Neil Stevens

JOINT CEO

Neil joined SimplyBiz in 2003 as a consultant before being appointed Operations Director in 2004. From here, he led the acquisition of Compliance First, subsequently becoming the Managing Director of that business in 2007, a role he held until 2010 when he was appointed Joint Managing Director of the SimplyBiz Group.

Now Joint CEO of the Group, Neil has executive responsibility for compliance, operations and finance for The SimplyBiz Group.  He is also Chairman of Defaqto.  

Neil is passionate about bringing systems and technology to advisers, to enable them to deliver even more to clients, and is an advocate of advisers creating a 'supply chain' around their business and service.

Matt Timmins

JOINT CEO

Matt joined SimplyBiz at its inception in 2002 as Marketing Director and was appointed Joint Managing Director of the Group in May 2010.

He now serves as Joint CEO of The SimplyBiz Group, responsible for the sales and marketing activities of the Group as well as key strategic relationships with both insurance and investment companies.

Matt runs several of the key subsidiaries within the business including SimplyBiz Services, SimplyBiz Mortgages, Gateway Surveyors, NMBA and SimplyBiz Support. Matt is also Chairman of Zest, the Group’s provider of SAAS technology for the auto enrolment and flexible benefits market.

Previous employment includes GE Capital, Misys and DBS Financial Management.

Gareth Hague

Group Finance Director

Gareth joined SimplyBiz in 2016 as the Group Financial Controller, managing the finances of the Group, including key financial reporting, before becoming Group Finance Director in 2018. Prior to joining SimplyBiz, Gareth was Head of Financial Reporting at Pace plc, a FTSE 250 listed business, with annual turnover of $2.6bn. During his 5 years at Pace, Gareth built his experience of working in a listed environment, within a business that recovered from a difficult period, to its ultimate sale to a US Global Technology giant in January 2016.

Gareth spent 9 years at PwC, where he trained as a Chartered Accountant of the ICAEW. While at PwC, Gareth managed audit and transaction engagements for listed, private equity and private clients across a broad range of sizes and industries, giving him a breadth of knowledge and experience.

Tim Clarke

Independent Non-Executive Director

In his twenty-five year career, Tim has been a Partner at both KPMG and BDO. He played a leading role in establishing KPMG’s corporate finance team in the North in the early 1990s and spent two years working for the private equity unit in London. Tim established BDO Corporate Finance in Leeds in 2003 and has built the team that delivered a track record of notable transactions, involving private, public and private equity owned companies.

Tim has also managed a subsidiary of a regional bank and spent time as an independent member of the UMIST Ventures credit committee. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1988 and has a degree in economics and accountancy from Lancaster University.

Gary Hughes

Deputy Chairman

Gary Hughes qualified as a Chartered Accountant at Ernst and Whinney, before moving to take up industry roles which included finance director at Forte Plc, Emap Plc and Gala Coral Group. Whilst holding these executive positions, Gary was also a Non-Executive Director and chaired the audit committee for of J Sainsbury Plc, for ten years, and Booker Group Plc, for two years. Gary also held a senior position at Apax Partners and advised at board level for a number of their investments. Since leaving Apax in 2018, Gary has taken up a number of non-executive director appointments.

Richard Ardron

Group Marketing Director

Richard has responsibility for the Group's brand, marketing communications and event strategy covering both retention and growth. He oversees all communication channels, the Group’s events and learning programme, proposition marketing and corporate messaging, including press, and ensures our delivery is relevant and market-leading.

Richard is also Managing Director of the Groups not-for-profit training division, NMBA, where he leads a programme to improve the quality of, and access to, advice.

Richard has a wealth of experience in the financial services industry, with over 20 years in the support service arena, and is always at the forefront of new and innovative strategies. This is backed up with an equally impressive marketing academic record, with a degree and two post graduate diplomas in marketing, and over 10 years as a Chartered Marketer.

David Golder

Managing Director of Member & Client Services

David Golder, Managing Director of Member & Client Services, has over 30 years' experience of working in the financial services sector, mainly in senior management and board positions. His career has spanned the dawn of regulation introduced by the Financial Services Act up to, and including, the current FCA regime.

Following a number of successful sales and management appointments with major UK product providers, David joined Bankhall Investment Associates, a UK-wide provider of regulatory compliance services, in 1999 and was appointed Managing Director in 2009.

Gary Kershaw

GROUP COMPLIANCE DIRECTOR

Gary came from a compliance consultancy background to join SimplyBiz at launch in 2002. He has responsibility for all compliance policy and implementations through the Group.

Gary has over 20 years experience in financial services including running his own successful IFA firm for the past 15 years.

Janice Laing

Managing Director of Compliance First

As Managing Director of Compliance First, Janice has responsibility for the overall strategy, management and delivery of services for the business. She joined Compliance First in 2004 and her career in financial services spans over 30 years, having previously worked with Scottish Amicable, Eagle Star and National Australia Group

Janice’s breadth and depth of knowledge has been gained from her previous roles, which include broker and adviser sales, training and competence supervision and compliance consultancy and implementation. Janice is Level 4 qualified and also holds mortgage, equity release and long term care qualifications.

Martin Reynolds

CEO of SimplyBiz Mortgages

Martin has responsibility for both the day-to-day running of SimplyBiz Mortgages and its future strategic direction.

He has been part of a number of successful ventures in the financial services industry for over 25 years, including new start-ups, rebranding and repositioning businesses within both manufacturing and distribution. Since joining The SimplyBiz Group in 2011, Martin has developed the business to its current position as one of the top three mortgage clubs in the UK market.

In February 2018, Martin was selected as Chair of the industry-wide trade body Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI).

Dan Russell

Managing Director, SimplyBiz Investment Services

Dan has responsibility for the delivery of the market leading investment services we make available to financial advisers and wealth managers, and all associated distribution services for asset managers, platforms and investment technology suppliers.

Dan is also Managing Director of Strategic Distribution, working with our partners to ensure we can create and deliver a sustainable partnership for all.

Aside from financial services qualifications, Dan holds an MBA from Warwick Business School and is a graduate of Durham University. He began his career at IBM before taking up senior distribution roles with The Hartford in the UK and Germany and has worked as a strategy consultant and interim director for leading advisory businesses, asset managers and life companies.

Since joining The SimplyBiz Group in 2013 he has held the position of MD of Verbatim Asset Management and overseen the formation of SimplyBiz Investment Services.