EUAN DUNCAN, chair business forum west

Euan Duncan focuses and advises upon all forms of IP protection and commercialisation, software licensing and IT system development, all e-commerce, IT and internet regulatory issues, media contracts and sponsorship. He acts for clients across all industry sectors including, amongst others, food and drink, financial, manufacturing, media (digital and non-digital), sport and leisure and retail.

He is a director of the Scottish Society for Computers and Law and a member of the national SCL media board. He is also a Director of the Edinburgh Art Festival.

Gayle Cafferty

 Gayle Cafferty joined Scottish Enterprise in November 2010, as an Account Manager, after 7 years working on advisory contracts with Innovation Centres Scotland, Targeting Innovation and Glasgow Business Services.   

A pro-active business adviser, Gayle draws on her experience working for over 10 years with innovative and ambitious start up and early stage technology companies helping them establish technical feasibility and market opportunity for innovative products and services, raising public and private sector finance and assisting with sales and marketing strategies to launch new products to market.

Before becoming an advisor, Gayle worked within the private sector mainly with SME e-business start ups in a Business Development capacity where her role involved launching new products to market, implementing sales and marketing strategies and fulfilling sales targets for growth.

Gayle is a PSYBT Aftercare Adviser encouraging young people to develop thriving businesses in Glasgow. Gayle also sits on the committee for the Business Forum West where early stage business can network and receive peer to peer support.

Gayle has a Diploma in Business Advice and Counselling.

FRASER FERGUSON

With a strong track record of building value for companies in the technology and  services sector and taking them to a successful exit Fraser is co founder and director of Kube Networks Ltd a sprint 100 top 10 company delivering voice and data services.

Fraser’s career started with digital equipment  moving into the recruitment industry firstly with the Hestair group where he was the youngest member of the management team. He then founded KFJ Resourcing in 1988 and exited in 1998 to NRG a listed company for £4.8million where he spent time on the board.As an early adopter of the internet (since 1992) he has continued to be active in the technology space with various companies including Ecosse IT, one of the first companies in the internet sector resulting in a placing of 16^th in the one off Sunday times most successful Internet entrepreneurs in 1999.

In 2001 he took time out which he spent with his 3 young children while holding a number of non-executive director positions throughout the UK and investing in a number of early stage companies within technology, returning to the market full time in 2006. In addition to his current activities, Fraser is a past Chairman and current trustee of The St Andrews Trust and the Chairman of Kube Group, which incorporates property investments and services, and Kube Energy.

GAYLE MANN

Gayle Mann is a project leader and marketing and events professional at international strategic marketing company, Designate. Gayle specializes in delivering and implementing marketing strategies within technology, retail and franchise businesses and in international markets.

Gayle began her career with the Business Gateway delivering business advice to new start and existing businesses before moving her focus to young entrepreneurs with the Prince’s Scottish Youth Business Trust. Most recently Gayle has been engaged in supporting innovative and high growth technology companies and has project managed both the successful re-launch of Connect Scotland, and John Logie Baird Awards, winner of the Best Business to Business Awards Scheme in Scotland in 2009 and 2010.

Gayle also has significant international marketing and business development experience putting her expertise to the test on European funded projects in Egypt, Kosovo, Russia and Bolivia.