James Kelly, chief executive officer, Corndel

What has been your path to power?

Leaving university, I wanted to make a difference. My very first job was as a researcher in the House of Commons, focusing on employment and skills policy. Lots of statistics, lots of data, but very ultimately all about people’s lives, the power of education, opportunities and training. I gradually ended up transitioning into big four management consultancy leading projects in the skills, education, and training space. I had a stint back in government as a special advisor working with central government departments, the Treasury and Downing Street on employment policy. Again, a combination of macro-economic analysis, but very directly connected to people’s lives and livelihoods.

Seeing changes in both the business skills required for the economy and changes in government policy, I started looking at business opportunities. With a couple of like-minded colleagues in 2016 we founded Corndel, a specialist business and data skills training company. We’re all about reimagining what an apprenticeship can be for the 21^st Century and working with individuals at all points in their careers to give them the skills in data, tech, leadership and business to thrive.

With over 300 brilliant in-house professional coaches, Corndel trains thousands of learners in the skills businesses require to excel. We support hundreds of data analyst apprentices each year and Corndel has a focus on programmes that give learners both great analytical skills, but as importantly the people skills to be high-performing business professionals.