Telephone:
Head Office:
134 London
Road
Southborough,
Tunbridge Wells
TN4 0PL
Siobhan Stirling
Director
Roles: Siobhan drives the strategic direction of the agency and our clients, ensuring that all energies are focused on creating opportunities for our clients, our staff and our community. Siobhan attracts and nurtures fellow Sharp Minds to deliver a nimble, driven, cost-effective alternative to London agencies, with a zealous focus on delivering quality campaigns and significant results for our clients. A senior strategic thinker and communications expert, Siobhan works with organisations to define their overall marketing and PR strategies to ensure they provide creative and deliverable solutions that meet organisational objectives. Siobhan is experienced in financial services, professional services, care, health and wellbeing, technology, property and construction, transport and logistics.
Previous: Siobhan has worked in marketing, PR and the media for more than 30 years. A published author, qualified journalist and trained video journalist, Siobhan spent nearly 20 years at the BBC as a news reporter, presenter and producer, as well as freelancing for national newspapers (including The Guardian, The Independent and The Daily Mail) and magazines (including parenting, homebuilding and health & wellbeing titles). Siobhan was asked by Practical Parenting to write Sleep: helping your child to sleep through the night; published by Hamlyn, the book was translated into several languages. She started her career in PR for Aston University.
Education: Siobhan read History and Economics at Oxford University and has a Postgraduate Diploma in Broadcast Journalism.
Jonathan Kent
Technology Consultant
Roles: Jonathan’s responsibilities include creating and executing communication strategies for Series A start-ups and growth companies. He specialises in helping tech enterprises.
Previous: Jonathan has 30 years’ experience in media and communications. He has developed and delivered a wide range of successful comms and PR strategies for businesses offering technological solutions in the blockchain, food, transport, retail, HR, security and telecommunications industries, helping them grow brand visibility, turnover and profit. Prior to moving into comms, Jonathan was a political reporter, foreign correspondent and programme maker and presenter for the BBC, Reuters and Newsweek, with substantial experience across South East Asia and Europe.
Education: Jonathan read Philosophy and Theology at Oxford.
Penny Sloan
Account Manager
Roles: Penny is responsible for the management and implementation of marketing strategy and PR opportunities for clients, ensuring the delivery of tactical campaigns, content and analytics within agreed timelines.
Previous: Penny has worked in the Direct Marketing industry for more than 15 years, and her B2B and B2C marketing experience spans: private medical and travel insurance, social care, health and wellbeing, public sector, publishing, property and manufacturing. Penny was previously Acquisition Marketing Manager of Individual Business at AXA Health, prior to taking leave to raise a young family. Her expertise in creating and developing campaign strategy and execution of integrated direct marketing campaigns, brand management and analytics helped drive the ongoing tactical and strategic development of the acquisition book.
Education: Penny has a CIM Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing and a BSC Hons Degree in Environmental Studies and Geography.
Emma Rigby
Account Manager
Roles: Emma handles a variety of clients, ensuring effective, high-quality delivery of strategies tailored to reach each client’s individual business goals, including brand development, content marketing, digital and social marketing and PR. The majority of Emma’s clients are within the property sector, including architecture, construction and AV companies looking to expand their client base among both B2B and B2C targets.
Previous: Emma has worked in marketing for 13 years. Beginning her career growing brand awareness for a specialist IT support business catering for the Private Equity industry, she moved into promotional marketing, global partnerships and events. Prior to Sharp Minds Communications, Emma was a Director of Partnerships and Promotions at a London agency, managing high-level media partnerships between global brands and the likes of Warner Brothers and ITV.
Education: Emma has a BA (Hons) in English Literature.
Ellie Knight
Content Marketing and PR Account Executive
Roles: Ellie creates attention-grabbing content across a range of digital platforms to drive our clients’ success and boost their online presence, as well as supporting PR campaigns.
Previous: Ellie previously worked in a range of roles from hospitality and retail to customer communications, and is bringing her experience of customer service to her client delivery. Outside of work, Ellie is an independent musician. She writes and produces her music as well as creating videos to go alongside her releases. Promoting her music on social media, with fun and engaging campaigns, sharpened her interest in marketing.
Education: With a keen interest in exploring modes of communication, Ellie is taking her first step into marketing and PR with Sharp Minds after graduating from the University of Leeds with a BA (Hons) in Geography.
Alison Dry
Operations Manager
Roles: Alison is the oil in the engine of Sharp Minds, ensuring the office and the team run smoothly. Working closely with our Managing Director, Alison manages finances, HR and events.
Previous: Alison was fundamental in gaining over £2m grant funding for the charitable trust, Gallard’s Almshouses, enabling the trustees to completely refurbish their buildings in 2012 for future generations. Prior to joining Sharp Minds Communications, Alison was Assistant Manager of Tunbridge Wells Lawn Tennis Club for seven years, working across all areas of operations to support the 1,000 members. Alison is a trained swimming teacher, running lessons at Holmewood House School two afternoons a week. Alison is a volunteer for Age UK, regularly visiting elderly people to help combat loneliness.
Education: Alison started her career as a bilingual secretary working for the Ministry of Defence before moving into advertising and marketing as a PA. Completing her Chartered Institute of Marketing exams at night school led to 30 years in marketing and event management for blue-chip financial services organisations such as St. James’s Place, Visa International, GE Capital and Lloyds TSB.
Duncan Holt
Social Media Consultant
Roles: Duncan is responsible for creating targeted social campaigns that expand reach, authority and engagement to increase brand awareness and drive sales.
Previous: Duncan’s route into social media is not a conventional one: as the head of foreign exchange trading for one of the world’s largest banks, ANZ, Duncan was one of the first adopters of this new media, realising how he could harness it to position ANZ as a market leader. He now applies this expertise, developed positioning ANZ as a global social media and sector leader, to SMEs. Duncan is a Non-Executive Director of ANZ Pensions (UK) Limited and volunteers at Medway Street Poverty Alleviation, working to eradicate poverty in the region.
Education: Duncan studied Economics and History.
Siobhan Stirling
Director
Jonathan Kent
Technology Consultant
Penny Sloan
Account Manager
Emma Rigby
Account Manager
Ellie Knight
Content Marketing and PR Account Executive
Alison Dry
Operations Manager
Duncan Holt
Social Media Consultant