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Meet the council team
President - Simon Bucknall
The President develops and oversees the strategic and day-to-day management and is the public face of the chamber, attending key National and International events.
Simon runs a consultancy called The Art Of Connection - helping business leaders to influence and inspire through the spoken word. He has been a member since 2007 and won the JCI European Public Speaking Competition in 2008.
Immediate Past President - Sarah Beckwith
The Immediate Past President is a mentor to the President, provides continuity from the previous year and valuable advice to less experienced board members.
Sarah is a Chartered Surveyor, specialising in the negotiation of lease terms and rental values on retail properties. She has been a member of JCI London for over 5 years, previously holding the positions of Community Director, Membership Director and Deputy President. In 2010 she was the Conference Director of the JCI UK National Convention.
Community Director - Soraya Bowen
As Community Director, Soraya is responsible for all community events and projects throughout the year and supporting national and international JCI community initiatives.
Soraya joined JCI London is October 2010 and became an active member very quickly taking on roles as deputy community director and marketing director in 2011. She is also the JCI UK website manager. Our Deputy Community Director is Lucy Wood.
Business Director - Ricky Kothari
Ricky as Business Director organises a programme of business events and projects, overseeing and mentoring their project leaders for the activities during the year and to develop relationships with local companies. He works alongside Deputy Business Director, Alekhya Mukherji. Ricky has 10 year experience in management consultancy managing and supporting complex business transformations. He is an entrepreneur and started up Innovashion – Delivering innovative products to market. His first concept is T-Sticks the replacement for the messy tea bags, Drip-free, Tasty tea. http://bit.ly/z4ywds
Membership Director - Jason Sender
Responsible for helping potential, new and existing members get the most out of their JCI experience, Jason is likely to be one of your first points of contact with the organisation. An experienced business analyst, consultant and entrepreneur, Jason is an IT Consultant and co-founder of a financial valuation business operating in the field of intellectual property.
Secretary - Nahas Abdul Jaleel
The Secretary work closely with the President, council team and all project chairs, and keep them advised on all trends (e.g., membership, attendance, project participation, etc.). Responsible for overseeing the completion of all council administration, as well as projects falling outside the areas of opportunity.
Nahas is a Business Consultant and help his clients improve performance, by analyzing and then by developing ideas for improvement in the areas of Sales, Marketing and Business Intelligence. Nahas first joined JCI in India in his university days in 1995 and was actively involved till year 2000. After a long time, he has rejoined JCI in London.
Deputy President - Eyad Hamouieh
The Deputy President's role is to support the President and Directors in implementing their plan and is responsible for preparing and succession planning for the following year.
Eyad is a Research and Development Consultant with a background in Engineering. He has been a member of JCI London for around 2.5 years and has previously held the roles of Business Director and International Director.
International Director - Anke Brandts
As International Director, Anke works alongside Deputy International Director, Ian Johnson, in maintaining links with our twin chambers and keeping members informed of international events, as well as organising international themed events in London.
Born and raised in Germany, Anke lived in London and Atlanta, USA during her studies and has lived and worked in Switzerland, Germany and now London. She became a member of JCI in Switzerland in 2005 and has since been involved in 3 chapters in Germany. Professionally Anke works for Ricoh Europe Plc as a Product Marketing Manager, responsible for cut sheet production printing equipment.
Training & Personal Development Director - Mehnaz Siddiqui 
Working closely with Deputy Training Director, Frene Angeli, Mehnaz is responsible for organising events that contribute to the personal and professional development of members, promoting the JCI training path and helping to develop JCI Trainers' training careers within JCI.
Mehnaz is a lawyer specialising in the area of Private Client and advises high net worth individuals on complex tax matters and trust structures. She joined JCI in March 2011 becoming a member of the Community Team. In July she took part in the Cancer Research UK Race for Life with her fellow team members and subsequently attended Leadership Academy later in the year which gave her the impetus to run for a council position.
Marketing Director - Sandor Kovacs
Originally from Hungary, Sandor is responsible for the marketing of the chamber, overseeing the development of a marketing and PR strategy and the provision of marketing materials and merchandise. He works closely with Deputy Marketing Director, Kathryn Kneller.
Social Director - Alexandra Illsley
Alex is our 2012 Social Director, organising informal social events throughout the year, as well as being responsible for the Annual Dinner and Christmas party. Our Deputy Social Director is Marlies Kunnen.
Alex has been a member of JCI London for around three years but started in JCI about two years before then in JCI Barnsley. She particularly enjoys the social and community aspects of JCI and her first event was the Secret Santa appeal. Alex has also been able to develop her public speaking skills, from being a quiet girl when she first joined JCI to winning the JCI London public speaking competition in 2011.
Finance Director - James Lynch
The Finance Director is responsible for administering day to day finances and long-term financial planning, to ensure the financial interests of the chamber are protected and managed in an appropriate way to secure the future success and financial viability of the chamber.
James joined JCI London in February 2011 and took up the role of finance director in June that year when the position became available.
