Keynote: John Weiner
Assessment industry adviser / former Chief Science Officer
John Weiner is an independent adviser providing strategic consulting to assessment-focused organizations in credentialing, talent assessment, and education. Formerly the Chief Science Officer at PSI, he led global consulting, R&D, psychometrics, and assessment content departments, and supported M&A initiatives. Throughout his four-decade career, he has led the development of solutions for private and public sector organizations, certifying bodies, and regulators. He has served as an expert witness and arbitrator in testing-related cases and gained governance experience as a board member in two non-profit assessment associations. A recognized thought leader, John has authored numerous publications and delivered over 160 conference presentations addressing assessment issues, research, and trends; and he contributed as co-chair and editor of the recent ITC/ATP Guidelines for Technology-Based Assessment. John holds a master’s degree in quantitative psychology and his professional honors include being named a SIOP Fellow and receiving the ATP’s 2024 Professional Contributions and Service to Testing Award.
Don’t miss his session: The Automated Future Of Assessment
Keynote: Andreas Schleicher
Director for Education and Skills, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Andreas Schleicher is Director for Education and Skills at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). He initiated and oversees the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and other international instruments that have created a global platform for policy-makers, researchers and educators across nations and cultures to innovate and transform educational policies and practices. He has worked for over 20 years with education leaders around the world to improve quality and equity in education.
Before joining the OECD, Andreas was Director for Analysis at the International Association for Educational Achievement (IEA). He studied Physics in Germany and received a degree in Mathematics and Statistics in Australia. He is the recipient of numerous honours and awards, including the ‘Theodor Heuss’ prize, awarded in the name of the first president of the Federal Republic of Germany for “exemplary democratic engagement”. He holds an honorary Professorship at the University of Heidelberg.
Don’t miss his session: Learning in the world of AI, assessment for the world of AI
Keynote: John Winkley
Education expert
John Winkley is an education expert, and was formerly Director of AlphaPlus, an education business that specialises in the design, development and deployment of qualifications and their underpinning assessments, across primary and secondary schools, vocational and workplace education, and professional education.
John is an experienced leader of projects in education and assessment, and in UK education and technology businesses, and specialised in developing services for standards, qualifications and assessment agencies in the UK and overseas,
John was a founding director of the eAssessment Association and has spoken at numerous conferences internationally on the use of technology in assessment. He is also Chairman of The Beckfoot Trust, a Multi-Academy Trust comprising 10 schools in West Yorkshire.
Don’t miss his session: Transforming formative assessment for the modern era
Alastair Black
Digital Assessment Manager, Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA)
Alastair Black is Digital Assessment Manager at SQA. Alastair has worked at SQA in assessment production for 20 years and has been Digital Assessment Manager since 2022. In this role he manages SOLAR – SQA’s brand name for their instance of the Surpass Platform – and the team that develops and delivers all SQA’s digital assessment content. SQA delivers about 150,000 assessments through the Surpass Platform annually, across a wide range of qualifications.
Alastair is passionate about digital assessment and the many benefits it can bring, such as leveraging the rich item and assessment data available to enhance the assessment experience for learners and enable them to achieve the best outcomes.
Miriam Broome
Head of Online Proctoring Services, Surpass Assessment
With over eight years at Surpass, Miriam began her career in the Test Centre Network team before taking on responsibility for online proctoring in 2020.
Bringing a diverse background in teaching modern foreign languages, as well as experience in sales and customer service, Miriam combines strong communication skills with a focus on operational excellence. In her role, she oversees the secure and reliable delivery of online exams, manages key customer and supplier relationships, and leads Surpass’s in-house reviewing team.
Passionate about creating smooth, high-quality assessment experiences, Miriam plays a key role in upholding exam integrity while supporting Surpass customers to deliver fair and scalable testing solutions.
Ian Brumfitt
Chief Operating Officer, Surpass Assessment
Ian Brumfitt is Chief Operating Officer with full responsibility for the customer journey across the e-assessment lifecycle—from initial implementation through to live service and ongoing support. He leads delivery, customer success, and service operations to ensure that the solution is deployed smoothly and continues to perform reliably in live environments.
