Bob was born in Bahrain in 1963. He studied English and Literary Theory at Leicester University, obtaining a BA and MA. In 1990 he entered teaching and spent one year in Eastern Germany teaching business English within a government redevelopment programme for this region. In 1994 he began working for York Associates as a freelancer, becoming a director in 2000.

His responsibilities are focused on business development and delivering training and consulting. Increasingly, he is specialising in offering support to international project teams and has travelled widely - to France, Switzerland, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Iceland and Ukraine - providing a wide range of professional and technical courses and consulting services.

He is an advanced practitioner/coach with the Team Management Systems network and also an accredited consultant for The International Profiler. He is also an author of numerous titles on international communication including Communicating across Cultures (CUP), Communicating Internationally in English (York Associates) and 50 Ways to Improve Your Presentation Skills (Summertown). He also writes regularly on international business communication topics for Business Spotlight magazine.

Fiona was brought up in the south of England, before moving to Wales and then to Scotland where she attended Glasgow university, graduating with an MA in English and Politics. Following this, she took a postgraduate teaching qualification in TEFL. She then spent some time in the Czech Republic and Germany, but 13 of her 15 years abroad have been spent in Brazil. After her first job there working with Cultura Inglesa, a national group, she discovered a small town on the north-east coast of Bahia where few people spoke any English and international tourism and business were growing fast.

Seeing the demand for a quality language and communication business, she decided to stay there and start her own company. Working with a team of international trainers, her company offered tailor-made training programmes and materials for clients including international banks, hotel groups and a Swedish-Finnish-Brazilian joint venture as well as the local council, airport and universities.

Fiona moved to York in August 2008 in order to take over the day-to-day management of the York Associates training centre. Her experience outside Europe is bringing a fresh perspective to the way the company communicates and does business.

She has two young sons who have started primary school in York and enjoys travelling, walking, cycling, cooking and writing.

Steve Flinders studied politics, philosophy and economics at Oxford and then worked as a teacher, trainer and manager in various countries including Pakistan, Sweden and France before joining York Associates as a partner, now a director, in 1992. He delivers professional language, and international management and communication training in York and across Europe, including courses for a number of senior politicians. His special areas of interest include international political, HR, employee relations and trade union communication; and international coaching. He is a member of the Team Management Systems network and an accredited consultant for The International Profiler. His responsibilities at York Associates include our marketing operations in France and Norway; managing the company's publications; and looking after training resources.

He is the author of Key Terms in People Management, How to Learn Languages for International Business, and Business Meetings (for York Associates); and co-author of English365, a major professional English series for Cambridge University Press.

He is married with three sons, lives in York, and enjoys swimming, playing squash badly, reading, theatre, and talking politics in pubs.

FOR: Publicity materials and marketing, dates and prices, publications.

Angela is the public face of marketing and client relations at York Associates. For a number of years she has managed our communications, publications and marketing support. Her current role also includes managing our website, contacts, conferences and events. Angela spent much of her life living overseas, in places such as Cyprus, Berlin, Arkansas and Washington DC, before settling in York. She enjoys culture, the arts, travel and the outdoor life.

FOR: Training enquiries, course information and organisation.

Jackie has been a York Associates trainer for many years with a focus on specialised group training, virtual communication and training interpersonal and intercultural skills. As from the beginning of January 2012, Jackie took on the position of training manager at York Associates with responsibility for all client contact, course enquiries, course bookings and organisation. In her free time, Jackie loves renovating furniture and going to auctions.

Maciej takes care of our beautiful Georgian building, Peasholme House. He makes sure the premises are clean, secure and maintained. In his free time, Maciej is an artist and enjoys painting. He also spends his time keeping fit at the gym.

FOR: course documentation, reports and invoices

Zoe is our main office administrator who keeps all information up to date, produces course documentation, and sends out reports and invoices. She also works in the office on reception and in client care. She has two daughters and most of her free time is dedicated to them!

Ann Roberts studied French, German and Business studies, and then went to France where she qualified to teach English to adults. She lived there for 10 years, working in companies in Paris and around Nice. After coming back to York in 1989, Ann started training with York Associates. She has a real passion for helping people to realise their potential and achieve goals. 3 years ago she qualified through the Coaching Academy, gaining diplomas in Personal and Executive coaching and is accredited to do DISC profiling. She lives in a rural part of Yorkshire with her husband and children, loves being with family, cooking, singing and dancing.

Beverley Butler has worked as a qualified English Language Trainer for several years as a specialist in intercultural, legal and business English. In her professional role, she draws on her life experiences and skills gained through working in the airline industry and legal profession. She holds a degree in law and has a wide range of experience in training clients with diverse needs in terms of level and professional requirements. Presently, Beverley is working towards further professional qualifications in English language teaching thorough undertaking the Diploma in English Language Teaching to Adults (DELTA).

Brenda Gleave has worked across a range of employment sectors – diplomatic, media, finance and education & training – with the development of communication skills always the focus.  She has lived in Belgium, Rwanda and Malaysia, where she nurtured a life-long interest in cross-cultural concerns.  In mid-career, she achieved a Masters (M.Phil) in Social Policy, which reflects her continuing commitment to equality issues.  Subsequently, Brenda trained as a personal counsellor, which she feels is a helpful adjunct to her teaching and training role.  She believes that self-belief, confidence and motivation are key drivers in developing clients’ potential to work successfully internationally. She loves the Arts, travel and cooking.

