The full-time team

Director, Jill Pennington

Jill is a Director at Interaction and has specific responsibility for sales and marketing. Jill is also Client manager for many of our key clients. Jill has a strong background in HR and Training having held roles with Ford Motor Company, Grand Metropolitan, and Lincoln Financial Group before entering the world of consultancy. Her corporate background means she brings commercial focus to every project ensuring that programmes deliver results as well as fit with the context of the organisation.

Jill is a qualified and experienced coach and has particular interest in performance management, leadership, and team development.

Jill is a keen skier and runs to keep fit. She loves cooking and gardening and is a qualified garden designer.

E-mail Jill

Director, Lucy Neale

Lucy is a Director at Interaction with specific responsibility for Operations and Finance. She is also Client Manager for some of our largest clients and has developed expertise in managing large, complex programmes.

Lucy started her career over 20 years ago at Nationwide Building Society where she held a variety of roles in HR and Training, and developed a passion for experiential learning and behavioural development. After a period as a freelance consultant, she joined Interaction in 2001. Lucy brings a wealth of learning and development experience to every new project and ensures that all of our programmes deliver lasting impact as well as meeting the immediate needs of participants.

A seasoned traveller, Lucy enjoys the outdoors and loves to travel around the UK and overseas in her VW campervan.

E-mail Lucy

Director, Richard Emerson

Richard has been working in training and development for over 20 years having started his career in outdoor development. Believing that experiential learning is the way to help individuals develop new behaviours he has been instrumental in growing Interaction from its small beginnings to the present day. Richard’s creativity means he is always able to bring new perspectives ensuring that programmes remain fresh and up to date.

Winter or Summer, Rich likes to be in the mountains, skiiing and climbing.

E-mail Richard

Director, Mike Taylor

Mike has focused on experiential learning since 1987 when he first worked as an outdoor-based management trainer. He set Interaction up with Richard in 1995. Mike is an expert at designing and facilitating experiential tasks and works on some of our more complex programmes. A perceptive and unique facilitator, Mike brings a depth of experience that is highly valued by the team and our clients.

Outside Interaction he leads overseas charity challenge expeditions, and is Chair of Trustees for a Bristol-based performing arts school. He is also a keen runner and cyclist.

E-mail Mike

Senior Training Consultant, Katie Scott

Katie is a Senior training consultant and works with key clients both project managing programmes and facilitating and leading delivery. Katie started her career in marketing with large multi-national companies including Kraft Foods and Bass Brewers. Her interest in the people aspects of work led her to complete a post-graduate diploma in organisational behaviour and then moved into learning and development. In 2002 Katie took an overseas sabbatical travelling and working overseas before joining us in 2004.

Katie’s strong corporate experience means she brings a practical approach to everything she does. This combined with her genuine interest in people and ever up- beat attitude means she is a passionate facilitator and brilliant project manager.

Katie’s ability to focus wins her the award for the least distractible person in the office.

Outside of work she enjoys running and loves travel - especially to Australia.

Email Katie

Senior Training Consultant, Simon Merrell

Simon is a Senior Training Consultant and project manages some of our larger client programmes. He held a number of HR and Training roles with Vodafone and National Grid. After achieving his CIPD Chartership he undertook a year of travel before joining Interaction in 2007.

With a degree in Psychology, Simon has always been interested in human behaviour, especially in a work context. His no-nonsense, down to earth approach means he brings clarity and common sense to complex problems. He can be relied upon to add a new perspective which makes him a popular facilitator and valuable project manager.

Simon is keen on mountain biking and running and regularly enters events. When he is not outdoors he enjoys listening to music either live or at home. He has a strange liking for all things pickled!

E-mail Simon

Finance & Admin Manager, Amber Dennis

Amber first joined as Interaction’s Administrator in 1996 before leaving to gain some corporate experience at Clerical Medical. She returned to us in 2000 and since then has played a key role in developing our administrative processes, gaining the IAM Diploma in Administrative Management along the way.

She has a music degree and is a dedicated member of Bristol’s 170-strong choir.

E-mail Amber

Office Manager, Laura Kelly

Laura joined Interaction in 2004 and has recently become our Office Manager looking after the day to day running of the busy Interaction office and our client project admin.

Outside Interaction you can find Laura performing at various events around Bristol with her belly dancing troupe.

E-mail Laura