Meet the Speakers


With three dedicated conferences taking place on 2nd December, some of the audio, educational and digital publishing sectors’ most experienced staff will be sharing their expertise on the day. The Bookseller has compiled the vital statistics of 77 speakers in order to familiarise delegates with the faces and backgrounds of those who will be...


Taking to the stage


Chris Auty is the is head of the produc- ing department at the UK National Film & Television School. He also sits on the govern- ing board of the European Film Academy. Chris has worked exten- sively as a film producer, executive producer and financier, working along- side directors such as Peter Greenaway, David Cronenberg, Vincent Ward and Michael Winterbottom.


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George Burgess is the founder and c.e.o. of Gojimo, a mobile exam-preparation app for students which is available on iOS, Android and the web. Labelled one of “Britain’s Most Exciting Young Entrepre- neurs” by Forbes, Burgess—who is 24 years old—originally founded Gojimo when he was 17.


Steve Ackerman is the managing direc- tor of Somethin’ Else, which makes TV and online video, social media, interactive content and radio for brands and broadcasters such as Topman, Oran- gina, Swarovski, Red Bull, the BBC, ITV, Sky, the BRIT Awards and the Econo- mist. Steve, who joined the firm in 2000 and became m.d. in 2006, is a fellow of The Radio Academy.


Anki Ahrnell is the chief digital and tech- nical officer at Bonnier AB. She has more than 40 years of experience in various management positions within business development and technology operations. Tasked with strengthening the digital transi- tion and product development across the Bonnier portfolio, Anki also serves on the boards of Bonnier Magazines Sweden and BookBeat.


Oli Christie set up Neon Play in June 2010. Since then, it has had over 60 million mobile game downloads and 10 number one games in 160 countries. Neon Play’s hits include Paper Glider, Flick Football and Traffic Panic. Neon Play was named the UK’s Best Start-Up in the Nectar Busi- ness Awards, with Oli voted Entrepre- neur of the Year at the Chamber of Commerce Awards; the Sun called him a “Small Business Hero”.


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Naomi Bacon recently launched herself into the world of free- lance consultancy, specialising in market- ing, PR, social media and creative strategy. For three years she was the digital communications manager at Pan Macmillan, where she advanced the company’s YouTube strat- egy, developed its approach to content creation and struck up relationships with brands such as Topshop and ASOS to cross-promote products.


Andrea Carr is the founder and m.d. of educational publishing company Rising Stars, now part of the Hodder Education Group. Rising Stars began publishing in 2002, and took its first steps into developing digital resources in 2004. Since then the company has grown into one of the largest creators of books, software and online services for the schools market, with over 30,000 school customers around the world.


Michele Cobb has served on the Audio Publishers Association board since 2001, in the positions of direc- tor and officer, and is currently executive director. Her work in the audio publishing industry extends to her current capacity as publisher of both AudioFile maga- zine and MMB Media, and she is also the audio publishing director for LA Theatre Works.


Jon Anathasiou is the director of people at HarperCollins, responsible for talent management, resourc- ing and retention, learning and development, remunera- tion and benefits, and employee rela- tions across the company. Sitting on the UK executive committee, John has also rolled out a strategy on diver- sity and inclusion at HarperCollins for which the company was recognised at the 2016 Race Equality Awards.


Dan Bell is the programme producer for Emerge Education. With experience in managing volunteers based out of 25 univer- sities during his time as president of Aiesec UK, Dan is also adept at offering insight into accessing the Higher Educa- tion and graduate recruitment markets.


Eva Appelbaum got to grips with the digital future during the first dot-com boom. She was Amnesty Inter- national’s first digital communications director, head of digi- tal marketing transformation at the BBC and digital director of BBC Earth, introducing hack days to the broad- caster. She is a partner at transforma- tion consultancy Digital Talent @Work, and co-founder of NINE and The Future Strategy Club.


Nick Brackenbury is one of the found- ers of NearSt, which was set up in 2015 to fundamentally change the way people shop on the high street. Prior to found- ing NearSt, Nick built and led teams on global accounts at Ogilvy and OgilvyOne. He has a wealth of digital experience from working as an account director with clients including Jaguar Land Rover, Nestlé, BP, Ford, Diageo and IBM.


James Carroll is an agent in the Broad- cast and Live Events department of Peters, Fraser + Dunlop. He represents clients working for major broadcasters and digital and international channels. His projects encompass factual broadcast- ing, presenter-led series, commercial campaigns, brand licensing and live events. James, who is focused on arts and current affairs programming, joined PFD from the Clinton Foundation.


Steve Connolly is the digital director and further education at Hodder Education, where he has been a senior publisher and director for more than 20 years. He is responsible for developing and deliver- ing its vocational and digital strategy, including the award-winning Dynamic Learning platform, Assessment Bank and Rising Stars/Hodder Education online assessment services.


Steve Carsey is the director of original programming (UK) for Audible, an Amazon- owned company. He commissions content across all genres for Amazon’s spoken- word and audio entertainment divi- sion, oversees its recently established English-language original programming strategy and works closely with Amazon Studios to identify properties for cross- department development.


Nick Coveney joined Bonnier Publishing in 2014, after more than four years at Hachette UK, where he worked with bestsell- ing authors to bring their content to life digitally. At Kings Road Publishing, he has led the team to create exciting social media campaigns, such as the immersive Harry Potter colouring expe- rience #ColourTheMagic, and also to develop multiple award-nominated and bestselling digital products.


FutureBook | 2nd December 2016


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