Who We Are

Glyn Finney

Glyn is one of the founders of Castlefirth and is a highly experienced business leader with a track record of Lean improvement across public and private sectors. He has excellent analytical, communication, planning, and organisation skills and a strong focus on delivering key operational and strategic objectives whilst ensuring efficient use of available resources. Glyn is committed to high-quality customer service and has led a number of Lean transformations across a wide client base that includes Healthcare, Military, Manufacturing, Technology, Energy, Charity, Service, and Automotive.

Tom Banks

Tom is one of the founders of Castlefirth and has led many Lean transformations across a wide client base that includes military, healthcare, policing, heavy industry, manufacturing, construction, continuous processing, and office/IT service organisations. These enterprises all require wide-ranging improvement skills to deliver strategy-led change. Switching across environments from office-led change to operations change has required a range of skills and experience. In these cases, significant returns in excess of 10:1 against investment were met.

Trace Durning

Trace, is the Director of Operations, Europe, has spearheaded numerous strategic transformations and lean improvement initiatives in diverse industries such as finance, media, ed-tech, fin-tech, and the third sector. Throughout Trace’s 25-year career, there has been a consistent focus on people development and coaching. Building trusted relationships during collaborations with C-suite executives and broader teams, coupled with substantial experience in cultural transformation and strategy implementation, has resulted in enhanced business performance and substantial return on investment.

Darren Clyde

Darren has worked as a consultant and as a Lean and Continuous Improvement Leader in the RAF and Energy & Construction sectors driving meaningful and measurable improvements. He has worked in the public sector; the Royal Air Force, MOD, US Air Force in Europe, NHS, and in the private sector; BP, Jacobs, and Aker Solutions in which he designed the approach and practice throughout the 13,000 employee multinational Oil & Gas services company.

David Simmons

David is a multilingual senior business leader with a proven track record in transforming complex and diverse international, multi-site organisations, including extensive commercial, operations, and acquisition experience. He has a strong reputation for the achievement of sustained profitable growth, through the leadership and development of individuals and effective teams in a multicultural environment. He is an entrepreneurial culture change leader with a passion for customer satisfaction supported by the application of Lean, Toyota Production System, and six-sigma.

Michelle Fulford

Michelle is a result-driven, CIPD chartered fellow who combines her ability to shape and lead strategy, with people expertise and commercial acumen. A thought leader, comfortable leading change and shaping policy. With a background working in people-orientated environments, encouraging collaboration and continuous improvement. Experienced in strategy development, talent management, and driving cultural change to support management in all aspects of organisation design and development.

Jim Roche

Jim has 20+ years of project & programme management experience driving strategy implementation, Lean improvement, and process improvement. Jim has direct experience managing large complex multi-year programmes and transformations that support the strategic direction of the organisation.
Jim has first-hand experience leading Lean and Agile transformations from establishing best practices, coaching project staff, and mentoring leaders, to scaling methodologies that integrate with organisational standard practices. He has diverse experience in a variety of sectors from Technology, Finance, Pharmaceutical, Healthcare, and Oil & Gas.

Paul Jones

Paul has a wide range of strategic Leadership and Operational change experience.  With over a 20-year career Paul has held Senior and Executive positions which started in Manufacturing but opened to consultancy, construction, automotive aerospace and public sector. With experience of Mergers, Joint ventures and business ‘turnaround’, he is Ideally placed to bring direction and clarity to complex situations.

He has a reputation for delivering on time and in full, pulling on his past experience to bring positive change to both the performance and organisation culture of the businesses he is involved with.  Paul was trained by Toyota in Toyota Production system (TPS) and continued to develop his Lean experience in highly regulated manufacturing environments.