With 20 years’ experience in the e-assessment sector, Ian ensures that clients receive the functionality, system performance, and support they need to deliver high-stakes assessments with confidence. His focus on operational excellence and long-term client success helps build trusted partnerships and drives measurable outcomes for education and assessment providers.
Jim Crawford
Chief Commercial Officer, Surpass Assessment
Currently in his 16th year at Surpass Assessment, Jim is responsible for overseeing Surpass’ innovation and business development strategy, including international sales, marketing and bid management. Jim’s expertise is in utilizing advanced technologies to create pragmatic solutions that are both operationally scalable and educationally robust.
Jim’s passion for creating better assessments started alongside his career in the education sector, when in 2005 he worked on e-learning design for some of the world’s most recognisable brands such as HSBC, UNESCO and Boots. As a Product Owner at Surpass, Jim was responsible for overseeing the design and development of a new SaaS version of the Surpass Platform, which is now used by the majority of Surpass customers to deliver over 3 million tests a year.
Jim is a regular speaker at assessment events with a particular focus on innovation and emerging technologies.
Graeme Clarke
Head of Digital Assessment Services, Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA)
My career began in Scottish Further Education, teaching Engineering, Mathematics, and Computing, which provided a real understanding of learner needs. I subsequently led the development and implementation of digital assessment and learning systems, first within the College and then on a national scale for the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA). Currently, I am accountable for the strategic direction and operational delivery of SQA’s digital assessment and learning services, with a focus on leveraging technology to transform all phases of the assessment lifecycle—from design to delivery. I am engaged in the wider educational technology community, chairing the eAssessment Special Interest Group (SIG) for AEA Europe and serving on the JCQ AI Action Group. I continue to be passionate about harnessing digital technology to deliver a positive transformational impact on the achievement and success of learners.
Amanda Dainis
CEO | Lead Psychometrician, Dainis and Company, Inc
Amanda is the founder of Dainis & Company, Inc. She holds a PhD in Assessment and Measurement as well as a Master’s in Public Administration, both from James Madison University. Amanda spent 10 years as a lead psychometric assessor for the ANSI/ISO/17024 standard and is the contracted psychometrician for the Department of Defense COOL programs. She calls the Shenandoah Valley home, but enjoys traveling the U.S. and abroad helping organizations develop certification programs and navigate the accreditation process.
Saffron Dunk, CAPM
Project Manager, The Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI)
Saffron Dunk CAPM® is a Project Manager at the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI). With a background in exam delivery at British Council, Saffron joined the CISI’s Operations team in 2020, focusing on the delivery of their session-based exam portfolio. She moved to the Qualifications team in 2021, before developing her skills in project management in 2024. Saffron most recently co-managed the transition of CISI’s multiple-choice question, on-demand exam portfolio to the Surpass Assessment platform.
Jarret Dyer
VP of Test Security, Surpass Assessment
Jarret Dyer is Vice President of Test Security and leads the development and execution of our test security strategy across the business and provides expertise to our Test Center Network team to enable secure and compliant growth in the US. Much of his career has focused on standardizing proctoring and test administration as well as promoting integrity policies and processes. Jarret has worked with local, state, and national agencies to develop policies for test delivery and the mitigation of test fraud. His research has focused on candidate attitudes on cheating and strategies that can positively influence behavior on local and national tests. He currently is focused on the creation of policies to enhance test security during the admission of candidates during tests. Jarret is a former President of the National College Testing Association (NCTA) and served as a member of the Executive Committee for almost a decade. He has also served on a number of industry committees, including the ATP TCIF Security Subcommittee, the NCTA Proctor Certification Steering and Academic Integrity Committees. Jarret has created or contributed to a number of books, articles and standards, including ATP-NCTA Proctoring Best Practices; Workforce Skills Credentialing Framework and the Standards for the Online Observation of Tests. Jarret is passionate about education and measurement and the positive difference they make in the lives of learners, employees, employers, and their families. His recent chapter in the Handbook of Academic Integrity: Framework for Ethical Implementation of Remote Proctoring in Education reflects this commitment.
