Tessella specializes in the application of innovative solutions to scientific, technical and engineering problems.

Our services cover software design and development, IT consultancy,infrastructure support and project management across a wide range of market sectors.

Tessella has a history of excellence spanning more than two decades, and our offices in the UK, US and the Netherlands have built longterm relationships with organizations at the leading edge of the scientific and engineering world. We tailor our services to best fit individual customer needs.

Directors

Kevin Gell, Managing Director
Tessella Support Services plc

Kevin Gell founded Tessella in 1980. Initially it was a one-man operation specializing in systems support for IBM mainframes. He hired his first employee after six months and has led the business through 27 years of profitable growth, moving its emphasis from systems support to scientific and technical applications development during the first five years of its life. Kevin is a CBI South East Council Member.

Prior to founding Tessella, Kevin obtained a Physics degree from Birmingham University and worked for IBM for ten years, initially as an Analyst Programmer at their Havant manufacturing plant and then as a systems engineer in their Research & Education Branch supporting customers such as UKAEA, Research Councils, Universities and MOD. While at IBM he qualified with the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants to broaden his business skills.

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 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 program 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 Support Services plc in 2006. He has built up Tessella’s organization in the United States since late 2001, growing the customer base across a range of sectors, attracting top-flight staff and spreading the word about Tessella’s specialized 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 sectors.

This experience means Jon appreciates all aspects of Tessella’s business and how we can serve our customers. It has enabled him to make significant improvements to our processes and service offerings, and led to an excellent understanding of the issues confronting Tessella’s customers. Under Jon’s leadership, his division has demonstrated significant growth.

Jon joined Tessella in 1986, after a degree in Material 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. The Tessella Stevenage branch is also the home of the company’s space and defence expertise.

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 a software development and systems integrator SD-Scicon PLC, that was ultimately acquired by EDS. Alan is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacturers and Commerce; 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 is primarily responsible for improving the efficiency of all aspects of Tessella’s business and for facilitating the move to higher value projects.

Rob managed Tessella’s Winchester branch for five years, achieving consistently high rates of profit growth and establishing the branch as a centre of excellence for high value fixed price 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 in which he gained 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.