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Andrew Carr
What was your background prior to Camwood?
I’ve worked in the channel and technology sector ever since I graduated from university. Over the past 25 years, I’ve held various executive roles ranging from Sales and Marketing Director to Chief Operating Officer and Chief Executive Officer. Each role has brought me invaluable experience in shaping business strategies and driving innovation and growth within this ever-evolving industry.
How did you get into a tech role?
Tech wasn’t my initial career plan. In fact, I studied European Business Studies, keeping all my options open. I picked cucumbers post-uni, before landing a telesales role at an IT analyst business, selling to global giants like Microsoft, HP, and IBM. Something clicked – technology became my track and there’s been no looking back!
In your current role, what does a typical day look like?
Every day is diverse and dynamic, which is a true highlight. I’ve found there are two types of business leaders – those who stay in the background and those who dive into the heart of the action. I fall into the latter, spending about 60% of my time engaging with our team, customers, and partners. The rest is dedicated to the essential processes of an MD, such as finances and HR. Ultimately, my focus is outward, nurturing connections with all stakeholders, as it’s people who propel our success.
What key moments/achievements have helped you grow your career?
One standout moment was during my time as Sales and Marketing Director at a well-established reseller. I spearheaded the task of populating an adjacent building with IT contracts and managed services. Over the course of just 18 months, we secured three major deals that transformed the business, including a monumental five-year contract with a global enterprise – our largest win to date – that necessitated a team of 60. This established me both within the company and the wider industry, evolving from a sales leader to an MD as I delved into mergers and acquisitions, trade sales, due diligence, finance, and HR – shaping a well-rounded leadership style.
What is the best part of your day?
Whenever I’m interacting with our internal team, helping them overcome challenges and sparking ideas. In a pure services business like Camwood, people are at the heart of our greatness, so equipping them and ensuring their wellbeing is deeply fulfilling. Another highlight is engaging with customers and partners – the unpredictability keeps me sharp, responsive, and constantly on my A-game. Each day holds its surprises, be it at 9am or 6pm, so weekdays are a genuine pleasure for me.
What is your favourite pastime outside of work that helps you to relax and switch off?
My go-to relaxation is walking. This year, I’ve even challenged myself to cover an average of six miles every day, usually starting at around 6.15am (it’s much easier in the summer!). This routine helps me to unwind and gear up for the day ahead. Socialising is another favourite pastime, and a real advantage of working in tech is that it’s a friendly, sociable industry. In my 25 years, I’ve crossed paths with numerous people, creating a lively network. Whether in London, Bristol, or elsewhere, there’s always a chance to meet and catch up.
If you could invite three guests for dinner, who would they be and why?
As a lifelong Nottingham Forest supporter, the great Brian Clough would be top of my list. Then, to delve into business brilliance, I’d invite Lou Gerstner, the former CEO who shaped IBM into a global powerhouse. And for the fun and chaotic energy he would bring, Elon Musk would be my third guest. It’d be fascinating to see his unique thought process in action. Imagine the conversation between the maverick Clough, the astute Gerstner, and the enigmatic Musk!
What is something that might surprise people about you?
I’ve done two big charity bike rides: the Raid Pyrénéen, which covers the length of the Pyrenees between the Atlantic and Mediterranean in five days, so a distance of 720km and a total elevation of over 11,000m, and another challenge called the Nutters Club of Ventoux. That one involved cycling about 120km with a 4,500m climb - all in one day. I signed up for both on a whim, but they were fantastic experiences and I’d definitely do them again.
If you didn’t work in tech, what would your ideal job be?
I’ve always loved the idea of owning a cosy auberge in the south of France, running a restaurant there. What draws me in is the social element – funnily enough, I actually thought about getting into hospitality management when I was at school. Although tech and hospitality seem very different, they share common ground as both involve hard work and lots of social interaction.
Sanjay Tailor
What was your background prior to Camwood?