Dr Jimmy de la Torre
Professor, The University of Hong Kong
Ruth Exelby
Head of Trainee Pharmacist Assessment, General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC)
Ruth has worked in the field of education and training for over 35 years in sectors as diverse as construction and childcare to printing and sugar refining. This included running apprenticeship programmes for two colleges and delivering £23m of work-based employer-led training in the South East before joining the GPhC in 2022 to review the future of registration assessment. In May 2025, she established a new team to deliver the Common Registration Assessment, combining technical writing with operational delivery and working in partnership with Surpass to deliver the final stage of the journey for up to 4,500 trainee pharmacists to qualify to Register and practice as Pharmacists in the UK each year.
Outside of work Ruth pursues a weightlifting hobby (fun fact – I can dumbbell chest press 17.5 kg in each hand!) and a passion for gardening. This latter hobby has meant having to buy a chest freezer to cope with the copious amounts of fresh fruit and veg produced and forcing GPhC colleagues to take home vast amounts of blackberries.
Adam Foley
Head of Digital Innovation, Surpass Assessment
Adam Foley is a Charted Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute and has led the creation of digital exams and linked innovation for over 20 years. As an early adopter of digital exams, he has directed vocational, professional and high-stakes GQ delivery, and has a wealth of experience creating bespoke and trusted solutions for global blue-chip clients.
Adam has a well-established history in the assessment sector, having previously worked with AAT, Pearson, ACCA, ICAEW and AQA developing alternative assessment solutions and driving sector adoption.
Adam has a keen interest in AI and Machine Learning as well as creative and innovative uses of Edtech. He believes education is the foundation that we build our society on, and it is the very best way to secure a positive future.
Bob Gomersall
Founder and Chair, Surpass Assessment
Bob founded Surpass in 1985 after recognising the difference a judicious use of technology could make to the way we learn and assess knowledge. Prior to this, he was educated at the universities of Durham and Bristol, and he worked as a theoretical physicist at the Max Planck Institute, Stuttgart. He taught physics at Manchester Grammar School and Bradford Grammar School, where he was Head of Physics.
He is the former Chair and Founder of the Virtual College Group plc (now part of Netex Learning) and Advanced Digital Innovations (now MyPathway Solutions). Bob has a particular interest in innovation and formerly chaired the Leeds City Region Business Innovation and Growth Panel. He is the author of Worthwhile Wealth – an entrepreneur’s guide to success that satisfies.
In March 2017, Dr Gomersall’s contributions to the field of educational assessment were recognised by the assessment community when he was awarded the Lifetime Contribution Award at the first International e-Assessment Awards.
Sophie Grogan
Product owner, Surpass Assessment
As a Product Owner, Sophie is part of the wider Product Management team. Her primary responsibility is the successful delivery of new features for the Surpass Platform. She collaborates with Solutions, UX Design, and Technical Architects to ensure new changes and features align with internal business strategies, investments, and the overall product vision. Sophie translates requirements into a prioritised backlog for development Scrum teams, providing clear context through refinement, review, and acceptance, whilst also maintaining open communication between technical product development, stakeholders, and customers.
Sophie joined Surpass in 2024 after working as a Product Owner in the legal sector. Since joining Surpass, she has successfully delivered numerous feature-rich functionalities which have added value to the product. She has also obtained and maintained her A-CSPO certification with the Scrum Alliance. Sophie is committed to understanding customer processes across various sectors and developing features that meet their business needs.
Kaitlynn Griffith
Chief Solutions Officer, Cornerstone Strategies
Kaitlynn Lewis Griffith has devoted her career to education with more than 30 years of experience spanning fundraising, assessment, and strategy. She began her career in advancement and constituent relations at several U.S. colleges and public school districts before moving into educational assessment and higher education strategy and enrollment, where she has spent the past two decades.
Kaitlynn has held senior leadership roles at several leading education organizations in the United States. She served as the head of the ACT, one of the primary college entrance exams taken by millions of students each year; as Senior Vice President of Product at the Law School Admission Council; and as Vice President of Enrollment Solutions at the College Board, the organization behind the SAT and Advanced Placement programs.
Today, she is Chief Solutions Officer at Cornerstone Strategies, where she advises education and assessment organizations on strategy, product development, and innovation. Her career reflects a consistent focus on expanding educational opportunity and shaping the future of assessment and learning.
