ELBA Board - Executive Team

Executive Team (scroll down for mini biographies)
Liam Kane - Chief Executive
Paul Bonter – Finance and Administration Manager

Community
Louise Muller - Programme Director, Hackney
Alison White - Programme Director, Thames Gateway
Sally Roberts - Programme Director, Tower Hamlets

Legacy
Peter Welton - Executive Director, London Legacy 2020

Employment
Hilary Kirkham – Director, Employment Strategy
Helen Shaw – Director, Employment Strategy
Julie Hutchinson – Deputy Director, Employment Delivery

Biographies

	Liam Kane became Chief Executive of East London Business Alliance in July 2002. An accountant turned salesman turned General Manager, he spent most of his career in the media working for the Mirror Group in Scotland, Fleet Street and Canary Wharf, News International and Sky in London. In 1992 he led a highly successful management buyout of the Herald Group of newspapers and magazines in his hometown of Glasgow. A two-year contract with the Dome was followed by 18 month working on behalf of the banks in an MBO turnaround situation. Liam says: “Working in the voluntary sector has been a revelation – great people, great causes and a lot to do - and the banks even more so, who would have thought they have a collective heart”
	Paul Bonter joined ELBA in May 2007 to take the new position of Finance & Administration Manager. In this role, he is responsible to the Chief Executive for all financial matters including budgeting and reporting together with overseeing the general administration and I.T. of the organisation. Prior to coming to ELBA, Paul was Financial Controller of a Lloyd’s insurance broker for over six years and before that he had jobs managing the finances of high net worth individuals and working in the Lloyd’s insurance market. Away from work, Paul’s other interests include music, particularly choral singing, and cricket.
	Julie Hutchinson joined ELBA in 2005 from Working Links to head up our employment efforts in Tower Hamlets. She began her work in the sector 8 years ago for the recruitment agency Blue Arrow and worked for a host of welfare to work partners and youth agencies until making the decision to join ELBA. In her current role as Deputy Director, Employment & Skills, Julie is responsible for managing a team of 8 and the delivery and management of various employment initiatives such as JobLink and the “Real Apprentice”.
	Hilary Kirkham switched into recruitment and ran her own Search Consultancy for some twelve years, after a career in sales and marketing with companies such as Metal Box Co., Otis and a First National Finance. As a result of voluntary activities, (chairing the North London Board of the Prince’s Youth Business Trust), she was herself headhunted to become the Director of Regeneration for the London Borough of Brent, where amongst other projects she was part of the team which initiated the redevelopment of Wembley Stadium and was active in the regeneration of Park Royal, and Chalkhill. In May 2004 she joined ELBA, initially to cover the Hackney Employment Project, but latterly as Director of Employment Programme Strategy. Hilary has been a Justice of the Peace since 1975 and a Trustee of a charity engaged in employment and life skills training since 1999. She has been married for ever and has two grown-up children
	Louise Muller joined ELBA in September 2004 as one of the Tower Hamlets Project Managers and quickly got promoted to Tower Hamlets Deputy Programme Director. She took over as the Hackney Programme Director in February 2007 and now looks after a team of seven including Hackney Schools’ Mentoring Programme. Previous to ELBA, Louise worked at VSO (Voluntary Service Overseas) recruiting and sending business and management professionals overseas to work in developing countries. She helped set up the business partnership scheme with corporate companies encouraging their employees to take six-month secondments and also worked in Manila in the Philippines for eight months to support the VSO office there. Louise has also worked in a variety of other roles predominantly in Human Resources and Recruitment.
	Peter Welton was educated at Oxford (Balliol College), and then went through Theological training in South India, with additional placements in Kenya and Nicaragua. He started his working life as a priest, but work in deprived urban communities led him towards political organising. Peter trained with the Industrial Areas Foundation in the United States and returned to build broad-based community organisations in the UK. After raising money for an organisation in London (London Citizens) Peter went on to build an organisation boasting 900 community leaders in the Midlands. This led him back to America where he helped develop Dallas Area Interfaith - campaigning on a raft of issues including a successful $1.4bn bond issue for school improvements. Peter joined the East London Business Alliance on his return to the UK, helping to transform the organisation. Peter now leads London Legacy 2020, a programme to help London capture a legacy from the 2012 Games. Peter has a partner and lives in London.
	Alison White has been with ELBA for six years currently heading up the Thames Gateway team. She joined ELBA after several years at Business in the Community where she was a part of the London region delivery team. At BiTC Alison developed and delivered a wide range of employee volunteering programmes and was account manager for several key member companies. Alison’ background is very firmly rooted in the community. After graduating, she went into community development and youth work, managing projects in Battersea Brixton and Camden. She went on to become a trainer in the voluntary sector and into education management in local authorities. She has brought with her to ELBA a knowledge of partnership development and experience of working in both the voluntary and public sectors. Alison is also a volunteer. She is a trustee of a small grant making trust, a Glimmer of Hope, has just become a school governor and every year organises a community festival in South East London where she lives.