My experience in enterprise IT spans over two decades. In 2009, I started working at Capita where I held a number of different technical and leadership positions across different departments, before my departure as Head of Service Delivery and Operations. Throughout my ten years at Capita, I successfully managed large teams of people and challenging projects, and found my calling as a curious, problem-solving, supportive leader who gets much out of delivering great results to clients. Every IT role I held offered me many valuable lessons and experiences, all of which now allow me to drive innovation and service excellence at Camwood and support our clients in embracing business change.
How did you get into a tech role?
You could say that technology chose me and honestly, I didn’t resist. I’ve loved all things tech from a very young age. I was indeed that boy who would take his electronic toys apart just to shape them into something new. But the spark for tech really lit when I got my first PC; then the fun and games of installing MS DOS began via what felt like a million floppy disks! At the age of 16, it felt natural to start my first part-time job in an electrical retailing store, combining my passion for tech with salesmanship and customer service. When looking back in time, I could honestly sell a fridge to an Eskimo and an oven to the devil! After completing my BSc in Computer Science in 2004, I moved onto an IT analyst role, then various highly technical positions, and the rest as they say is history.
In your current role, what does a typical day look like?
No day is the same, which is one of the many things I enjoy about my role at Camwood. One minute I could be reviewing pricing and overseeing project delivery, the next presenting to hundreds of people, before ending my day looking at the latest tech and creating new service propositions. A typical day is one when I spend a fair amount of time engaging with our partners and customers, listening to their needs and problems, and proposing new solutions. As an Operations Director, I have a very hands-on approach and love to give the team advice and a different perspective to support their development.
What key moments/achievements have helped you grow your career?
A real page-turner in my career happened whilst at Capita when I inherited a team of 40 people across multiple accounts and helped it grow year on year. It was at this moment when I transitioned from a ‘techie’ to a mentor and leader, helping me realise that managing people and customers is a very natural fit for me. I’ve always been a ‘fixer’ who has the ability to look beyond the immediate problem and anticipate challenges one-two years in advance. This future-planning capability combined with a good intuition and trust in people has helped me to grow my career.
What is the best part of your day?
The best part of my day is when I’m interacting with our internal team, helping them overcome challenges and sparking ideas. In a pure service business like Camwood, people are at the heart of our greatness, so equipping them with knowledge and skills and ensuring their wellbeing is deeply fulfilling. The unpredictability of my role keeps me sharp, responsive, and constantly on my A-game. Each day holds its surprises, be it at 9am or 6pm, so weekdays are a genuine pleasure for me.
What is your favourite pastime outside of work that helps you to relax and switch off?
I am a family man and a social animal, who loves being with and around fun people. Every chance I get to socialise and be outside, I take it. I am a huge cricket fan and have injected that passion into my kids who both play and make me proud. When I’m not driving them to games or practice, I love throwing barbeque parties for my friends. On a rainy day, I would binge-watch my favourite crime dramas.
If you could invite three guests for dinner, who would they be and why?
Being a massive Indian cricket fan, my first dinner invite would be sent to the iconic Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Then, how could I not invite the business magnate Bill Gates and pick his brain on all things tech? And finally, Leigh Francis, aka my favourite character Keith Lemon. The combination of Bill’s tech genius, Dhoni’s success as a cricket captain and Leigh’s sense of humour would make for the world’s greatest dinner party.
What is something that might surprise people about you?
I love DIY and I’m actually really good at it (my wife agrees!). I proudly built an extension and five by ten decking by myself in my previous house, somewhat worthy of featuring in Grand Designs (if I say so myself). I can also do – and enjoy doing - various electrical jobs, plumbing, painting and carpentry. The only thing I’d gladly leave to the experts is plastering. Although I was so close to completing a course for that too.
If you didn’t work in tech, what would your ideal job be?
