Our Mentors

I have been working in finance since 2005, starting off with Woolwich in a call centre, progressing to a financial adviser in Lloyds and becoming a self employed financial adviser/financial planner in 2009.

Conversational Welsh Speaker

I am the founding director of The Forge which specialises in wellness retreats, harnessing the power of nature and the great outdoors to bring about real change in people's lives. Based on the principles of sustainability and rewilding, The Forge enables people to experience off-grid living and immersion in nature as a lever to help them find a better balance in their lives.

I am also an experienced Diversity & Inclusion and Change Management consulting professional with 20 years’ experience working with some of the world's largest organisations to enable major organisation and culture transformations.

My areas of expertise are: Diversity & Inclusion, Change Strategy, Culture and Behaviour Change, Stakeholder Management, Leadership Development, Program Management, and Employee Recognition and Engagement.

I have an M.A. Degree (First Class) in English & French and an M.Litt (Distinction) in European Cultural Identity Studies from the University of St. Andrews.

I also hold a Graduate Certificate in Change Management from the Australian Graduate School of Management and completed an online Marketing Academy Certificate in 2022.

I am passionate about helping others realise their personal and business goals and have been a career counsellor, coach and mentor to over 20 people during my career. I am particularly inspired by enabling others to tap into their transferable skill set and apply their experience and capabilities in new and innovative ways.

Outside of work, I am a keen trail runner and wild swimmer and am currently undertaking research with Cardiff Metropolitan University into the benefits of hot and cold therapy for mental, physical and social health and connection. I recently travelled to Finland to immerse myself in the authentic Finnish sauna experience and am currently learning the Finnish language.

Building foundational processes for a small business
Coordinating business practices and staff base
Creating valuable customer relationships
Establishing practices for positive Staff & Individual mental health/wellbeing.
1:1 client work – mindset coaching & clinical hypnotherapy

I am an ILM level 7 qualified Executive Coach with a true passion for inspiring others to recognise and maximise their happiness, whether that be in their work environment, relationships, or their own self being.

Simon Drinkwater is a seasoned, values-driven HR leader with over two decades of hands-on, strategic, and operational experience across diverse sectors including technology, healthcare, education, financial services, and professional services. A Chartered Member of the CIPD (MCIPD), Simon combines academic grounding in Business Administration and Human Resource Management with professional accreditations in NLP Coaching, emotional intelligence assessments, and psychometric profiling tools (OPQ32, SHL).

His career has seen him successfully shape and execute HR strategies in both high-growth and transformational environments. He has a proven track record of delivering impactful initiatives such as cultural change programs, talent development frameworks, performance management systems, and digital HR innovations. Notable achievements include significant cost savings through direct recruitment models, the implementation of agile learning and development platforms, and leading strategic restructures.

Simon’s core strengths lie in influencing and coaching senior stakeholders, leading organisational change, and building high-performance cultures. His style is both commercially astute and deeply people-focused—bringing calm, perspective, and a touch of humour to often complex and challenging scenarios.
For a mentoring relationship, Simon offers deep HR and leadership expertise, a pragmatic mindset, and a supportive, yet honest, approach. His personal values—trustworthiness, resilience, and continuous growth—are evident in how he supports others, fostering environments where learning and performance thrive. His experience across multiple industries and business stages makes him an adaptable, empathetic guide with insights that are both strategic and real-world.

I served 5 years as an Infantry Officer in the British Army before leaving to become an Operations Manager for a Security Risk Consultancy based in London.

With over 25 years’ experience in business management, brand building and consumer understanding with internationally renowned companies, such as PepsiCo and Kellogg’s, Sioned has a proven track record of delivering compelling strategies to drive revenue and optimize value. A few examples:
• Pioneering a consumer centric planning approach that led to a multiyear strategy for one of Europe’s biggest snack brands. Elevating its food credentials to drive incremental penetration.
• Re-inventing Europe’s largest juice brand, shifting the brand to growth in France for the first time in 3 years.
• Conceptualizing and launching a young adult cereal brand which has seen global success.
• Delivering significant P&L productivity by in-housing insight expertise in global hubs in service of stronger and faster decision making.

Key areas where Sioned can bring value –
• Brand Strategy - understanding the target audience for your proposition, what is it that they are looking for and how can you earn their decision in favour of your product or service.
• Marketing Process Excellence – repeatable processes to upskill inhouse teams to deliver stronger strategies.

A highly experienced Finance, Accounting and Procurement professional with over 15 years' cross-sector expertise, including leadership roles in local government, NHS, private healthcare and infrastructure. Specializing in financial transformation, strategic planning, systems implementation, and contract management, I have led major change programmes and finance teams through periods of reform and growth.

I have been a Director of the Urdd Llangrannog for 20 years.

I worked some 30 years in several different industries as steel & construction, electronics, automotive, retail, health, as well as food & drinks industry.