Meet the Symbiotics team

Hannah graduated from Aston University with a BA honours degree in International Business and Economics in 2003 before going on to work in global manufacturing and production, retail and software businesses before joining the Blakebrook group of which Symbiotics is part of in 2008. After completing her post Graduate studies in Marketing in 2009 Hannah has achieved and held Chartered Marketer status since, becoming a Fellow in 2020. In 2019 Hannah joined Symbiotics as Sales Director responsible for the sales strategy, marketing, industry insight and developing new business strategies. In 2021, Hannah was appointed Managing Director.

With over 25 years of international aviation experience, Shanthi is passionate about crew training and the benefits of aptitude testing particularly for the selection of cadet pilots. Shanthi's experience spans various areas of Pilot and Cabin Crew Training including Business Development and Sales, Customer Relations, Resource & Contract Management, Pilot Training Programme development, and the implementation of Flight Crew Training & Learning Management Systems – all in international and multicultural settings. At Symbiotics, Shanthi is responsible for creating and executing the company's strategic sales and business development plans for ATOs and Flight Schools globally as well as contributing to marketing & product development strategy and activities.

Kirsty graduated from London Metropolitan University with a Double BA Honours degree in Music and Media Management, with Events Management in 2008 before having a varied career in the aviation, insurance, and product management industries, before returning to aviation in 2022 at Symbiotics. After completing her post graduate studies, Kirsty has achieved and held MCIM status with the Chartered Institute of Marketing. Kirsty joined Symbiotics as Marketing Manager and is responsible for marketing strategy and budget along with day-to-day marketing including social media, email communications, and events.

Amy-Jade (AJ) started out her marketing career in the electric vehicle industry in 2017, where she subsequently went on to graduate from BIMM Birmingham with a first-class honours degree in Events Management in 2021. She brings with her a wealth of knowledge and experience in marketing and events, gained from various roles throughout the events industry including the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. AJ joined Symbiotics in 2024 as Marketing Executive and is responsible for supporting the Marketing Manager and wider business team with implementation of the marketing plan, and day-to-day marketing support including social media, email communications, events and more.

James graduated from Birmingham University with a BA Honours degree in Tourism Business Management in 2004. With a passion for aviation, he has over 20 years of experience in the sector, including international ground handling, aviation recruitment, and outsourced flight operations services. James has a strong background in consultative outsourced solutions and has built experience in operations, global account management, and global business development roles. In 2024, James joined Symbiotics as Head of Sales. He is accountable for all sales within the business, building customer relationships, and developing new sales and customer account strategies.

Karen is the Principal Occupational Psychologist at Symbiotics. She has previously been responsible for the development of psychology services within a number of sectors, particularly assessment processes for all levels of recruiting and internal promotion, from graduates to board level positions.

As a holder of the BPS certificate Specialist in Test Use: Occupational, Karen has a strong interest in the appropriate application of psychometrics in assessment and development and has explored the use of a variety of measures in various situations. Collaborating with an international test publisher, Karen was instrumental in creating the first International Conference on Emotional Intelligence, held in London in 2007 and subsequently around the world.

Emma joined Symbiotics in 2013 after completing a degree in Psychology, with first class honours from the University of West of England. Emma has over 10 years' experience applying psychological theory and understanding into the world of human performance, specialising in Selection and Assessment. She has been involved with the assessment of candidates' suitability against a variety of roles and organisations, co-ordinating worldwide assessment programmes. Since completing her MSc in Occupational Psychology in 2014, she is experienced in the delivery of the ADAPT suite of selection and assessment tools within a wide range of commercial and private companies, airlines and training organisations. Having gained the BPS 'Test User: Occupational, Ability and Personality' qualification, she has experience developing and delivering psychometric and behavioural assessments. An experienced interviewer, she is skilled in assisting clients to understand the impact of not only personality and skills, but also motivation within the selection process and workplace, to provide bespoke assessment solutions. Emma is an Aviation Psychologist accredited by EAAP (European Association of Aviation Psychology)

Caroline joined Symbiotics in 2015 after completing her BSc Psychology degree from Birmingham City University, having achieved first class honours as well as the Undergraduate Prize from the British Psychological Society. Since joining Symbiotics, Caroline has built on her interest in psychometrics and human behaviour through gaining experience in selection and assessment, applying her skills and understanding to offer culturally sensitive, bespoke assessment solutions and tailored candidate reports to a wide range of clients. Caroline has completed her BPS 'Test User: Occupation, Ability and Personality' qualification to further develop her understanding, and also applies her love of statistics through carrying out ongoing research and analysis designed to support further development and enhancement of the ADAPT suite of assessment tools.

