Our People

Ashley has a strong focus on global energy transition, specifically EV charging. He has seen first-hand many of the challenges faced by first generation charging solution providers. Impressed by how the team at Petalite has thought deeply about every aspect of EV charging, he is eager to see the positive impact the company can have in accelerating the world’s transition to net-zero.

For over a decade, Ashley was the managing partner of PwC’s Consulting Division across the UK & EMEA and a member of PwC’s Executive Board and Global Consulting Leadership Team. For the past 5 years, he has acted as a Senior Advisor to TPG focused on their Growth and Impact investment funds.

Steve’s task is to lead the company from its R & D phase to full scaled industrialisation, so that Petalite can be seen on every street corner, supporting the transition to clean energy mobility.

Prior to joining Petalite in 2022, Steve’s global career spanned over 35 years in world-class companies covering 3 industry sectors. Some of the businesses he has worked include Rover Group, Land Rover, BMW, JCB and private equity firm TPG Capital.

A clean technology enthusiast and highly skilled engineer, Leigh recognised manufacturers globally were using a charging technology ill-suited to the electric vehicle market.

He foresaw the issues with first generation EV chargers and set about to solve the problem from the ground up. He formed Petalite in 2014 to solve issues relating to reliability, lifetime and ROI of EV chargers.

In his spare time, he has also broken 2 Guinness World Records!

Robert has been a visionary pioneering engineer setting records and industry firsts across automotive, F1, Formula E and automotive electrification sectors. He has a wealth of experience and expertise in electrical and electronic engineering with a particular focus on product development relating to EV charging, powertrain and energy management.

His guiding principles of safety, reliability, people and the planet drive him to create simple yet elegant engineering solutions.

He is happiest when leading a high performing team of engineers consistently breaking new ground – which is exactly what he is doing at Petalite!

David is a Chartered Accountant and commercially astute and versatile finance leader with CFO and Group Treasurer experience across many sectors including banking, asset finance, media, transport and engineering. He has delivered robust solutions to financial and operational problems and has gained extensive commercial expertise in managing and delivering large corporate finance transactions.

David is also an Angel investor and NED / advisor to a number of young growing companies.

With a background spanning management consultancy, M&A, private equity and commercial finance across firms such as AlixPartners, TPG Capital and EVBox, Ben brings great diversity and depth of experience to Petalite.

Ben finds great fulfilment in driving Petalite’s mission of accelerating the deployment of charging infrastructure and the broader transition to net-zero. His favourite part of the job is leveraging his commercial acumen and deep understanding of the industry, to shape innovative solutions for Petalite’s customers.

With a strong strategic mind-set and commitment to sustainability, Ben is determined to propel Petalite to the forefront of the EV charging market.

Hannah’s background in scaling businesses of hardware products makes her an indispensable part of the team. Leading the HR function, she helps set the culture and people strategies to make Petalite successful.

She describes one of Petalite’s greatest assets – its people as driven, passionate and fun.

Mario brings 20+ years of IT delivery experience having lead organisation’s IT strategies across UK, EMEA & the US in Silicon Valley both in the public & private sector. As a former management consultant for one of the biggest consultancy firms in the world, he has led projects end-to-end for many well known brands & public service critical infrastructure.

He is excited by Petalite because of the opportunity to be involved in a scale up and contributing to the adoption of electrification in the UK and beyond.

Kate’s 20+ year’s experience in marketing spans rapidly scaling climate businesses, a global B2C megabrand and various sectors from engineering to motorbikes to professional services consulting.

Driven to use her marketing skills in profit with purpose businesses, she believes Petalite’s technology innovation is a true market disruptor and will help accelerate the world’s transition to a greener economy.