Global outreach associates

Dr Alex Smeets is an Associate of Cambridge Enterprise and helps to deliver our International Outreach Programme. Alex runs his own innovation consultancy business, advises businesses on R&D grants and grant funding programmes, is an assessor of grant applications for various public authorities in the UK and elsewhere, and a speaker, mentor and adviser for various business accelerator programmes in Cambridge.

From 2015 until 2021, Alex was a regular mentor for the UK’s Leaders in Innovation Fellowships programme. Until April 2011 he was a Regional Director of Oxford Innovation Ltd, where his responsibilities encompassed delivering innovation and access to finance support in the East of England region; undertaking innovation consultancy; providing incubation and networking support to several Innovation Centres; and developing Oxford Innovation’s business of managing innovation centres.

His activities also included undertaking consultancy assignments for Oxford Innovation’s sister company SQW Consulting. Prior to this, Alex was an Executive Director of St John’s Innovation Centre Ltd, a world-renowned centre that provides flexible accommodation and a supportive environment to early-stage, knowledge-based businesses. He has a PhD in Materials Science from the University of Cambridge and worked in materials research and development for five years before branching out into the support of innovation, entrepreneurship and the commercialisation of new knowledge.

Brian Corbett has 45 years’ experience in high technology business management in both start-up and large corporate environments. Brian has built a number of innovative start-ups and a notable achievement was the successful growth, and sale to Microsoft, of Entropic – a spin off from Cambridge University’s Speech Vision and Robotics group. Key areas of competence comprise translating innovative technology concepts into viable business propositions; building, training and mentoring multidisciplinary teams; and growing businesses through effective product management and business development.

Since May 2012, Brian has co-managed the International Outreach Programme (IOP) for Cambridge Enterprise. He has contributed to significant growth in the IOP’s activities and revenues and has been a key member of the delivery team working with numerous universities and innovation agencies, on a global basis. This has comprised training, coaching, mentoring and advisory work to enable those institutions to build capacity and capability to successfully transfer research and innovation from the laboratory to the commercial world.

He has also played a key role in mentoring for the Royal Academy of Engineering LIF (Leaders in Innovation Fellowships) programme, since its inauguration in 2015.

David Gill is an executive director of Carbon13, the venture builder for the climate emergency, with operations in Cambridge and Berlin. David was previously CEO of the St John’s Innovation Centre, the oldest incubator in Cambridge (2008-24). David ran the Innovation & Technology Unit at HSBC Bank in London (1997-2004) and has been a director of venture-fund manager ET Capital since 2005.

Educated at Cambridge, he was called to the Bar by the Middle Temple before working in corporate finance for US and UK banks.  A Sloan Fellow at the Stanford Graduate School of Business in California (2004-05), he is a Visiting Fellow at the Institute of Manufacturing (University of Cambridge Department of Engineering).  He formerly served on the boards of both the UK and European incubator associations.

In recent years, he has been involved in advisory and training projects on ecosystem development for Poland, Libya, Kuwait, Thailand and China, and projects for Innovate UK (the UK government innovation agency) focused on investment readiness for high-potential, innovative firms. His publications cover innovation ecosystems, entrepreneurial finance and business incubation.

Dr Jessica Ocampos is a Biotech and Chemical Engineer with a PhD from the University of Cambridge and over 20 years of international experience leading R&D, innovation, and technology transfer initiatives focused on sustainable development. Jessica is the co-founder and Manager Director of Camnexus Ltd, a strategic consultancy and technology transfer platform based in Cambridge, UK, where she has led more than 60 projects across 24 countries, bridging scientific research, policy, and industry with a strong emphasis on local innovation capacity building.

Her professional experience includes operational and managerial roles in multinationals such as Procter & Gamble, 3M, Bayer, and Air Liquide, with a solid track record in implementing excellence systems for manufacturing and supply chain in highly regulated environments. She has served as an international advisor to organisations including PAHO, WIPO, South Africa’s Department of Science and Innovation, and Chile’s innovation agency CORFO. She is part of the UK PACT expert roster (FCDO) and a technical advisor to Chile’s National R&D Agency (ANID).

Jessica is an Associate of Cambridge Enterprise and regularly delivers teaching and mentoring at the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford, and the Royal Academy of Engineering. Her work supports researchers, innovators, and policy makers, from start-ups to large corporations.

She has been recognised as a European Tech Pioneer by the Financial Times and has received multiple awards including CEO of the Year and Cleantech Company of the Year by Cambridge Independent. She was a featured speaker at COP28 (World Bank Group Pavilion). She is a committed advocate for diversity and inclusion, with extensive regional experience in Latin America, Africa, Europe, and the USA.

Shirley Jamieson worked at Cambridge Enterprise as one of the senior management team from its inception in 2004 to December 2019, first as Head of Marketing then as Head of International Relations and Programmes.  During this time Cambridge Enterprise has grown to become one of the world’s leading commercialisation offices. Since 2004 there have been projects completed in the following countries: Brazil, Chile, China, Columbia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Lithuania, Mexico, Norway, Poland, Southern Africa and Turkey.

In 1999, Shirley co-authored the successful bid on behalf of the University of Cambridge to create the Cambridge Entrepreneurship Centre. Shirley was Head of External Relations at the Centre which, in 2004, evolved into Cambridge Enterprise.

Shirley has extensive experience of start-up companies from her experience of working for more than 15 years in executive research, initially for Egon Zehnder International as a researcher and then for six years as Managing Director of Scientific Resources, part of the Generics Group. During the mid-1990s, she ran her own consultancy firm specialising in senior appointments for technology-based companies. In 2002, she was the Cambridge Evening News ‘Business Woman of the Year’. Shirley sat on the Main Board of Anglia Ruskin University from 1993 until 2012 and is currently Chair of Meridian Trust which manages over 30 primary, secondary and special education schools. Shirley was appointed Head of International Relations and Outreach Programmes in January 2018. Prior to this, she was Head of Marketing and Communications for over ten years.