Meet our Consultants
The team at Takeoff Training and Consultancy boasts wide ranging experience gained from many years of helping businesses with leadership, management, conflict and technical matters. Although we all come from different backgrounds originally, we have a shared passion for working with our clients to ensure their businesses and teams are as well placed as they can be to succeed and to manage the many challenges that any business will face.
Paul Beard
Paul founded Takeoff Training & Consultancy in 2014 and then incorporated the Company in 2018. He has substantial experience of both private and public sector roles. Having trained initially as a solicitor, he moved through various legal, investigation and compliance positions before studying for an MBA, qualifying as a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute and spending over 16 years working in employment relations, training and consultancy - he was the Director for ACAS in the South East. Alongside this, he has a background in aviation and defence; in 2011 he was seconded to British Airways leading a substantial global project. He enjoys supporting clients with a wide range of needs, but especially business strategy, legal and contractual issues, leadership and management, and complex casework (particularly investigations and any work requiring an understanding of flight operations). He also enjoys coaching at executive level and those with aspirations to reach the top of their organisations/industries. Paul is qualified to use both MBTI Step I and Step II psychometrics, along with a number of other models.
He has more than 15 years’ experience of working in the Channel Islands and so is well versed in the differing jurisdictions of Crown protectorates. He has extensive knowledge of legislation and regulation.
Finally, Paul is an experienced media commentator, conference speaker and conference chair so please do get in touch to discuss any potential requirements.
Richard Davies
Richard is a highly experienced employment relations and conflict resolution specialist with nearly 30 years of workplace expertise. A former Senior Advisor and Deputy Area Director at the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas), he has supported organisations across the public, private, and third sectors to create fair, effective, and legally compliant workplaces. Richard has worked closely with senior leaders, managers, HR professionals, trade unions, and employee representatives to resolve complex workplace challenges and enhance organisational culture.
Delivering extensive best practice advice and training, his expertise includes employment law, people management, workplace investigations, dispute resolution, change management, and equality, diversity, and inclusion.
An experienced Collective Conciliator and Workplace Mediator, he has advised on implementing internal mediation schemes and is an experienced trainer on the Certificate in Workplace Mediation, including delivering programmes for a UK police service and a British Crown Dependency.
Maria Shinn
Maria Shinn has over 20 years experience in the world of employment relations. Her background, is in public and private sector, including working in education, construction and shipping as well as leadership and management roles in government departments. This experience has provided her with wide ranging expertise across a range of subjects and a variety of disciplines.
Maria is a highly skilled Mediator and her range of skills allow her to work with individuals and groups. She uses a number of approaches and methods to identify solutions so that working relationships and understanding of those involved can be improved. The result is increased productivity and morale. Her qualifications in counselling complement this work. The setting up of mediation schemes, researching impact of such schemes as well as training in-company skilled mediators to address issues as part of early interventions to avoid conflict escalation, are additional services she is able to provide.
Other specialisms Maria works in are; performance management, team interaction, change management, employee surveys and training on the management of mental health matters. Additionally, Maria has worked alongside managers and Trade Unions in employment disputes. She facilitates discussions around exploring outcomes and solutions to resolve disputes and improve working relationships.
Maria is a Chartered member of the CIPD as well as gaining relevant training and employment law qualifications through the University of Strathclyde and ITOL.
Henicka Mantzos
(formerly Uddin)
Henicka is driven by the importance of improving workplace relations and practices. Her activities over the past 20 years include improving workplace relationships, diagnosing and supporting the turnaround of poor cultures and ensuring that existing policies are effective. Henicka is an experienced mediator in both individual and collective disputes. She delivers training and runs workshops at executive level in the UK and abroad. She continues to coach middle and senior management, focusing on modifying behaviours and improving poor relationships at work. Henicka holds an MSc in Occupational and Business Psychology where she researched workplace behaviours regarding bullying.
Henicka further holds a BSc in Law with Education, a Post Graduate Certificate in Individual Dispute Resolution, is an accredited NLP Practitioner and in the process of formalising her many years of coaching by completing an Executive Coaching Level 7 qualification. She has extensive experience of coaching at all levels.