Jeff Grove
Director, Assessment Operations within the Learning and Assessment Division, Inteleos
Jeff Grove, the Director of Assessment Operations within the Learning and Assessment Division at Inteleos, provides day-to-day leadership of the development of high-quality assessment products. Jeff has over two decades of experience directing large-scale assessment programs spanning K-12, legal licensure, and medical certification, as well as 10 years of experience as a middle school and high school mathematics teacher. He works with volunteers from the American Registry of Diagnostic Medical Sonography (ARDMS) and the Alliance for Physician Certification and Advancement (APCA) to provide certification for medical professionals to ensure the highest quality healthcare. Inteleos was one of the first organizations to implement Surpass Copilot as part of the item development process. Since April 2025, Jeff and his team have trained over 200 subject matter experts on how to develop new exam content using Surpass Copilot.
Jeff graduated from Millersville University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Mathematics Education. He currently resides in San Antonio, Texas.
Ceri Harper
Chief Services Officer, Surpass Assessment
Chief Services Officer, Surpass Assessment
Ceri heads up Surpass’ Test Delivery Services, a role which includes the management of our Test Centre Network team and our Online Invigilation/Proctoring Services team. Ceri has a well-established history in the assessment sector, having previously worked with AAT and Pitman Training.
Whilst at AAT, Ceri developed and managed the Student Recruitment Team during her ten years with the company. At Pitman Training her role included setting up and running the day-to-day management of a professional test centre in the UK, which involved administering ICAEW, RCPCH and AAT high-stakes exams.
Ceri joined Surpass in 2018, and her knowledge from both the candidate and invigilation sides has proven invaluable in running Surpass’ established Test Delivery Services.
Gareth Hopkins
Solutions Manager, Surpass Assessment
Gareth leads Surpass’ Solutions team, whose primary role is to act as the bridge between customers and technical teams when developing new features, as well as working on other aspects such as onboarding, integrations and implementation.
Gareth has been at Surpass since 2021, joining as an Assessment Solutions Specialist before becoming the Solutions Manager in 2023. Prior to joining Surpass, Gareth spent 16 years at City & Guilds, where he worked in a variety of roles, with projects including the manual creation of onscreen tests, helping design Functional Skills tests for screen, and contributing to the migration of item banks between systems.
He is active in the wider e-assessment community, having spent 6 years on the e-Assessment Association Board, including hosting and editing the eAA’s podcast and working on the organising team for the e-Assessment Association Annual Conference. He’s also been a judge for the eAssessment Awards every year since their inception.
Nevil Hopley
Senior Data Analyst, Data & Analytics Team, Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA)
Nevil Hopley joined the SQA as a Senior Data Analyst in the Data & Analytics team in 2023. He is a Royal Statistical Society- certified Graduate Statistician, Data Science Professional and Statistical Ambassador.
Between February and August 2025, Nevil explored how to fetch relevant assessment data from the various Surpass Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). The result of this work has been the creation of an R package that can be used by other Surpass API users.
Danny Jimmison
Performance Test Lead, Surpass Assessment
With over 16 years of specialised experience in performance testing, I currently serve as Performance Test Lead at Surpass, a role I have held since March 2012. I lead a highly skilled and dedicated team, focused on optimizing application responsiveness and scalability—both in concurrent usage and data capacity—across all aspects of our software.
Passionate about advancing the education sector, I am committed to driving innovation in virtual learning and examinations, ensuring that technology keeps pace with the needs of modern learners. As a father of two young children, my work carries a personal significance, knowing that my contributions may play a role in shaping the future of education and improving the learning experience for the next generation.
Georgie Jones
Assessment Specialist, Surpass Assessment
As an Assessment Specialist, Georgie works in the Business Development team to understand organisations’ assessment needs and advise on their use of Surpass. Georgie joined Surpass Assessment in 2017 as a Technical Author. She has previously managed the Documentation and Training team, overseeing the implementation of the new Surpass Help site. During her time at Surpass, she has worked closely with a range of awarding organisations and industry partners to use Surpass, gaining a wealth of experience in the design and implementation of online assessments.
Georgie’s background in the education sector feeds into her work with Surpass. In 2015, she completed her PGCE in Secondary English, then continued to study for a MA Education part–time with the University of Nottingham while working as an English teacher in secondary schools. Her research focused on the effect of the 2013 changes to the National Curriculum for English, gathering both student and teacher experiences and perspectives. Since moving to Surpass, Georgie has found her wider experience of the education industry invaluable.
