Our Team

Chris is the founder and CEO of Red Penguin. Throughout his 40 year maritime career 30 years of which has been in the submarine cable industry, Chris has acquired a wealth of experience in a broad range of related disciplines both ashore and at sea. A master mariner with 10 years command and management experience of cable installation and maintenance operations as well as diverse roles in cable system design and planning, installation and maintenance, provide a wealth of experience in a broad range of matters both on and off shore.

In recent years he has worked extensively with investors, developers and insurers of major subsea cable infrastructure projects and systems, providing a range of expert services, as well as marine warranty surveying services for subsea cable projects. His diverse and comprehensive experience of maritime matters and of submarine cable projects across different industry sectors provides the basis for a fully informed perspective on cable development, installation and repair projects globally, and a solid foundation from which to advise clients on the control of risk and of matters of safety and quality management. Chris’ insight has been instrumental in the resolution of notable challenges across the industry.

He is a Fellow of The Royal Institute of Navigation, a Freeman of the Honourable Company of Master Mariners and is a core member of the executive committee of the European Subsea Cables Association.

As the General Manager at Red Penguin Marine, Matt is tasked with delivering the effective, smooth running of the company, its projects and engagement across the sector. Throughout a 25-year maritime career he has acquired a panoply of both operational and strategic experience in the military, commanding at sea and latterly ashore at the UK’s Middle East Communications and Information Systems Headquarters. More recently he has worked in the private maritime and military sectors, advising multinational and small to medium sized companies on technical innovation and all aspects of telecommunications across space and ground segments.

Matt’s career in the Royal Navy saw him specialise in communications, electronic warfare and surveillance systems; it is this technical expertise that has enabled him to advise and consult to military and civilian agencies, as well as multiple UK Government Departments.

Matt will be focussed on enhancing the operation of this multi-disciplinary marine and subsea cable engineering consultancy, maintaining the high standards of excellence and innovation for which Red Penguin has become known, while ensuring its portfolio of operations stay apace with technology, thus maintaining the highest standards of support to its clients.

Jan is a Non-Executive Director at Red Penguin providing an advisory role across all areas of the company, bringing with her immense international business experience gained over her many years of experience in metals, manufacturing and distribution, principally in the oil and gas sector. Jan brings to Red Penguin the experience of 30 years in international business from previous roles as an Advisor, NED and Chair at board level to a number of manufacturing companies and government departments, including as Director of the Saudi British Joint Business Council, UAE UK Business Council and Director of Energy Industries Council.

Jan is a mechanical engineer, has lived and worked in the US, Europe and the Middle East, is an award winner for Nat West Everywoman and IoD London and South East Global Director of the year. Jan was awarded a CBE for services to Business and an Honorary Doctorate of Engineering.

She is the founder of Corrotherm International Ltd, which is a company specialising in high alloy metals for use in gas petrochemical power, oil and desalination industries, which she grew from a one woman company to a now international business with offices in 6 countries.

Glenn has been a submarine cable professional for 25 years, developing a proven, operationalised knowledge of submarine telecommunications cable systems, with both offshore and onshore experience.  During his extensive career, Glenn has conducted a wide range of activities, including feasibility studies, desk top studies, route engineering, tender adjudication, contract award, submerged plant acceptance, marine survey, shore end installation, shallow/deep-water installations, post lay inspection and burial operations, front haul design/construction and cable recovery operations.  As a cable owner and maintenance authority, Glenn demonstrates both an in-depth knowledge of subsea Operations & Maintenance activities and experience executing offshore liaison, crossing agreements, marine and terrestrial maintenance agreements, submerged/terrestrial plant fault location, submerged/terrestrial repair/spares management and management of third-party damage claims.

With strong project management skills, Glenn is used to working within multi-disciplined teams in both domestic and international environments and has repeatedly proven his commitment and determination to succeed in any project.  Accustomed to working within ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 environments, Glenn is known for consistently achieving high levels of productivity and quality, and his skills in identifying and managing risks.

Gary’s experience over 28 years’ in the submarine cable industry is built upon the foundations of a strong mechanical engineering background in both civilian and military domains. During his time at Red Penguin, he has overseen many projects from initial concept through to implementation, also providing technical oversight and surveillance during numerous cable installation projects including large HVDC interconnection projects such as Western Link, BritNed and more recently IFA2.

