Sage 50cloud Accounts Level 1-4
Typical workday:
Handling support queries, project work as required and supporting colleagues with Sage 200 and Report design queries.
Favourite part of my job:
Satisfaction on resolving a complex support query.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me:
At home.
Likes:
Indian food, Movies and Games
Dislikes:
Quizzes, Shopping in stores, Rain
Personality in three words:
Ambitious, Trustworthy, Approachable
- Andy Barker
- Operations Manager
Number of years with Kinspeed:
1 year
Industry experience/background: 18 years in the Sage and IT industry covering almost every
role!
Education and training:
BA (Hons) in Public Relations and fully Sage 200 accredited
Typical workday:
No two days are ever the same which keeps things exciting.
Making sure all customer needs are met and contributing to
implementations, training, demonstrations, or sales!
Favourite part of my job:
Finding solutions to problems, learning about customers
systems and processes, meeting people, and building lasting
relationships, and completing projects!
When I’m not in the office, you can find me: At Bramall Lane watching Sheffield United, cooking and eating
delicious food, or exercising.
Likes:
Keeping fit and healthy, watching sport, exploring and holidaying in the UK
Dislikes:
Mess, being unorganised, spiders.
Personality in three words:
Honest, friendly, optimistic
- Scott Waller
- Sage Business Development
Number of years with Kinspeed:
1 year
Industry experience/background: 16 years’ experience in an Accountancy Practice, 3 years with previous Sage Business Partner
Education and training:
Former MAAT qualified accountant, Sage 200 Accredited
Typical workday:
Currently managing my time between projects and new sales.
Favourite part of my job:
Dealing face to face with customers, helping them identify the right solution to help their business grow and building up lasting relationships along the way.
When I’m not in the office, you can find me: In the gym, running, walking, spending time with family and friends
Likes:
The great outdoors, Football & Family
Dislikes:
Peppers! Politics & Fake Personas
Personality in three words:
Honest, Genuine & Outgoing
