Anita is the Group HR Manager within the Lander Group. She has worked in Human Resources for over 20 years, the majority of her career being within manufacturing/automotive industries. She is the Chair of Apprenticeships in Manufacturing and the Regional Chair of West Midlands Apprenticeship Ambassador Network, and a member of the following groups; Make UK Labour Market and Skills Policy Committee, Coventry University Manufacturing Engineering Industrial Advisory Board, developing and reviewing with the group, manufacturing engineering courses and degree apprenticeships in manufacturing and robotics. IoT Employer Advisory Group, Automotive Trailblazer and Wolverhampton Police Independent Advisory Group. Anita supports external activities, engaging with schools and career events promoting manufacturing/engineering. Anita is driving the vocational qualification levels within the Lander Group, with employee development and engagement at the forefront of business practice.

Bob Gibbon is a chartered engineer and professionally qualified coach, facilitator and teacher. During a 30-year career in manufacturing Bob led business transformation in world-leader businesses, spent over 15 years at board level and chaired around 50 SMEs across the world serving a breadth of industries.

Bob who is a past Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor and Honorary Fellow of Brunel University has been a TMMX judge for 13 years and has contributed to a number of the question sets throughout that time.

Bob’s current focus is working with high-performance teams and organisations.

Champion for skills in the engineering manufacturing sector, passionately changing perception, raising standards. Advocate for equity, always authentic, enthusing empowering and encouraging others. Trainer, consultant and speaker.

With over 30 years in the automotive industry, Nick has had roles in a wide range of functions with a heavy focus on manufacturing. These include process engineering, operations, business process and systems design, finance and project management, in both greenfield as well as some of the oldest plants. The application of lean process methodologies and the opportunities presented by the effective use of data are key focus topics.

Rita Davey has over 25 years’ experience in the Learning and Development sector where she has gained multi-dimensional knowledge and experience addressing people and organisational challenges. This has included developing and delivering strategies to address organisational, regional, sectorial and national skill agendas including the setting up and management of training operations and academic departments. As a qualified and experienced teacher, trainer and assessor she also has a wealth of experience developing and facilitating Learning Interventions many of which have been recognised at national level. Rita’s passion and ability to develop individuals, teams and businesses led her into her current role with Jaguar Land Rover as Supplier Programmes Manager supporting supplier development in relation to skills & organisational development. Rita has supported the judging of the National Enginuity Skills awards since 2014 and joined The Manufacturer MX judging team 5 years ago.

Russell Watkins is the Co-founder of Sempai®, assisting organisations serious about improving the performance of their business. He has held Operations, Materials and Lean positions within the Automotive, Aerospace and Construction Equipment sectors. Russell’s Lean transformation work has taken him to shopfloors and boardrooms in the UK, Europe, the US, China, India, Japan and South America. He is also leading a digital start-up around lean skills, whilst helping manufacturers with his keen eye for identifying and supporting Industry 4.0 opportunities. Russell is the author of “Adventures in Leanland” a speaker and awards judge. Russell loves factories, they are the ambient soundtrack to his life. Training & coaching a thousand+ people creates a lot of stories to share.