Birmingham-headquartered School of Coding & AI has appointed Suki Gill as chief executive of its UK business, while founder Manny Athwal moves into a global role overseeing its overseas operations.
Gill, previously the organisation’s principal and director of education and quality, will take responsibility for its UK activities as it expands its education programmes, partnerships and student numbers.
School of Coding & AI provides coding, artificial intelligence, computer science and digital skills education to school pupils, higher education students, adult learners and businesses. It operates from bases in Birmingham and Wolverhampton, alongside international operations in Dubai and India.
The organisation now has seven brands under the School of Coding & AI umbrella. It has also opened a multimillion-pound higher education facility in Birmingham and announced a partnership with Harper Adams University.
Athwal will become global chief executive, focusing on the development of the organisation outside the UK, including its campus in Dubai and its activities in Asia.
He said: “School of Coding & AI has grown enormously from the business I started from home back in 2017 but the last two years has seen exponential growth both in the UK and internationally.
“We have announced the opening of our first Middle East campus, in Dubai, and our presence in Asia has broadened significantly, particularly in India due to its reputation for hosting the fastest-growing economy and making significant strides in computer science and AI.
“With more of my time focused across all of our brands, and on our international strategy, it is vital we have a CEO with the knowledge and skills required to drive our UK business forward. Suki has been with the company for more than three years and has been an integral part of our success.
“I have said before that leaders are only as good as the team they have around them, and Suki is absolutely one of the best.”
Gill has more than 25 years of experience in education. She began her career as a developer at telecommunications company Marconi before retraining as a teacher and progressing through teaching and departmental management roles.
As director of education and quality at School of Coding & AI, she was responsible for the organisation’s teaching and learning activities.
Gill said: “Joining SoC has been one of the best and most rewarding decisions of my career. The school is built on the principle that success in education comes from understanding the individual, not simply delivering a curriculum.
“I look forward to working with the incredible team at SoC to continue building on that foundation and opening educational opportunities up to more and more people.”
TechSparx reported in May that School of Coding & AI planned to increase its workforce from around 170 employees to 1,000 within five years. The organisation had recruited 50 people in four months and expected further hiring as it prepared to take on another 2,500 students.
Image source: School of Coding
