BOARD OF MANAGEMENT
John Kerr, formerly CEO of the Edexcel Foundation now Pearson Educations, the UK largest awarding body, specializes in providing educational consultancy across a wide range of Higher Education, Technical Training and Schools. John trained as a lawyer and has held legal positions with the London Stock Exchange and the Financial Services Authority. At the Financial Services Authority he co-founded the City Disputes Panel ltd a body set up to assist in resolving financial services disputes.
John was a director of the Edge Foundation and commissioned three city academies and the Edge Hotel School. John is currently a strategy consultant in education theory and practice for a number of government and private education bodies both within the UK and internationally and holds many directorships in private education companies specializing in utilizing technology in education.
Mel is a former Pro Vice-Chancellor at Birmingham City University and was responsible for the academic leadership of the computing, engineering and built environment subjects. For the University, He led on the development of apprenticeships and also international partnerships. In September 2018, Mel retired from the University and was awarded Emeritus Professor status in recognition for his outstanding contribution to the work of the institution.
Mel has served on numerous national and international committees associated with higher education and industry engagement. He has served on the board of the Construction Industry Council in the UK and also several committees associated with the sector skills council – Construction Skills. He was the driving force behind the international agenda for the Associated Schools of Construction in the United States and was awarded their lifetime achievement award in 2023.
Mel is a qualified arbitrator and adjudicator in the United Kingdom and has written and presented on the subject of prompt payments and dispute resolution on construction projects – most notably as a regular feature of the annual conference of construction managers in Quebec, Canada (CEGQ). In recent years, Mel has worked extensively in the field of internationalising higher education. He has delivered a number of keynote addresses on the subject including as part of the annual International Conference of the Associated Schools of Construction in the United States and as a regular feature of the annual conference of construction managers in Quebec, Canada (CEGQ). He has visited China, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Nepal, United Arab Emirates and Singapore to establish collaborations with academic institutions and has extensive experience of developing and approving academic partnerships.
BOARD OF ADVISORS
Professor Ngo is an international arbitrator, academic and arbitration specialist recognised in the region. Based in Singapore, he is the founding President of Beihai Asia International Arbitration Centre (BAIAC), Singapore. As an experienced practitioner, his professional and academic activities focus on Southeast Asia, East Asia and South Asia, the three key global economic growth regions. He has acted as a party representative for both the private and government/public sectors on dispute resolution and arbitrations. He has been consulted on potential investor-state arbitration, evaluating cases against and for the state party.
He has delivered numerous lectures on arbitration and dispute resolution in the region. In addition to developing courses and curricula for arbitration and international dispute resolution, he has a wide range of research interests in international arbitration and dispute resolution which includes cultural elements in dispute settlement, arbitration reform, global affairs, current trends and innovation in dispute resolution. He has authored numerous works on arbitration and international dispute resolution in prominent and influential publications, book chapters and a book on the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration written in the Indonesian language.
Among others, Steve is a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society and an Associate Fellow of the Royal Historical Society of the UK.
Professor Vichai is a prominent figure in the judiciary and arbitration in Thailand. He had a distinguished career in the judiciary in the Kingdom of Thailand. He has held positions such as Senior Justice of the Intellectual Property & International Trade Court, Chief Justice of the Central Labour Court, Secretary-General of the ASEAN Law Association and Director of the Arbitration Office. At present, he is an Adviser to the Thai Arbitration Institute, Office of the Judiciary of Thailand.
John Mountford is an international skills sector expert with extensive experience in contributing to international development projects and programs. His work spans multiple countries, including Nepal, Tanzania, South Africa, Rwanda, India, and Sudan.
John served as Team Leader for the EU-funded, British Council-managed Dakchyata TVET practical partnership project in Nepal. He has provided advisory and policy input for UK and overseas government TVET sector strategic initiatives, including the development of a 10-year sector plan for the Government of Nepal. Further John has a professional background in the UK’s Further Education College (TVET) sector, including roles as International Director for England’s national college agency, the Association of Colleges. He has also held senior roles in the UK’s Sector Skills Council and awarding bodies sectors, providing him with deep insight into skills development from both demand and supply perspectives.
Aloysius is a corporate, investment and dispute resolution legal practitioner in Singapore. He has vast experience advising on cross-border joint ventures and transactions and in the area of mergers and acquisitions of companies. He also advises clients on entry strategies into China and investments in China is his current expertise given his network in China. He is actively involved in cross-border corporate, real estate transactions and investment transactions, across China, India and the ASEAN region.
Aloysius is one of the founders and the current chairperson of the ASEAN Legal Alliance, a network of 10 law firms in each of the 10 ASEAN countries coming together to offer a seamless delivery of legal service across a diverse cultural, geographical and legal backdrop. He sits as an independent director on various companies listed in Singapore and overseas. He has extensive experience in board matters for such listed entities having sat on various boards and in various capacities, including as independent director, non-independent director and Chairman of various committees.