I’d combine my love for entertaining people with a life-long passion for cooking to become a Head Chef at my own grill bar. My family and friends know best that I can – and I will - barbeque everything and anything, bringing my soul to every recipe alongside an honest explosion of flavours. You should try my signature dish, a lamb curry. There’s no bland food in the Tailor household!
Neil Reynolds
What was your background prior to Camwood?
I’ve been involved in the tech space now since 2008. I started out working at Transport for London, and was there for about seven years. That was where I gained the qualifications I needed to become an accountant. Soon after, I moved out of the public sector and into the private space, and my first job was at a large IT reseller, which I was at for about eight years. I went back to distribution for a brief spell before I started at Camwood in 2018 as the Head of Finance.
How did you get into a tech role?
It was all a bit of a happy accident to be honest! The role that I applied for in 2008 just happened to satisfy all the requirements I wanted in terms of progression, growth, aspirations and the size of the company. At the time, I was less concerned about the sector it was in as it ticked all the boxes for me. Once I got started, I realised how much I enjoyed working in the technology field and that’s why I stayed at that particular business for eight years. Technology has been a big part of my working life since then.
In your current role, what does a typical day look like?
Most of my working day involves spinning all the plates that finance has to offer, and there are a lot of them! But the overwhelming priority is cash. What’s the cash situation? Do any adjustments need to be made to the cash position? How do these adjustments differ depending on the time and month that we’re in? And then it’s considering where we are in the reporting cycle, and if any stakeholders outside of the management team need to be made aware of the organisation’s performance. It’s then also considering the forecasting phase, and the cash position over the next three, six or nine months for example. It all depends on where we are in the month’s cycle.
What key moments/achievements have helped you grow your career?
I think a big one was becoming fully qualified as an accountant. It’s a moment where I got to be recognised among my peers as being skilled in that function. Alongside that, my career has been full of opportunities for progression and taking on new responsibilities, such as moving from Financial Controller to Head of Finance. And much of that wouldn’t have been possible if I didn’t have the buy in from my managers and peers, as I’ve worked alongside some great people as well that have really helped me to take those next steps.
What is the best part of your day?
I think it really depends on the stage of the financial cycle in the month, as the tasks are always changing depending on that. I guess specifically, if it’s a piece of complicated filing, and it’s done right and ratified by the business, then I know that my team has worked to improve the financial performance of the organisation. That’s a really gratifying feeling. But I always look for great moments in my day, however small. It might be that I had a decent sandwich at lunch! It pays to look for the quick wins where they can be found.
What is your favourite pastime outside of work that helps you to relax and switch off?
I’ve got two answers for this one! Before kids, I was very sporty, and played a lot of different sports outside of work, whether that was running or five-a-side football. I also play the violin and used to be part of an orchestra. It was a great way to switch off once a week and go and play with other musicians. But my favourite pastime nowadays is doing everything to ensure that my kids are happy. As any parent will know, their happiness is the most important thing!
If you could invite three guests for dinner, who would they be and why?
Due to my passion for music, the first on the list would have to be Ludwig van Beethoven. I’d love to know how he composed some of the most amazing music that I’ve both listened to and played as a violinist in an orchestra. With my other big passion being sports, I’d love to have a chat with David Beckham and truly understand what made him tick as a sportsman. Finally, I think someone like Henry Ford would be fascinating to talk to. He was way ahead of his time in how he built up a huge corporate company. I would have loved to know how he achieved that and how is mind worked.
What is something that might surprise people about you?
I studied French at University, and I’ll take the opportunity to speak it when I get the chance, although my skills may have dipped slightly in more recent years! The other one is that, as mentioned previously, I play the violin. Proudly, I’ve reached grade eight standard, which I don’t think is something a lot of people are aware of.
If you didn’t work in tech, what would your ideal job be?
Particularly as I’ve played every sport under the sun and I have such a passion for it, I definitely would love to have been a professional sportsperson, whether that be football or another type of sport. But thinking about it, one slightly more unusual profession is that as a child I really wanted to be a ringmaster in a circus.