Christine Stone had an academic background in English, Law and Economics before taking a qualification in teaching English to adults. As well as teaching at the University of York, she has worked in the Marketing sector.  She has been delivering specialised individual courses to senior management, as well as group training courses for York Associates, both in the UK and abroad for over 15 years and is also a qualified coach. She is married with three children and enjoys sport, travel and contemporary literature. 

Jeremy Comfort was one of the original founders of York Associates in 1980. Over the following thirty years, he helped to develop the business by innovating in language, communication, intercultural and leadership training. In the 1980s he wrote several Business English and ESP books such as English for the Telecommunication Industry.

In the 1990s he developed a Business Skills course for Oxford University Press. He also developed the so-called DPI concept to support managers facing complex challenges when working internationally and in 2010 he co-authored the Mindful International Manager.

He continues to deliver international leadership seminars for Nestlé, Merck Serono, Henkel and other clients. He is currently working on a new video-based publication to develop international communication skills.

John Duncan studied English at Cambridge and then taught at a London secondary school for several years. He later specialised in teaching English to adults, gaining an MSc in Teaching English for Specific Purposes. He has taught in Libya, Egypt and Hong Kong, where he trained Chinese teachers of English. John has written over 20 textbooks for Hong Kong schools. He enjoys teaching the whole range of clients at York Associates and is especially interested in politics, labour relations, and the teaching of non-native-speaker students through English. His personal interests are his family, travel, keeping fit and gardening.

John Stirzaker, a language graduate, developed a successful career in corporate banking where he worked with some major international banks. He is now directing his wide business and commercial experience to the training sector. Specialising in Business English and specifically the language of finance and banking, John is equally adept at teaching English to trainee hotel staff, as to senior International bankers. Much-travelled through his career (and his following of his beloved Liverpool FC) John lives near Harrogate, and is keen to combine his wanderlust with his passion for language and his ambitions in teaching and training.

John Woollacott has many years experience as a teacher and trainer, and has been working freelance since 1990. He designs and delivers tailor-made intensive courses for people who need to communicate effectively in an international context. He has a special interest in the trade union movement and in the theory and practice of worker participation. John studied Politics at Sheffield University, and still lives in the city. He enjoys travelling, walking in the hills around Sheffield, listening to music and having a pint with his friends. He speaks fluent Portuguese. 

Jon Dyson has worked with York Associates since 2007. Previously, he lived in Barcelona for 19 years, working as business English coordinator on the Undergraduate English programme at a private business school.

Jon designs and delivers customised courses in York as well as seminars on cross-cultural communication and virtual communication skills overseas for clients such as Nestlé and the Zurich Group.

Jon project-managed and co-wrote two titles for the York Associates’ Minimax series of publications and at present, he is involved in a writing project on managing virtually. He also oversees and produces content for the York Associates website.

In his free time, Jon likes reading, cooking and making paper models of well-known architecture around the world.

Kathryn Ogilvy has a MA in Languages and Linguistics from Cambridge University and a MBA from London Business School. She worked for over 20 years for a major international energy company, and has lived and worked internationally in Singapore, Germany, France and Spain. She is experienced in managing global projects and international teams. After returning to Yorkshire she qualified in teaching English to adults and now combines consulting work with leadership and language training. She is particularly interested in project management, strategy, financial skills and team leadership training. Kathryn enjoys spending time with her family, theatre, music, walking and travelling. 

Mark McGowan followed a career in pastoral ministry and education. Following this, he worked in France for eleven years, teaching English in business, industry and university. He eventually pastored a francophone church for three and a half years whilst at the same time maintaining his interest in language and communication training by teaching part-time in the automotive industry. Since returning to England in 2008 he has developed a private tuition business in French and English, including lessons via internet, and also works freelance for York Associates. Mark plays the guitar and is currently learning Spanish, violin and flute.

Mark Willmetts worked for 15 years in human resources in the manufacturing and banking sectors having left university with a business studies degree.  He is a full member of the Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and retains a keen interest in HR together with all areas of business.  He worked for 3 years in Germany and started to move into training. Upon his return to the UK, he built up experience in delivering a range of management training workshops as well as courses in business English and communication skills. His interests include theatre, cinema and hill walking.

Roger Holt has an academic background in drama and a Masters in Applied Linguistics. As a language teacher he has worked in Southern Africa, North Africa and the Middle East. For the last 15 years Roger has worked in management training in the UK with some major international companies focussing on team building, project management, managing change, communication and quality management. His personal interests are family, theatre, camping and walking the hills of Northern England.

Steve Newsome had an academic background in Social Policy, the Law, Politics, and Counselling before taking further qualifications in learning and development. Steve’s commercial background encompasses management roles in logistics, sales, national accounts, and contracts. Since then he has managed a language school in York and successfully delivered language and communication skills courses in Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, Turkey and Kuwait. 

Susan Kraus is a qualified English teacher with a Masters Degree in Linguistics and Teaching English as a Foreign Language. She lived and worked in Italy and Turkey for several years where she taught English in schools and then in several companies. She returned to the UK in 1996 but continued to travel a lot, especially to Germany where she specialised in teaching courses for the financial sector. She has worked with York Associates for over ten years and enjoys teaching a variety of courses to both individuals and groups.

Susan is married and in her free time she loves reading, travelling, cooking and gardening, especially growing her own vegetables.