How did you start working with Accredit?

I started working with Accredit in 2019, I had been working on the Special Olympics event in Abu Dhabi and was put in touch with Mark Elliott by a colleague who mentioned Accredit were looking for a Project Manager to work on Expo 2020. I met up a couple of times in Abu Dhabi, both with Mark Elliott and our Product Manager Mark Anderson and a few months later I was hired and working for Accredit in the Expo office.

What does your role entail at Accredit?

When I joined Accredit I was based fully on the Expo 2020 project. I worked in the Expo 2020 office alongside their accreditation team as we built a range of new functionality into the Accredit System to ensure it aligned with their processes and procedures. As Expo 2020 was delayed for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic I started to work on other projects, mainly based in the UAE but also picking up some in the UK and US to assist the account management team as we have seen a huge increase in clients over the last couple years.

Tell us something interesting about yourself?

I have worked and lived in 6 different countries over the last 10 years, Scotland, England, Canada, Turkmenistan, Australia and the UAE.

If you could change something from your past what would it be?

I think with most things in life hindsight is great and the uncertainty of the last 2 years through the pandemic has clearly highlighted that. From project to project upon review there can often be areas where things could have been made more efficient or conducted in a better way. Learning from each experience is key which ultimately creates a better experience for our clients.

Who is the person you admire the most and why?

Edwin Saayeng of course.

How would your friends describe you?

I guess and hope they would describe me as a fairly outgoing person that is very easy to get along with and fun to be around.

How do you think the accreditation process for events will evolve in the coming year?

Over the last year more and more clients are looking at how they can create a more streamlined accreditation process, particularly through integrations. While this requires development work from our side we have seen the benefits it can have, particularly for our bigger clients. I can see this to continue.

What is the most interesting project you have worked on in your time at Accredit?

This would have to be Expo 2020, it was quite the journey with Expo from when we started in 2019. A huge number of integrations and the unique adhoc requests have meant no two days are ever the same. Looking to the next few years the NBA is a very exciting project with the USA, but within the Middle East Neom in Saudi Arabia is going to be a huge project over the next few years.

What is your favourite functionality aspect of the Accredit platform?

The Accredit Go functionality has obviously been a big success over the last 2 years due to the pandemic but it is great to see clients now use the functionality to cover other requirements such as site inductions. Our QA Mode too is great functionality as it ensures our clients are taking a more indepth view into who they are granting accreditation to. With version 5 around the corner though I am sure I will have a new favourite piece of functionality very soon.