Damian Warburton
Damian is an expert in employment relations, employment law, HR practice and resolving conflict in a variety of different settings. With 30 years’ experience working for Acas in the UK and their equivalent body MIRS in the Isle of Man he has an unrivalled knowledge of the law and best practice in both jurisdictions. Damian has worked extensively with the full range of public, private and third sector employers. He has worked closely with them on both a strategic and practical level providing support, guidance, facilitation and training to find solutions to issues and support business growth.
He is an experienced manager of conflict having conciliated in thousands of Employment Tribunal claims; worked in unionised environments to resolve collective disputes; and mediated in many interpersonal disputes giving him a unique insight into the workings of the Tribunal process.
Damian is a hugely experienced trainer having designed and delivered training courses covering all aspects of employment law, employment relations and good practice ranging from technical subjects such as TUPE to more hands – on issues such as managing mental health in the workplace. Damian has also lectured at Liverpool John Moores University on workplace conflict.
Damian combines both theory and practice and is qualified to Post – Graduate level in Individual Employment Dispute Resolution as well as being a qualified trainer. He has developed and delivered accredited mediation training as well as held the role of internal verifier within Acas which ensured educational standards were met across all learners.
Damian has a particular expertise in equality and diversity and enjoys dealing with complex disciplinary, capability and grievance cases either by providing “hand holding” support to line managers and HR or by undertaking investigations, chairing disciplinary panels or holding appeal hearings. He is an experienced media commentator and public speaker. Damian is available to work across the UK and internationally.
Gareth Petty
Gareth was the Director for Acas Wales for 16 years until April 2023. He was previously responsible for training National Helpline colleagues in all aspects of employment law and good practice. Gareth was also seconded to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office running social partnership projects in Bulgaria and Romania. He has extensive knowledge and experience of employment relations, particularly in the area of dispute resolution. He is an experienced trainer and event speaker.
He also led Acas’ relations with the Welsh Government. He was a member of the Welsh Government Enterprise Group and the Wales Enterprise Forum.
Gareth is married, has three children, is a passionate Welsh rugby supporter and a keen fundraiser having raised over one hundred thousand pounds for various charities.
Lisa Ellis
Lisa has worked in employment relations for over 14 years. She has trained people at all levels from students to Senior Leadership Teams and works hard to understand client’s needs. Lisa takes the lead in building rapport, putting people at ease, and building a strong climate of trust. She has a professional, relaxed and yet focused style to resolving issues and improving performance.
Lisa is a Mental Health First Aid Instructor, a certified Emergenetics Associate and a Member of the North West CIPD Branch Committee. Working with organisations to help improve employment relations, Lisa specific areas of expertise are mediation and training particularly in relation to managing mental health at work, equality & diversity, allyship, bullying & harassment and leadership & management.
Allan Forbes
Allan is highly influential and effective business executive, leader, and strategist.
Operating at C-Level with more than 20 years’ experience he has a proven and verifiable record of delivering measurable increased operational performance across a broad range of business sectors, services, and products.
With vision in business leadership and strong interpersonal and presentation skills. Allan has effectively and passionately conveyed foresight, direction and purpose to stakeholders and shareholders resulting in positive business outcomes.
Allan is a uniquely skilled individual positioned to influence and grow multi-disciplinary objectives across multiple sites, navigating complex business challenges.
Whatever you business challenge, speak to Allan and be prepared to be inspired and invigorated.
Alfie Payne
Alfie is an experienced technical consultant with a track record of designing, developing & overseeing the implementation of complex technical software and web systems. Alfie has a proven impact in the retail, professional services and media industries, where he has worked with clients to combine technology with sales and marketing strategies to increase revenue, improve margins and enhance customer experiences.
Alongside his technical competence, Alfie also has a proven track record within business development for startup businesses, working with both investor backed and bootstrapped businesses to increase sales and customer life time values.
Clients enjoy working with Alfie thanks to his ability to take seemingly complex technical situations, look at them through a commercial lens, and design, implement, and communicate strategies that benefit both stakeholders and shareholders to reach goals and improve bottom lines.