In November 2014 John was appointed CEO of the Roslin Innovation Centre at the Easter Bush Campus and also served as CEO of Roslin BioCentre, until it closes on 31 July 2018.

Providing contemporary, open plan and flexible office and laboratory space, the Roslin Innovation Centre opened for business in August 2017 and is the perfect place for new businesses - large, small; young or old; local or international - to locate within a place that already has the highest concentration of Animal related science and expertise in Europe.

John started his career as a trainee accountant with Ernst and Young, followed by various accountancy posts in the voluntary, public and private sectors.

Prior to joining the University of Edinburgh, John worked for 14 years as the Head of Knowledge Exchange at Research and Innovation Services, the technology transfer office at the University of Dundee.

Previously, John worked in the Business Gateway in Dundee, where he provided business advice and mentoring to a diverse range of over 200 start-up and established businesses over a 4 year period.

As a highly experienced technology transfer and business incubator professional, John has provided advice, guidance and support to over 30 spinout and start-up ventures emanating from University staff and students. John has also served as observer to the board on several of these spinout companies and he also managed the Dundee University Incubator where fledgling technology businesses located within a community of technology entrepreneurs.

As mentor to many young entrepreneurial people and/or technology start-up companies, John sees their personal and business growth and success, as a measure of his own success.

Throughout his near 19 year University-specific career, John has specialised in, and is passionate about, knowledge exchange, having actively encouraged and facilitated numerous knowledge transfer and innovation ‘projects’ between business and academia. The Roslin Innovation Centre is the perfect place to work with new businesses large, small, young or old to locate within a place with the highest concentration of Animal sciences in Europe.