James King – DataVita

I am delighted to have been nominated to represent LINX Members on its Board. I have a very varied background and different experiences which I believe will add value to the Board and will help to drive the LINX business forward and benefit its members.

I am a qualified Chartered Accountant (CA) having trained with EY before moving to PwC where I worked for 10 years in their Project Finance advisory business, working with both public and private sector clients. I built up a great deal of experience during this time of understanding different viewpoints and approach to delivering objectives – particularly during the banking crisis of 2008 – which required novel approaches to the delivery of projects.

I moved into the public sector in 2010, joining the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) and I moved into their digital team and created Host in Scotland from 2016. I ran that business for around 6 years and during that time I joined the Scottish IX Steering Committee and began working with LINX. One of my key achievements was to secure public sector funding in order to widen the Scottish IX exchange to two locations and put the transit in between the two to grow the LINX business in Scotland. I also regularly attended the LINX quarterly meetings and presented at one of them on behalf of Host in Scotland.

I left SFT in 2022 to join my current employer, DataVita, as Business Development Director and continue to work to grow the Scottish data services footprint. As part of this I have worked to develop a business growth strategy and I’m currently working with colleagues to deliver this.

Declaration of Conflicts

In terms of specific areas of expertise that I can bring to the LINX Board:

• I have had previous experience of being a Non-Executive Director – I was on the Board of Woodland View Hospital for 6 years whilst at SFT. I understand the different levels of focus that are required and the demarcation of roles/activities between the Board and the Management Team of LINX. There were a number of difficult decisions that had to be made in my time at the Board, but they were made in a careful, considered way and I provided challenge where appropriate in order to make the right decision for the company;
• I understand the fiduciary duties that are associated with being a Non-Executive Director and the need to put the interests of LINX first at all times;
• I have a strong financial services background through being a CA which I will be able to use to apply rigour to the financial strength of LINX;
• I am passionate about developing the reach of LINX across the UK and growing the LINX business across the regions whilst also maintaining its leading position in London;
• I understand the challenges of growing a business – my current role at DataVita involves the generation and conversion of new opportunities and I’d be keen to share these experiences and techniques with the wider LINX Board to assist with the development and reach of the organisation;
• I am a regular public speaker and have a lot of experience in this area through all of my previous roles, but particularly as Chairman of Host in Scotland;
• I have very strong existing relationships with many LINX staff at all levels so will not have any issues in communicating with the members of the organisation;
• Whilst I have a strong eye for detail, I understand that there are many occasions where a wider, more holistic view is required and I enjoy listening to other peoples views, understanding their positions and working to develop the best solution to meet the needs of the business; and
• I understand the need for inclusion and tolerance of different approaches and viewpoints and, importantly, the need to enjoy what you do for a living and have some fun!