Riversimple is run by a Board of seven; as well as a small team of staff, we work with a diverse group of collaborators.
Dr. Martin Z. Wilderer, CEO, has joined Riversimple this January. Coming from MAN based in China, where he started a greenfield site and operated it to encompass six business units, he brings along experience in international management and product and production ramp up projects. He has a double masters in International Business and Mechanical Engineering and a PhD in Industrial Ecology.
Hugo Spowers is chief engineer. An Oxford University trained engineer and entrepreneur, he has a passion for zero emissions vehicles. As an entrepreneur, he founded and ran a business over 15 years, designing and building racing cars and restoring historic racing cars. He left motorsport due to environmental concerns and went on to obtain an MBA from Cranfield University, where he conducted a feasibility study into bringing hydrogen fuel cell cars to market. This led him to found Riversimple, bring together the consortium behind LIFECar and then pursue the local vehicle as a path to commercialisation.
Sebastian Piech (Chairman) is the
founder and Chairman of bScope based in Tokyo and Shanghai focusing
on nurturing and developing long term, sustainable (socially &
environmentally) business ventures and seed-stage opportunities in
China. Sebastian has for many years also been involved in
international strategic business development for Porsche Holding,
Europe’s largest automotive retail business. Sebastian is a
branding and marketing expert with years of experience in Japan and
China having worked as a strategy planner in Hakuodo Inc. and DDB
Needham Worldwide. He has also worked in new product and brand
development at CLK in the UK (now Corporate Edge). Sebastian holds a
BSc Hons. Engineering Science degree from Reading University, UK, and
is fluent in German, English, Japanese, and Chinese (Mandarin).
Steve Evans is Director of Research in Industrial Sustainability at Cambridge University. He is
originally from the aerospace sector where
he worked with Marconi, Plessey, and finally
Martin-Baker, focused on ejection seats. Steve
joined Cranfield in 1988 and has worked in many
sectors and companies to help improve design
performance. His collaborators include the
Technology Strategy Board, Jaguar/Land Rover,
Morgan Motor Company and Nissan Technology
Centre (Europe). Steve has been appointed as
a Special Adviser to the House of Lords inquiry
into waste reduction.
Chris Reitz leads the design team. A relative of Wolfgang Porsche, Reitz graduated from Art Center Europe in Switzerland and began his career at Volkswagen in Wolfsburg in 1993. Reitz joined Audi in Ingolstadt from 1996 to 1998, where he was in charge of Advance Design. In 1999 he joined Nissan and worked in various roles, including studio chief designer and member of the Global Nissan Design Strategy. During his tenure he worked on the 2001 CrossBow, 2002 Micra C+C, 2003 Evalia and 2004 Nissan Qashqai concept cars. He later joined the Fiat Group and became the head of the Turin based carmaker's Styling Center in January 2005. He was appointed to the Design Director position at Alfa Romeo in 2007.
Patrick Andrews is corporate
secretary. A former solicitor, he spent several
years as a corporate lawyer specialising in
cross-border transactions, notably in the
aerospace industry, working overseas for Pratt
& Whitney Canada, and with Kingfisher plc
where he helped establish the first B&Q stores
in China and Turkey. He moved on to the
Kingfisher corporate finance department and
led a team negotiating the acquisition of
Europe’s second biggest DIY chain. Since 2002 he has been pursuing his
interest in alternative business structures, working mainly with social
entrepreneurs, and he led the development of the Riversimple governance
structure.
Christopher Neale provides strategic finance and public sector advice. He contributes 25 years corporate and operational finance director experience including for international and local business development. In this role he has grown, built and financed new ventures, joint ventures, partnerships, developments, and networks, for a UK public transport body and a London council, major quoted groups and their business development units, and private equity funded companies. He holds an MBA from London Business School and is an ACA Chartered Accountant.
Other members of the team include:
Will Cornwallis, Nico Sergent, Jakub Jodlowski and Anne Gilbert
Other key collaborators include:
Oxford University Department of Engineering Science
Cranfield University Automotive Studies Group
Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies of Singapore
The BOC Group
Amzel Limited
Alan Docking Racing
Element Energy
Trend Tracker
Mike Jones of Open Minds
Peter Lang, environmental consultant and researcher
EPEA
Arcola Energy
Productiv
De Montfort University