Our Team

Maggie Darling

Maggie Darling is Chair of Smart Works Scotland. She is a founding Trustee of Smart Works Charity, set up ten years ago with one small office in London. She has been delighted to be part of our charity’s expansion to support more women around the UK.

Bronagh Power

Bronagh Power was Head of the Business School for the Open University in Scotland and Faculty Lead for the Postgraduate Business and Management programme for the Open University throughout the UK and Continental Europe. She is a passionate believer in the transformative power of education, an experienced facilitator within leadership development contexts but most of all, an advocate of empowering women to realise their dreams and potential.

Pippa Coulson

Pippa joined Smart Works Scotland as a Trustee and Treasurer. Pippa is a qualified chartered accountant and is currently Head of Finance for The PRS REIT plc. She has over 15 years of experience in listed and private companies across a range of sectors including residential, renewable energy and corporate finance. Prior to this Pippa worked in audit for 10 years. She has worked with charities in different roles, including as an auditor and Treasurer.

Dr Lesley Sawers

Lesley is currently Scotland Commissioner, Equality and Human Rights Commission, a non-executive director of Crosswinds Developments Ltd and a Director of GenAnalytics Ltd and previously, she was Vice Principal and Pro Vice Chancellor for Business, Enterprise and Innovation at Glasgow Caledonian University, Chief Executive of the Scottish Council for Development and Industry and Deputy Chair of the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency. Lesley was awarded an OBE in 2018 for services to equality and business.

Catriona Mackie

Catriona is highly experienced international HR Director, having worked in the power, telecommunications and drinks industries.  She has championed inclusion and diversity with a specific focus on increasing diversity in manufacturing and supply chain and has a passion for people development and coaching, particularly in the context of women in leadership.  She has been a member of Court for one of Scotland’s universities and is inspired by the role education plays in female empowerment.

Rachel Meddowes

Rachel Meddowes is a Trustee of Smart Works Scotland having joined the Board in Autumn 2022. Rachel is also a Volunteer Dresser In Edinburgh. A Freelance Consultant for Ideas, Research & Concept, Collaborations, Content, Styling Decoration & Project Managing. She has always worked in the Style, Magazine & Decoration arena & is currently the Associate Editor at Piero Publishing & previously worked at Harpers Bazaar.

Professor Christopher Moore

Professor Christopher Moore is Principal and Chief Executive of New College Lanarkshire and is Professor in Fashion and Marketing at the University of Manchester. Christopher has held senior positions at universities in York, Glasgow and Edinburgh and was Director of the British School of Fashion at Glasgow Caledonian University’s London campus. With a PhD in Marketing, he has provided research and strategic consultancy support to a range of leading fashion and consumer goods businesses.

Christine Esson

Christine is an economic development specialist with significant expertise gained from working in global public & private sector organisations.  Christine has worked with many sectors, her specialism is supporting businesses successfully enter new markets. Co-founder of Scottish Business Network, a not-for-profit global community. Christine is an Ambassador of Women’s Enterprise Scotland, ScotsCare London. She was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts in recognition of her leadership and drive to empower women.

Mark Hogarth

Mark has been creative director of Harris Tweed Hebrides since 2008 and has a brand consultancy in fashion and textiles. Much of his work is as part of the award-winning Harris Tweed Hebrides team that have been credited with transforming the unique heritage industry. He sits on the Advisory Council of The Campaign for Wool and is an industry leader on the influential Erasmus Plus project on Sustainable Fashion Employability Skills through Glasgow Caledonian University.

Fiona is currently a Partner and leads the Banking & Finance team at Shepherd and Wedderburn LLP, a leading UK law firm.  She has over 25 years of experience as a finance lawyer, acting for banks, financial institutions, sponsors and companies in relation to their funding requirements across all sectors relevant to the Scottish economy and has held various leadership positions during that time.  Fiona is also a trained mentor, her passion for mentoring prompting her to establish a mentoring programme within the work-place which has enabled her to support a number of professionals through various stages of their career development.  Fiona was named “Finance Lawyer of the Year, Scotland” at the Legal 500 Scotland Awards 2023 and was short-listed for the “Lawyer of the Year, Scotland” award in the same year.  Beyond work, Fiona is a trustee of a local scouting charity, busy mum of 3 children, loves zumba and sings in a choir.

Danielle leads a team of specialists delivering bespoke advertising solutions across the UK and heads the STV Growth Fund, a £30m initiative enabling SMEs to reach more consumers through affordable advertising. Focused on client objectives, she develops innovative commercial solutions to drive strong results and increase awareness of STV’s cost-effective marketing options.

Previously, Danielle was Director of Strategic Development, aligning business strategies with marketing opportunities for client growth. She holds a degree in International Business and Modern Languages from the University of Strathclyde and HEC Montréal. Her career began in the software industry, working internationally with clients like Emirates and Royal Jordanian Airlines before transitioning to media.

With over 16 years of experience, Danielle has been instrumental in building SME and PLC partnerships with STV. She is a member of the NABS Scotland committee, DMA Scotland Council, and STV’s Diversity & Inclusion steering group.

Communications professional Charlene Sweeney is media relations director at leading independent UK agency BIG Partnership.

A former senior journalist, she worked in both print and broadcast media before joining BIG Partnership where she delivers strategic PR campaigns for a range of corporate and consumer clients. She is also highly experienced in reputation management and media training.

She will bring her PR expertise to Smart Works Scotland as it seeks to grow its services across the country and help more women gain access to the world of work.