Directors

Kevin Gell
Managing Director of Tessella plc

Kevin Gell founded Tessella in 1980. He has led the business through 29 years of profitable growth, moving its emphasis from systems support and applications development to become a leading provider of technology and consulting services to government organisations and some of the world’s most successful companies. Kevin was responsible for developing operations across the UK and Tessella’s expansion into mainland Europe and the US. His passion for delivering solutions that exceed clients’ expectations and his commitment to excellence runs deep within Tessella’s culture.

Prior to founding Tessella, Kevin obtained a Physics degree from Birmingham University and worked for IBM for ten years, during which time he qualified with the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. Kevin has played an active role within the CBI and is a member of the Industrial Advisory Board for the UK’s Knowledge Transfer Network.

Dr Peter Townsend is Tessella’s Commercial Director and is responsible for developing and implementing the company’s overall business strategy. This includes managing Tessella’s central Marketing & Sales and HR functions. Over the past few years Peter has been responsible for moving Tessella’s focus from being a supplier of IT skills to being a provider of sophisticated software solutions to scientific, technical and engineering problems.

Peter gained a Bachelors Degree in Botany from Imperial College, London, followed by a Doctorate from Oxford University. He joined Tessella in 1980 and has held various technical and managerial roles, playing a key role in the growth of the company. He was appointed to the Tessella board in 1989, initially as Director responsible for the company’s ISO 9001 quality programme and subsequently as Marketing & Sales Director in 1996. Peter is also Vice President, Commercial of Tessella Inc.

Grant Stephen has been Chief Executive Officer of Tessella Inc since its foundation in 2003, and was appointed to the board of parent Tessella plc in 2006. He has built up Tessella’s organisation in the United States since late 2001, growing the client base across a range of sectors, attracting top-flight staff and spreading the word about Tessella’s specialised services throughout the US market. From our offices in Boston and Washington DC, he manages the rapidly expanding activities of Tessella across the United States. Grant is also Chair of the Life Science Informatics Committee at the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council.

Grant qualified with a Bachelors Degree in Engineering from the University of Glasgow and later went on to attain his MBA. He joined Tessella in 1996 as a sales executive, looking after existing clients and growing new accounts in sectors as diverse as biotechnology, instrumentation and chemicals. His role as CEO of Tessella Inc involves him in all aspects of the US business, ranging from staff management, financial performance and resource allocation through to marketing and business development.

Jon Tilbury is the Director responsible for Tessella’s Abingdon Division. Jon has been with Tessella for over 20 years and has worked in many roles within the company including programming, system design, project management, technical management and business development in many different industry sectors. This experience means Jon appreciates all aspects of Tessella’s business and how we serve our clients. It has enabled him to make significant improvements to processes and service offerings, and led to an excellent understanding of the issues confronting Tessella’s clients. Under Jon’s leadership, his division has demonstrated significant growth.

Jon joined Tessella in 1986, after a degree in Materials Science from Oxford. He is a member of the Institute of Directors, completing his Certificate in Company Direction in 2000.

Alan Gaby is the Director responsible for Tessella’s Burton, Cambridge, Stevenage, Warrington and Den Haag branches. Alan joined Tessella in November 2006 with 20 years’ experience in the IT industry, where he has led business transformation and high growth (organic and acquisition) strategies.

Prior to joining Tessella, Alan held the position of Chief Operating Officer and Main Board Director with the European consulting and technology company VEGA Group plc and contributed to the significant turn-round and growth of the business during his tenure. Alan joined VEGA in 1998 from the Global IT services firm, EDS, where he was Commercial Director, having previously been part of the management team of software development and systems integrator SD-Scicon plc, that was ultimately acquired by EDS. Alan is a member of the Institute of Directors and has participated in a number of IT sector trade associations, representative bodies and policy making committees.

Rob Walker is the Director responsible for Tessella’s administration, finance, quality, training and IT support departments. He previously managed Tessella’s Winchester branch for five years, achieving consistently high rates of profit growth and establishing a centre of excellence for high value fixed price projects. Rob is now primarily responsible for improving the efficiency of all aspects of Tessella’s business and for facilitating the move to higher value projects.

Before joining Tessella in 2001, Rob spent twelve years with Scicon, SD-Scicon and EDS in the roles of project manager, consultant and business development manager, gaining considerable experience in the software, systems and support aspects of IT. Prior to Scicon, Rob served for 16 years with the Royal Air Force. He is a GD Aerosystems course graduate and holds a degree in Metallurgy from Birmingham University.

Judith has been involved with Tessella since its inception and has undertaken various administrative and support roles. She was responsible for developing the HR and payroll department, including setting up the Dutch and US offices. She has always been closely involved in the accounts functions and continues to use her in depth knowledge of Tessella systems working in the administration and finance team.

After obtaining a BSc in Physics from Birmingham University, Judith gained a PGCE in Science Education. She taught Physics for 8 years before joining Tessella.