Laura generated an interest in human behaviour during her degree in Sports Therapy from the University of Central Lancashire in 2010. Through her degree, Laura gained expertise in understanding human performance from a sporting perspective, which she is now applying to aviation through her current role. Since joining Symbiotics in 2014, Laura has gained several years' experience in Selection and Assessment, to provide bespoke and intelligent assessment solutions. Having gained the BPS ‘Test User: Occupation, Ability and Personality' qualification to enhance her fundamental understanding of human behaviour and psychometric assessments, she is experienced in the delivery and development of the ADAPT suite of assessment tools. Most recently, Laura has successfully completed her Postgraduate Diploma in Human Factors in Aviation. Laura is an experienced Skype interviewer, assessing candidates worldwide for their role and organisational fit and in analysing data and writing candidate reports, Laura shows an understanding of the impact of personality, skills, motivation and culture on performance in the workplace.

After obtaining an MSc in Occupational Psychology in 2013, Aleksandra has been working in aviation gaining a wide range of experience in European assessments and selection programs of cadets and active pilots whilst working with a range of airlines, aviation companies and training organisations. Aleksandra is an EAAP accredited Aviation Psychologist, an assessor and KSA100 assessment specialist.

Anca moved to the United Kingdom to follow her passion and broaden her knowledge in Psychology. She graduated from Bangor University with a BSc degree in Psychology in 2019 and continued her studies at Coventry University where she achieved a MSc degree in Occupational Psychology in 2021. Anca supports psychology service work such as interviews, group exercises and client training along with continuous R&D of psychological tools.

Klara graduated from the University of Worcester with a First-Class BSc single honours Psychology degree in 2021 and went on to finish her MSc in Occupational Psychology in 2022 at the same university. She is also a member of the British Psychological Society. Klara supports psychology service work such as interviews, group exercises and client training along with continuous R&D of psychological tools.

Richard started his career working as a software engineer in safety and mission critical industries, evolving skills in developing robust and secure applications, before progressing into project leadership and management roles, working with global OEMs.

As Product Development Manager, Richard oversees the software team and is responsible for the deployment of learning and assessment platforms to clients in diverse markets ranging from Financial Services to Aviation. More recently, Richard has been utilizing the latest web technologies to deploy and manage learning and assessments globally for MNE's.

Kris joined Symbiotics in 2023 after working as a Product Owner for 5 years across various industries. He brings with him experience in ownership of differing web and ecommerce products. As Product Owner, Kris is responsible for Symbiotics' Product roadmap and development, as well as the project management of our ADAPT development plan.

Since its inception, Matthew has been the software architect for the ADAPT 2 platform. With a background in software engineering for safety-critical applications, primarily in aerospace, Matthew is experienced in developing robust, secure, software. More recently Matthew has been involved with the development of cloud-based e-learning platforms for global clients.

Kelvin graduated from Aston University with a BSc degree in Computer Science in 2022. He supports technical work such as the development of Symbiotics' robust and secure software platforms and products, with day to day activities including design, programming and testing.

Sue joined the Blakebrook group in 2018 and has been working as part of the Symbiotics Leadership Team since 2019. Sue qualified as a Chartered Accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers in 2003 and has since had an extensive career within retail, FMCG and Service sectors. Sue has broad Group responsibilities managing all aspects of Finance and HR but also works closely with the Symbiotics team, advising on strategy and supporting with commercial reviews.

Simon joined Symbiotics in June 2016 after working for 30 years in the Refractory Industry in various Technical, Commercial and Operational positions. Simon originally trained as a chemist. Simon has travelled extensively and has an abundance of experience dealing with both domestic and international customers. He is now employed as our Business Operations Manager and is responsible for coordinating and controling the day to day operational aspects of Symbiotics.

Zoe brings to her role a wealth of customer service skills gained over 20 years across a series of roles within the Automotive Industry. Zoe provides customer support to all our Airlines, Flight Schools, OEMs, Business Jet Operators, and other aviation businesses. Alongside this, she also provides support to Symbiotics operational, marketing and sales teams.

Heide joined Symbiotics in 2024. As an IT professional with over 22 years of experience as an engineer and working in service management, her most recent roles have included working in Customer Success and Account Management. Heide brings with her a wealth of experience in building and maintaining client relationship, ensuring a deep understanding of their needs and expectations. At Symbiotics, as Account Manager Heide will be responsible for the success of key client accounts. She'll be working with our clients to understand their needs, challenges and goals – ensuring they continue to receive the exceptional customer satisfaction the've come to expect from us.

Jason manages the company infrastructure, along with his dedicated IT team. With over 20 years' experience, Jason maintains all things IT including all aspects of network security and protection against data loss.

Coming from an IT support background he has spent the last 11 years getting our network working efficiently and running the companies support helpdesk team.