Here at Ctrl O we pride ourselves on a personal service, with real people at the end of a telephone. Here is the core team.
Andy Beverley - Chief Executive Officer
Andy launched Ctrl O in 2014 so he could develop and provide the groundbreaking software LinkSpace. He has always been interested in tech and computers, and graduated with a first-class degree in computer systems. He spent the first 10 years of his career as an engineering officer in the Royal Navy. His knowledge of tech and flair for problem-solving became well-known, and he was regularly called upon by colleagues. For three years, he was at sea in the UK’s flagship aircraft carrier, HMS Illustrious, running the ship’s IT and communications systems. After leaving the Royal Navy, Andy saw a gap in the market for software that was secure and allowed many people to work on live data at the same time, and he developed LinkSpace, which was quickly snapped up by the Ministry of Defence among others. In his spare time, Andy loves cycling, and going for a ramble with one of his large collection of OS maps.
We’re delighted that Andy has been shortlisted for Tech UK’s President Awards 2024 in the Economy category. This celebrates people who, says Tech UK, “through technology, have enabled improvements, mitigated risk, protected funds, facilitated advancements in financial planning and supported the growth of the economy”.
John Hayden - Chief Operations Officer
John joined Ctrl O in 2017. He studied Management science with computing at the University of Kent in Canterbury, and after some time working in IT, he spent 12 years in the Royal Navy, where he met Andy. He then worked as an IT Delivery Manager on a variety of projects in the public and private sector. He bumped into Andy again in 2017, heard all about the software that he was developing, and came onboard.
John has built up good working relationships with our clients and knows our software inside out. In his spare time, he does a lot of trail running, and enjoys being in or by the sea.
Oliver Taylor - Technical Support
Oliver has a degree in cybersecurity and forensics from Bournemouth university, and is an expert in the nuts and bolts of LinkSpace. He is usually busy creating a new system or tweaking the layout of an existing one, and is known for giving great demonstrations, where he puts the potential customer in charge of the mouse. When he’s not in the office, Oliver keeps busy with a variety of stringed instruments- he plays acoustic guitar, electric guitar, the mandolin and the ukulele.
Dave Roberts - Technical Support
Dave completed a foundation degree in computing and internet technology as part of Bournemouth university in Yeovil, and is also doing a STEM degree with the Open University.
Like Oliver, he really enjoys being part of the company. “I’ve always felt like a square peg in a round hole before, but here I feel like I fit in. It’s a really welcoming company, everyone knows about software but they’re also human, and everyone’s really supportive- we work together as a team”.
In the evening, Dave enjoys cooking (his grandad was a chef and passed tips down through the family), and he’s also learning Japanese (where Dave is デイブ (pronounced Deibu)).
Carla Francome - Communications and Marketing Manager
Carla studied Human Sciences at St Catherine’s College, Oxford, giving her a broad understanding of a range of scientific disciplines. She was taught genetics by Richard Dawkins, and became passionate about communicating complicated ideas to a mainstream audience.
She spent 20 years in television production as a producer and director, working on a range of programmes for the BBC, Channel 4 and Disney Plus among others. She worked on current affairs, natural history and science programmes, and won an RTS award for a current affairs documentary about kidney transplants. She worked on the smash hit Netflix series “Babies”, which the New Scientist included in their list of the best science documentaries that year, and produced “The Ashley Madison Affair” for Hulu and Disney Plus, where she interviewed tech people around the world about one of the biggest computer hacks of all time.
Carla joined Ctrl O this year, and is enjoying bringing her unusual style to presentations (her parents were clowns when she was growing up, and she likes including jokes). In her spare time, she enjoys cycling and campaigning for safer streets.
Our Offices
Some of us are based in London, others in Yeovil, Somerset, where our offices are in the Abbey Manor Business Centre. There’s beautiful countryside, a pond with ducks, and a cafe with good cake, so do drop by and see us some time if you’re in the area!
We’re a friendly bunch- get in touch if you’d like to have a general chat, see a demonstration of LinkSpace on Teams, or have us come in to talk to your team at work. (And if we have a meeting on Teams, we promise we won’t all stare at you like this).