Andy McAnulla
Co-Chief Executive Officer, Surpass Assessment
Andy has been heavily involved in the design and implementation of assessment technology for over 20 years. Andy has a strong technology background in software engineering and architecture and is highly experienced in leading software development at large scale. Earlier in his career at Surpass, Andy received the IT Practitioner of the Year Award from the UK’s Chartered Institute of IT for his leadership and implementation of the breakthrough assessment technology that later became known as the Surpass Platform. Surpass now powers many of the world’s largest and most prestigious assessment programmes.
In 2017, Andy relocated with his family from the UK to establish the US office in Pennsylvania to service the North American assessment market. As Co-CEO, Andy works in partnership with Sonya Whitworth to continue the strong growth of Surpass Assessment globally and supports the technology team in the ongoing development of the Surpass Platform and roadmap.
Andy has served as a director for various industry associations, including ATP and the e-Assessment Association, as well as on various industry committees, providing guidance on the judicious use of technology in the assessment process. Andy is passionate about sharing experiences and good practices that may help organisations to provide students with the best possible assessment experiences and outcomes.
Gray Mytton
Assessment Innovation Manager, NCFE
Gray is part of the Innovation and Investments team at NCFE, leading on AI and Technology. His work identifies and develops assessment solutions that will enhance teaching, learning and assessment for the benefit of future learners. By providing insight to NCFE colleagues about how our assessment solutions should be developed, he helps NCFE to meet the complex demands of the future. After developing a special interest in AI use in education, Gray has experienced the planning, building and deployment of safe and effective AI support tools including the personalisation of learning, automation of marking and feedback, the accelerated generation of assessment items, and the use of generative AI in a range of use cases. Gray has managed several innovation projects from conception to implementation and supported wider NCFE social investment and social value initiatives. Gray has previously worked at the Association of Colleges and before that spent 15 years on the front line of education at two large North-East colleges as a lecturer, curriculum leader and head of department in the curriculum areas of Sport, Public Services, Travel and A Level.
Gemma O’Brien
National Assessment Programme Manager, AlphaPlus
Gemma O’Brien is AlphaPlus’ National Assessment Programme Manager. She has worked in qualifications and assessment design and delivery in both a UK and international context. In her current role, she leads a multidisciplinary programme team to deliver a national adaptive personalised assessment programme in Wales. She is interested in issues related to fairness in assessment and the impact of educational assessments upon teaching, learning and policy. She holds an MA in Education (Assessment) from University College London.
Kulvinder Panesar
Assistant Professor in Applied AI, University of Bradford
Dr. Kulvinder Panesar is an Assistant Professor in Applied AI at the University of Bradford, where she has been a faculty member since September 2020. With an academic career spanning more than three decades, she is a strategically focused senior computing professional specializing in natural language processing (NLP) and conversational AI, particularly in the areas of AI for good and healthcare applications.
She has served as Principal Investigator on several research grant submissions and continues to consult on NLP-driven initiatives. Dr. Panesar was named a WeAreTech100 Women awardee by J.P. Morgan in 2019 and has contributed as a research moderator on technical and ethics panels at the European Chatbot and Conversational AI Summit (2022–2025).
At the University of Bradford, she wears multiple hats as a course director, module leader, and supervisor of final-year, MSc, and PhD projects. She is also a UKRI research reviewer and recently served as technical lead on a university-funded commercialization project developing a generative AI patient chatbot for OSCE training.
Her research outputs include numerous publications in NLP and international collaborations advancing AI-enabled transformation. Currently, she is a Co-Investigator on a British Council ISPF research fellowship grant, building global AI research networks.
Beyond academia, Dr. Panesar is an active member of the British Computer Society (BCS), a contributor to the AI 360 Smart Ethics tool, an AI expert for AI-Tech.UK events and activities, and a mentor with Reed.