Gary has extensive knowledge of safe operations and routinely participates in pre-operational risk control events and incident reviews, and the detailed review of contractors’ procedures and documentation. As Operations Manager, he is responsible for engaging with, implementing and managing our consultants appointed offshore and on-site, often across a large number of projects simultaneously, ranging in size and requirements.

Within the Operations Manager role, Gary maintains the Quality, Health and Environmental system (QHSE) that facilitates meeting objectives and enables continual improvement in the effectiveness and performance of the Company’s management of risk to its business, and by extension to the business of our clients.

Fiona is a marine geologist and survey specialist skilled in data interpretation and evaluation for shallow geohazards, subsea cable routing, installation, protection, and seabed remediation with a particular specialism in North Sea / High Latitude Quaternary sediments.

During the last 32 years Fiona has worked in the subsea industry on a wide range of specialist projects from site surveys, route surveys, geohazard and environmental surveys (OSPAR-compliant), for the Oil and Gas and Energy Transmission industries.

As Principal Geo Specialist, Fiona is responsible for bringing her extensive experience of geological and geotechnical aspects to the projects which Red Penguin undertake to assist Clients for subsea cable route evaluation and development, cable installation and maintenance. Fiona also has spent most of her career to date working offshore, both as a geo specialist, and as an Offshore Company Representative.

Matthew has worked in offshore cables since 2012 mainly focussing on HVDC power cables, he has a wide range of skills and technical training from oceanography to electrical engineering.

Prior to joining Red Penguin, Matthew was the technical lead for a planned HVDC cable project between Iceland and the UK covering aspects including surveys, procurement and grid connections.

His time at Red Penguin has covered an interesting mix of projects from cable and pipeline surveys in shallow lagoons to financial due diligence work. As a project engineer, he acts in both a technical capacity and as or with a project manager.

Francesca is an environmental scientist with specialist knowledge of the natural environment, marine environmental policy and the consenting process for large infrastructure projects. Since completing her MSc in Marine Environmental Monitoring and Management, she has worked on a wide range of cable projects in various stages of development; from feasibility to construction.

Francesca joined Red Penguin Associates in 2015 as a Project Engineer and GIS Specialist. She is highly adept in the manipulation, interpretation and presentation of complex marine datasets. Prior to joining Red Penguin, Francesca contributed to a number of desk top studies for submarine cable projects in the Mediterranean. Francesca brings a methodical and precise approach to all her work.

Francesca’s experience at Red Penguin Associates includes Data Management and GIS Analysis for cable routing development, survey operations and to support Environmental Permitting process. Furthermore, she contributed to the creation and development of a geodatabase to support cable installation phases.
As a project engineer, she supports Project Managers in the delivery of the projects and maintains a comprehensive knowledge of the projects to provide cover for the Project Managers if necessary.

Heather is the Marketing and Communications Officer at Red Penguin. A graduate of Canterbury Christ Church University, she studied BSc Tourism Management and worked for several years specialising in logistical travel for the marine industry. Since 2018, Heather has submerged herself in the submarine power, telecoms, and offshore renewables industries attending conferences, webinars, and numerous courses to facilitate her dual role and promote and manage business development. A competent bid manager, Heather has managed and coordinated the preparation of proposals, compilation of bids and tenders as the Marketing and Commercial Officer for the past two years. She is now following her passion to support senior management in developing the company brand awareness, whilst retaining responsibility for commercial activities and contributing to business development. Involved in the marine sector for eight years, and the specialised subsea sector for the last three, Heather assists the board in the development of company strategy through research and analysis of competitors offerings and market trends along with accompanying marketing guidance; this includes planning and overseeing the marketing budget. In 2019 Heather implemented a brand refresh across the entire Red Penguin Marine Group, including the development of a new website.

Coming from a varied educational background, Sophia has been working at Red Penguin for over 2 and a half years. Her development has been both exciting and dynamic. Starting out as Operations Administrator, working closely with the Operations Manager, supporting key administrative activities to enable successful project delivery, including linking into the project planning teams, with a strong focus on internal cross-departmental communication. In July 2020 she transitioned into the Commercial Department, consequently becoming Commercial & Operations Assistant. Within this role she is responsible for identifying and winning new business, including all associated support tasks. Support tasks include monitoring of any commercial enquiries, updating of the CRM and opportunities tracker; facilitate and contribute to the Bid/No Bid process as well as assists in commercial and contractual assessments. From September 2021, Sophia has taken on the role of Bid Manager, taking the lead in the preparation and submission of bids. She has experience preparing bids across multiple sectors including power interconnectors, fibre optic cables and offshore wind farm export cables.