Meet the HT2 Labs Team
We are a vastly experienced, growing, global team, including a number of recognized thought-leaders, authors, and engineers amongst our ranks.
Jon Brydges
Implementation Manager
Jon joined HT2 in September 2018 having founded and managed two profitable businesses within recruitment and the emerging 3D printing sector.
A geek at heart, Jon uses his commercial and technical skills to ensure clients exceed their expectations when using HT2 products.
When not at work, Jon makes furniture from old pallets & scaffold boards, jogs around South Oxfordshire and is always in search of a new local brewery to sample.
Manny Mullaney
Chief Layabout
As Chief Layabout at HT2, Beagle Manny can often be found basking in the sun or curled up next to his trusted human, James.
When Manny does eventually awake, he can be seen strutting his stuff around the office or hiding under tables, waiting to pinch bits of food out of staff members hands!
Jasper Betts
Head of Shoe Redistribution
On a busy day at the office, Spaniel Jasper can probably be found redistributing various staff members shoes throughout the office in a game of hide and seek.
In his spare time, Jasper likes taking his human, Ben, for long walks in the Oxfordshire countryside, as well as searching for food left unattended!
Dr Nigel Downing
Nigel is an established leader in experiential learning, and a regular speaker at HR events. His passion is for education, and how the use of business simulations can accelerate learning.
Brian Helweg-Larson
Board Member
Brian founded ProfitAbility and has designed more than a hundred simulation-based courses for worldwide clients in over 20 different industries.
With a team of simulation designers to continue his work, he now concentrates on new forms of learning, and new kinds of simulation using emerging technologies.
John Yates
Board Member
John joined the City & Guilds Group in 2010. He has held a number of roles during his time at the group, including CEO of the Group’s joint venture in India and Managing Director of ILM.
His current role sees him providing oversight and leadership to two of City & Guilds’ Corporate Learning businesses, Kineo and The Oxford Group. John has vast experience across education, learning technologies and digital product development and, his skills lie within business leadership and development.
David Starr
QA/Support Engineer
David joined the HT2 team mid 2018 after seven years as a freelance content creator, working both for business and selling directly to the public.
Outside work he spends his free time experimenting with digital content creation.
Zach Newton
QA/Support Engineer
Zach joined the HT2 team in early 2018. He has a love for all things tech and a good pop culture reference.
When not working hard to provide customer support and communication with our development teams, he will be binging his favourite shows on Netflix or playing his video game of the month.
Michael Rybinstev
Software Engineer
Michael joined HT2 Labs in August 2018 as a Software Engineer. His path to becoming a developer was somewhat long-winded. Having studied Aerospace Engineering, working as an English teacher and a pump engineer, he discovered his passion for code.
In his free time he likes to teach people how to code at a local freeCodeCamp meetup and just read a good book. Really enjoys travelling and Welsh ale.
Hotaka Kanazawa
Software Engineer
Hotaka joined HT2 Labs as a Software Engineer in July 2018, with 3 years experience developing a data management platform for digital marketing. He is keen to make his team more productive and deliver the best experiences to customers.
In his spare time, Hotaka loves rock climbing and enjoys tackling different routes when doing so.
Dan Stein
Machine Learning Engineer
Dan started out studying Business IT at Kingston University. Enjoying success with his part time record label ventures he left to start up the award winning ‘DogsOnAcid.com’, and later ‘Breakbeat Kaos’ one of the UK’s most successful dance music independent labels.
After a brief affair with the tech world with startup DarkStar (Chaired by XFM founder Chris Parry) which counted amongst it’s clients BuenaVista (Disney) and EMI, Dan landed the UK’s first No.1 Dubstep and Drum & Bass records amongst ten other UK Top 10 productions.
Returning to his roots after a health scare, Dan is a new recruit at HT2 Labs where he hopes to apply his many passions.
Mac Rusek
Software Engineer
Despite coding for most of his life in his spare time, Mac’s professional career within engineering only began very recently. Joining HT2 Labs in January 2018 as a Junior Software Engineer, Mac brought with him experience as an automation engineer within automation, electronics, engineering and programming.