Ellen Patterson
On-screen Exams Delivery Analyst, AQA
Ellen Patterson is an OSE Delivery Analyst at AQA, driving the shift toward innovative digital assessment solutions. She plays a pivotal role in shaping processes that enable a smooth transition from paper-based exams to digital-first experiences. Recently, Ellen has led collaborative workshops to design end-to-end workflows for delivering digital assessments in language specifications. Passionate about the future of assessment, she is committed to creating scalable, user-friendly systems that improve efficiency for centres and enhance the experience for learners. Ellen brings a strong background in educational assessment and a keen interest in technology-enabled learning, with a focus on making digital transformation practical, impactful, and accessible.
Lesley Perry, MInstAM®
Senior Manager for Scheduling in Administration, The Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI)
Lesley Perry MInstAM® is the Senior Manager for Scheduling and Administration at CISI. Lesley joined the CISI in 2007 and has amassed a wealth of experience from several roles held across the organisation. Day-to-day, she manages the exam publication schedule for 74 multiple-choice computer-based exams, ensuring smooth and timely delivery. In addition to this, Lesley played a key role in the organisation’s transition to Surpass and was instrumental in leading the content migration process and supporting her team through a smooth and successful transition.
Rachel Schoenig
CEO, Cornerstone Strategies
Rachel R. Watkins Schoenig, J.D., is CEO of Cornerstone Strategies, LLC (“Cornerstone”), a boutique association of professionals dedicated to serving the credentialing, education, and ed-tech industries. Cornerstone clients include high- stakes healthcare, professional, education, and credentialing programs. Prior to founding Cornerstone, Rachel was Head of Test Security for ACT, Inc. where she leveraged her legal, international, and testing experience to improve exam security. Rachel has led development of new data forensics, redesigned security frameworks, developed an industry-leading program to deter impersonation testing, and designed innovative applications for use on personal devices, including a highly-rated facial recognition app.
She is co-author of ‘A Primer on Generative AI in Assessment’ and has hosted several AI workshops for credentialing and assessment programs. Additional publications include co-authoring a whitepaper on Compliant EU-US Data Transfers, co-chair of the ATP-NCTA Online Observation of Tests Standards and Best Practices, and co-author of the exam security chapter in the ATP-International Testing Commission Guidelines for Technology Based Assessments, the ATP-NCTA Proctoring Best Practices, a chapter in The Handbook on Test Security, and the ATP Workforce Credentialing Survey Report and Framework. Rachel is admitted to practice law in several jurisdictions.
An active industry supporter, Rachel is a current member of the Board for the Council on Test Security and an executive committee member for the Conference on Test Security, a Board member for the Credential Integrity Action Alliance, an officer for ATP’s Test Security Committee and a member of the I.C.E. Advisory Panel for the Future of Credentialing Summit. She has also served as a past member of the Board of Trustees for the Association of Test Publishers, as the ATP Innovations Conference Chair and Program Chair, chair of the Workforce Skills Credentialing Division, and chair of the Workforce Subcommittee for Security and Privacy.
She has delivered many keynote presentations at conferences across the United States. She is a grateful two-time recipient of the President’s Award for the National College Testing Association for her contributions to the industry. Before joining ACT, she led the legal department for Bandag, Incorporated, a publicly-traded company engaged in international franchising and manufacturing, where she provided advice concerning mergers and acquisitions, compliance, litigation, and intellectual property matters, and later served as a corporate officer of Bridgestone-Bandag, LLC. She earned her J.D. summa cum laude from Drake University Law School. Rachel is passionate about the assessment industry and the positive impact we can have on individual lives and communities.
Laura Steighner
Director of Test Development Customer Experience, Surpass Assessment
Laura Steighner, PhD, is an industrial-organizational psychologist with over 30 years’ experience consulting with professional associations, non-profit organizations, and federal agencies, delivering data-driven insights with a focus on assessment, program evaluation, and performance measurement. For 14 years, she led the multi-disciplinary test development team for the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), a high-stakes, nationally administered standardized assessment, leading it through various complex transitions that often required changes to workflow and related processes.
As the Director of Test Development Customer Experience at Surpass, Laura works closely with customers to investigate and understand how they use Surpass to support their test development efforts with the ultimate goal of identifying enhancements to Surpass functionality, as well as ways that customers can derive greater value from the Surpass technology.
In addition, she serves as an accreditation assessor for the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB) for the ISO/IEC 17024, personnel certification. In 2007, she received the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology’s (SIOP’s) M. Scott Myers Award for Applied Research in the Workplace.
