About SPARK

Malcolm studied Engineering at King's before working as an engineer in computational modeling for engines and telecoms. He later earned an MBA and transitioned to management consulting, becoming a partner at EY and then moving to Alvarez & Marsal. At A&M, he developed major advisory practices in Private Equity and Corporate business, focusing on turnaround and transformation support for European companies. Malcolm co-founded the 1977 King's Access Support Scheme, helping disadvantaged A-Level students achieve university entry grades. As a keen motorcyclist, he's also a director for a company producing parts for the Vincent 'Black Shadow' motorcycle, designed by King's alumnus Phil Vincent (KC 1926).

Kamiar is an expert in the macroeconomics of climate change and sustainability at the University of Cambridge, where he is the Director of the climaTRACES Lab, a new interdisciplinary research initiative at Cambridge focusing on climate, nature, and sustainability. He is also the Director of the Global Executive MBA programme at Cambridge and Fellow in Economics at King's College, Cambridge, where he co-founded and directs the E-Lab.

With 20 years of experience in senior marketing and business transformation roles, Sheelpa is passionate about helping entrepreneurs succeed. She has brought innovative, high-impact experiences, products, and services to market for world-leading brands including American Express, MasterCard, and the International Olympic Committee. Sheelpa pioneered and launched the first global "Women in Tech" and "Smart Cities" innovation labs, uniting startups, corporations, academics, and governments to collaborate on transformative business opportunities. Now, as founder and Managing Director of Mavens & Mavericks (MM), Sheelpa bridges the gap between the corporate world and entrepreneurship ecosystem. MM's clients include global professional services leader EY and various high-potential startups.

Francesca is an Executive Coach and Entrepreneurship Mentor. She holds a Masters in Business Administration from Cambridge University Judge Business School. In 2016 Francesca pioneered the use of contactless donations in the non-profit sector when she co-founded Fin-Tech company GoodBox. Since exiting the company Francesca has gone on to hold roles in VC and support other founders. Francesca is an active entrepreneur working to build, support and inspire many companies through her consultancy We are Ambition. Her mission is to support individuals to find clarity of mind to help them pursue and tackle goals no matter how ambitious. You can read more about her professional coaching and support to E-Labs below.

Petra is the SPARK Coordinator and a SPARK 1.0 alumna. Petra brings seven years' experience across growth equity and private equity, underwriting technology scale-ups and shaping investment strategy. She is now building her own data-driven investment company focused on opportunities in the developing markets. She is a member of King's College and Cambridge Judge Business School and currently undertaking the MSt in Entrepreneurship.

Sophie is a Graduate Research Fellow of the Cambridge Centre for Social Innovation. Her work investigates the concept of 'care' in democratic theory and moral philosophy. She is also an Associate of Judge Business School with research that focuses on climate mobility and water security.

Mia is a graduate of King's College, with research interests in feminist and posthumanist theory in cultural studies. She also runs The Field Project Zine, a grassroots youth arts initiative.

Peace Chisom is a storyteller and filmmaker working in the intersection of technology and decolonial deconstruction of the archives. She actively works with young people to collate and document cultural stories that need to be remembered. She holds a Masters in Film and Screen Studies from the University of Cambridge and has previously worked with the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at the University of Cambridge to curate and accurately present scholars' narratives.

Josephine Adah is an energy and analytics professional contributing to the planning, strategy, and organisation of data-driven solutions for energy transition and market decision-making in emerging economies. She works within project and product teams to shape strategy, structure delivery, and translate complex technical analysis into decision-ready insights, supporting national-scale digital transformation programmes and energy systems initiatives with measurable operational and sustainability impact. Her strengths lie in programme and product thinking—problem definition, stakeholder alignment, and roadmap design-combined with systems and data expertise. An MPhil candidate in Energy Technologies at the University of Cambridge and a Mastercard Foundation Scholar, she brings strong analytical rigour and transferable business skills to early-stage, sustainability-focused ventures.

Elliot Johnston is a former professional footballer, having played for Salford City, and previously worked at Nike. He has co-founded treo, a triathlon coaching business, and is currently completing a Master's in Entrepreneurship at Cambridge University. Elliot is building a sports tech incubator that brings together founders, investors, researchers and industry to strengthen and connect the UK sports and health innovation ecosystem.