Mac’s thirst for knowledge saw him learn Python and Django at an early age before adding Javascript and node.js to his repertoire.
Originally from Poland, Mac now lives in Oxfordshire with his wife. Mac also speaks three languages.
Phil Graham
Software Engineer
Phil has been involved with computers from an early age. He set up his first modem when he was 7 years old and living in the U.S. Phil joined HT2 Labs in January 2018; his first full-time role as a developer.
Phil is extremely passionate about new and emerging technologies and rocking out on the guitar.
Callum Williams
Software Engineer
Callum joined the Curatr Development team in October 2017, having previously held roles varying from front-end designer to a back-end developer (and everything in between), along with a good helping of graphical and UX design, plus some 3D modelling – and been “messing around” with websites since 2010.
If he isn’t pulling a computer apart and putting it back together (with a few screws left over), Callum is probably going for a run or playing his ukulele.
Chris Bishop
Software Engineer
Chris is another of our 2017 starters; joining as part of our software development team, he uses his experience in a number of programming languages to work on integrations as well as core code development.
Though he spends his working week in Oxford, his weekends are spent down on the coast in Hampshire where he enjoys living life by the sea.
Ryan Smith
Software Engineer
Ryan joined us after graduating from Oxford Brookes University, where he won the John Birch prize for the highest grade average in the University.
When he’s not injuring himself on a cricket field, he consults with people on all things xAPI and helps develop xAPI products and services such as Learning Locker and the Moodle xAPI Plugin.
Josh Wilkinson
Software Engineer
Josh has been developing learning software for the best part of a decade. He is passionate about software and likes to explore new innovations. He enjoys learning new skills and putting them into practice to find new creative solutions.
Aside from software Josh loves all things techy, and lives his life in ‘the cloud’. When he’s not in the clouds, he can be found watching movies, cycling or playing the guitar.
Janet Laane Effron
Data Scientist
Janet is our in-house data scientist. She has a penchant for applying diverse fields such as cognitive science and competitive intelligence to develop best practices in learning design & developing meaningful metrics for performance analysis.
Although not based in the UK, Janet makes up for it with some virtual cycling around rainy London each morning.
Ollie Newton
Lead Graphic/UX Designer
Ollie is a Creative Developer and Graphic Designer at HT2. He has an avid interest in Comic books and is always game for a chat about the shocking ending of last week’s episode of Game of Thrones.
Mostly though, he uses his passion for design and artistic skills to create great visuals and iOS apps.
Ian Blackburn
Product Manager - Learning Locker
Ian joined HT2 as a Solutions Architect in Summer 2017, working between our in-house and client technical teams to design and implement effective learning programmes; and taking on additional Product Manager responsibilities later that year.
Away from work, Ian is a Liverpool FC supporter, and a keen amateur footballer for his local team.
Pete Thorne
Product Manager - Curatr
Pete is now an experienced developer but was once a classroom teacher before transitioning into online training.
He likes to tinker with things to continually improve the user experience and deliver features that make a difference to trainers and learners alike. Outside the office, Pete is a normal geek.
Libby Webb
Digital Communications Officer
Libby joined the HT2 Labs team as a Digital Communications Officer in June 2018, having graduated from the University of Winchester with a degree in Media and Communications [BA Hons].
Libby enjoys all things health and fitness related and, you’ll often find her satisfying her wanderlust by jet-setting across the globe.
Sam Alden
Digital Marketing Manager
Sam joined the HT2 Labs team at the start of May 2017 having graduated with a First Class (Hons) Marketing, Advertising and Communications Degree.
Sam is a keen musician in his spare time, and you can probably find him playing the drums at one of Oxford’s many vibrant music venues at evenings & weekends.
David Steingesser
Implementation Manager
David joined HT2 in 2017 after spending the previous 7 years working in Technical Support and IT-related positions in Education and Business SaaS companies. He has an avid interest in learning new technologies, and is passionate about helping client’s get the most out of products they may have questions around.
In his spare time, David likes checking out new restaurants, bands and films. When the weather is nice, he also enjoys long hikes with his wife and pug.