John Turner
Solutions Engineer, Surpass Assessment
As a Solutions Engineer, John is part of the wider Product Management team. His primary responsibility is to design, implement, and optimize solutions that address customer business needs and support effective product change. He works closely with Product Owners, Technical Architects, Business Development, and Customer Success teams to ensure technical delivery aligns with business objectives and platform capabilities. John provides expert guidance on best practices for Surpass API usage and supports migration projects by translating complex requirements into clear, actionable tasks, while maintaining open communication with stakeholders throughout the process.
John joined Surpass in 2021 after completing his undergraduate degree at Millersville University. Since then, he has delivered operational support and automation solutions that have streamlined processes for customers delivering both high and low-stakes exams. He is TOGAF-certified and committed to applying structured architectural principles to deliver scalable, maintainable solutions. John is passionate about bridging the gap between technical execution and business value, ensuring that every implementation meets both immediate needs and long-term strategic goals.
Shirley Watson
Chief Executive Officer, Beckfoot Trust
I was privileged to be appointed as the Chief Executive of Beckfoot Trust in September 2021. This is the only trust that I would have left my previous role (Deputy CEO of Dixons Academies Trust) for and that was because of mission and values alignment along with a shared commitment to making a difference to the Bradford District.
Our trust is diverse in composition and therefore our aligned strategy must always consider how we implement across four phases; mainstream secondary and primary and special secondary and primary. Hence really understanding the active ingredients of any school improvement strategy is vital.
With 25 years’ experience in senior leadership in education, I am a great believer in deferring to the brilliance of others, the best part of my job is that I can do that every day. I have been fortunate to have led on every aspect of school life and as an executive leader to also have led
beyond the educational. Excellent operational functions oil the wheels of any healthy organisation.
I believe my career has been enhanced by having several years of experience outside of the educational sector and my ‘unusual CV’ certainly helped in the early days of career advancement. I have been fortunate to have worked with many exceptional leaders and teachers who have
challenged me to be the best version of myself. I am therefore passionate about doing what I can to provide equitable CPD and learning experiences for all. What you know and who you know should not be a matter of luck. As such, I remain committed to systems-wide meaningful collaboration for the benefit of all children and educational professionals.
Throughout my career I have surrounded myself with people who genuinely care and retain applied optimism regardless of the challenges; ‘things will get better because we will make it so.’ Never has this maxim been more important.
Sonya Whitworth
Co-Chief Executive Officer, Surpass Assessment
Sonya is a strong and dedicated leader at Surpass Assessment, driving business growth through her extensive experience and strategic vision. After directing operations for ten years, she rose to the position of Managing Director in 2017 and was appointed Co-CEO in 2023, focusing on expanding the Surpass presence in the UK and the rest of the world.
During her time at Surpass, Sonya has championed numerous initiatives, promoting continuous improvement, business growth, and company values. In addition to her leadership roles, she is dedicated to expanding Surpass’ portfolio of services, ensuring customers receive the support and flexibility they desire.
Sonya’s passion lies in empowering team members to experience variety, autonomy, challenges, and satisfaction in their work, with a view to making Surpass a fantastic place to work.
In 2019, Sonya’s leadership at Surpass was recognised when she won an international Stevie Award for Women in Business. As the only UK finalist in her category, this prestigious accolade highlights her accomplishments alongside select global business leaders.
Ultimately, Surpass’ aim is to make sure that they have customers’ and candidates’ goals at the heart of everything they do, and Sonya strives to ensure that Surpass achieves that vision.
Ellen Wood
Head of Customer Success, Surpass Assessment
Ellen heads up the UK team of Customer Success Managers. This team oversees the implementation of Surpass products and services for customers, as well as acting as a customer’s main point of contact.
Ellen has been in account and project management for several years and has been working in the assessment industry for 10 years. She has worked on a number of Surpass customer implementations, both in the UK and globally. She enjoys working in partnership with customers to successfully implement Surpass, improve exam processes, and enhance the overall exam experience. Ellen works closely with the Customer Success Managers, and other teams across Surpass, to ensure that AOs receive an excellent service and maximise the benefits of Surpass.