Furqan is a visionary entrepreneur and business leader, widely recognised as the CEO of Connexin, a leading technology company specialising in smart city solutions and IoT connectivity. With his relentless passion for innovation and commitment to transforming cities into sustainable, connected environments, he has established himself as a prominent figure in the field of smart infrastructure.Recently named as one of the Top 100 Fastest Growing Tech companies at the Northern Tech Awards, Connexin was founded in 2006 while Furqan studied medicine at Imperial College, London. Connexin has raised a total of £90.1 million in funding over 3 rounds.Beyond his role at Connexin, Furqan actively contributes to the tech and business communities, sharing his expertise and insights as a thought leader and public speaker. He is passionate about promoting the adoption of sustainable technologies and empowering cities to become more efficient, resilient, and environmentally friendly.
Jo is the Managing Director of Sewell Estates, a Group of companies based in Yorkshire with a range of interests spanning construction, facilities management, property investment/development and consultancy services. Jo is also Founder and Managing Director of Shared Agenda, a Sewell Group company that provides estates advisory services to public and private sector customers across the UK. She joined the Sewell Group 14 years ago after a 14 year career in the public sector working in regeneration vehicles across the North of England and Scotland.
Jan Brumby has returned to the judging panel once again for the 2022 HullLive Business Awards. Currently the chief executive of Hull-based organisation For Entrepreneurs Only, Jan is a strong advocate of becoming your own business and launching a company. Her career history spans the financial, education and charity sectors, having worked with leading names including HSBC, the University of Hull and Young Enterprise. Jan was awarded the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion in 2006, for her tireless work promoting the region’s business community and its people. We are delighted to have Jan back on our judging panel for the awards for 2023.
Simon is an entrepreneur and advocate of the region’s businesses and people.Having established a career in recruitment, Simon founded Identify in 2014, successfully growing the business to be one of the leading recruitment organisations in the region.In 2018, Simon created the Hull & Humber Top 30 Under 30s, a scheme which recognises and develops the region’s future leaders through his industry leading LEAP Programme. The scheme’s previous winners are littered with stories of those who have gone on to become managers, business directors, managing directors and entrepreneurs of their own standing, all highlighting the scheme and Simon’s leadership as key to their continued success.In 2023, Simon launched Hype3, a media production company creating engaging content for organisations. This new venture has already grown significantly, with projects including large scale, targeted social media campaigns, through to TV advertisement campaigns for high-profile clients.