Katharina Lass
Project Manager
Katharina started out in Finance but quickly moved into international accounts and project management. Managing large SaaS rollouts in FTSE100, BPO’s, pharmaceutical and medical device companies she accumulated valuable business acumen.
With a keen eye for detail and a passion for L&D she now project manages our action based research in EdTech.
Craig Taylor
Customer Success Manager
Craig’s been involved in the training/L&D field since 1993, when he cut his teeth in the training-delivery world while serving in the British Army.
His subsequent roles have been in the rail, nuclear, healthcare, and financial sectors, where he has helped people to understand the value that current and emerging technologies can bring
Miriam Lydon
Bid Writer
With a degree in Law (with New Zealand Law) from the University of Nottingham and high-end sales experience, Miriam is thrilled to be part of the HT2 Labs team working on bids and proposals.
Outside of work, Miriam teaches several fitness classes and has a keen interest in hiking, climbing, and ornithology.
Anna Lloyd
VP Product Management
Anna leads the product and marketing teams at HT2.
Anna is a highly experienced digital education and training specialist, working in education and training product development and management for the past 10 years.
Having worked as a senior leader in large education companies, Anna has lead teams developing and managing a wide range of learning products reaching hundreds of thousands of learners.
Nicole Kastner
Sales Manager
Nicole has over 10 years’ sales experience. She discovered her passion for sales and customer service while working at high-end retailers during college. Over the last few years, she has focused her interest in the evolving world of software and technical sales.
Nicole holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Boston College and a Juris Doctorate from Suffolk University Law School. Though originally from Minnesota, the educational hub of Boston is now where she calls home. She enjoys occasional 5k runs, visiting local breweries and taking her dog Spencer to the beach.
James Lindberg
Senior Account Executive
James joined HT2 having spent the previous 10 years selling cutting edge technologies in industries including oil & gas, 3D printing and scanning, and video technology. He has found that he enjoys teaching others the intricacies of new technology, and how it can help their day-to-day lives.
James has degrees from the University of New Hampshire and the University of Maryland. In his free time he enjoys camping and other outdoor activities; and dreams of someday owning an absurd amount of woodland and building his own house there.
Alan Betts
Chief Learning Officer | Chairman Of The Board
After careers in Financial Services and Academia Alan brings business acumen and a deep understanding of the learning process but most of all he cares about people and works hard to understand the needs of both customers and staff.
Outside of the work environment he is passionate about all sports but particularly cricket with a carefully curated collection of Wisdens dating all the way back to the 1880s.
Dr Ben Betts
Chief Executive Officer | Board Member
Ben leads the passionate team at HT2 Labs and is a globally-recognised thought-leader in Learning Technology with more than 15 years industry experience.
His doctorate research broke new ground studying the impact of gamification on adult social learning. He has authored and contributed chapters for four books in the last two years, published peer-reviewed academic papers and presented at TEDx. When he’s not in the office he can be found watching, and occasionally participating in, all forms of sport.
Gagan Basrai
Account Executive
Prior joining the HT2 team, Gagan’s previous experiences included pursuing new pipeline generation from a blend of outbound and inbound prospecting. By establishing a deep understanding of our clients business, he is able to provide guidance to organizations developing learning iniatives.
Before calling Boston home, Gagan is a native of Northern California earning a degree from Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. In his spare time he enjoys playing basketball, petting strangers dogs, and eating various cheeses.
James Herrick
Account Executive
James joined HT2 Labs in December 2017. Prior to HT2, James had been involved with several early and mid-stage startups as an integral member of the sales and marketing teams.
James grew up in London and moved to the states to attend university at Dickinson College. Now based at our Boston office, he can often be found playing rugby or by the ocean outside of work hours.
James Mullaney
Technical Director | Board Member
James leads our development teams and has more than 10 years of experience in learning tech.
Aside from day to day management of development, James is in charge of all infrastructure and ensures HT2 stays operational 24/7. With his loyal hound Manny at his side, he is also book keeper for all in-office sweepstake/wagering opportunities.