Matthew Baker - Head of Radio Physical Layer and Coexistence Standardisation, Nokia

Matthew Baker is Head of Radio Physical Layer and Co-Existence Standardisation at Nokia, and a Distinguished Member of Technical Staff. He was Chairman of 3GPP TSG RAN Working Group 1 from 2009 – 2013, and Vice-Chairman of the same group from 2013 – 2017. He has actively contributed to the standardization of UMTS/HSPA, LTE and 5G in 3GPP. Prior to joining Alcatel-Lucent (now Nokia) in 2009, he worked at Philips for 12 years, where he conducted research into a variety of wireless communication systems and techniques, including propagation modelling, DECT, Hiperlan and UMTS, as well as leading the Philips 3GPP RAN standardization team. He holds degrees in Engineering and Electrical and Information Sciences from the University of Cambridge. He is a Chartered Engineer, a Member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology and a Visiting Professor at the University of Reading, UK. He is co-editor of “LTE – The UMTS Long Term Evolution: From Theory to Practice” (Wiley, Second Edition 2012), has authored many papers and holds numerous patents in the field of mobile communications.

Iris Barcia - Pr. Mng. MPN Architecture, Vodafone

Iris Barcia is a multidisciplinary professional with entrepreneurial experience in the telecommunication industry. She is an innovator and forward-looking technologist that has worked directly with international executive teams and engineers at Tier 1 network operators, network infrastructure vendors, neutral-host vendors, government organizations, and services companies. She has been involved in the proposal and assessment of novel HetNet strategies for nation-wide 4G, 5G, IoT and public-safety networks, with a focus on future capacity provision and multi-technology evolution. More recently she’s focusing on Open RAN and MPNs. Prior to Vodafone, Iris has been the co-owner and COO of Keima, and has worked on RAN design, optimization and deployment projects at Telefonica and European rural broadband wireless initiatives. She has a BSc and MSc in Telecommunication Engineering from the University of Vigo (Spain) and an MBA from Cardiff Metropolitan University (UK).

Julie Bradford - Managing Consultant in Wireless Techno-Economics, Real Wireless

Julie has worked in the wireless industry for over 15 years.  At Real Wireless, she is a thought leader in 5G business case analysis including understanding 5G use cases, quantifying (in financial terms) the operational and socio-economic benefits of 5G services and understanding network dimensioning and cost implications under 5G virtualised networks.

She has most recently led Real Wireless’ techno-economic analysis on the EC Horizon 2020 5G-MoNArch project.  Inspired by the project’s smart sea port testbed constructed by HPA, Nokia and DT in the Port of Hamburg, this analysis included quantifying the operational benefits of 5G to port authorities and other port users and the cost implications of delivering these industrial grade wireless services from existing mobile infrastructure via network slicing supported via the virtualised 5G-MoNArch network architecture.

Previously, Julie was Communications Engineer at QinetiQ UK, consultant at PA Consulting UK, and Senior Systems Engineer for Airvana UK. 

Dean Bubley - Director, Mobile Technology & Futurism Analyst / Consultant, Disruptive Analysis

Dean Bubley is the Founder of Disruptive Analysis, an independent technology industry analyst and consulting firm based in London. An outspoken analyst & futurist with over 25 years’ experience, he specialises in mobile / telecoms fields, with an eye on the broader technological and societal contexts into which they fit. He is one of the leading market observers and forecasters covering 5G, network infrastructure & software, IoT, telecom business models, voice/video communications and broadband/spectrum policy. He is known as a contrarian and visionary, often with challenging opinions that go against industry consensus. Speaking at over 30 conferences and other events per year, and quoted by publications such as The Economist, FT & Wall Street Journal, he is an authority and provocateur. He regularly appears in technology industry videos, podcasts and blogs. His clients include many of the world’s leading telecom operators, vendors, regulators and industry associations, conducting advisory projects & internal workshop exercises. He also acts as associate director in charge of Network Futures research for STL Partners. He provides clients with advice and analytical opinion on topics such as emerging trend “myth-busting”, business model validation, technology innovation and go-to-market strategies, "addressable market sizing", planning and due diligence. His present focus is on use-cases and hype/reality for 5G, evolution of Wi-Fi, spectrum policy, smart buildings & cities, eSIM, private & neutral-host cellular networks, the “future of voice and video”, mobile broadband, developer platforms, edge-computing and contextual communications. He also advises on wider trends in the evolution of cross-sector technologies like AI, IoT, automation and technology regulation/policy. A recent focus has been on the likely post-pandemic status of telecom, connectivity and building/campus networks. Mr Bubley was formerly an equity analyst, covering communications stocks, with the UK arm of investment bank Robert W. Baird. Prior to that, he spent eight years at UK research firm Datamonitor, where he co-founded the company's Technology business, managed the Internet & Networking area and custom consulting operations, with roles of Chief Analyst & Director of Consulting. He holds a BA in Physics from Keble College, Oxford University.

Alan Carlton - Vice President, Independent

Alan Carlton is Vice President, InterDigital and Head of InterDigital International Labs Organization spanning Europe and Asia. In these regions Alan is responsible for R&D activities in the areas of 5G and IoT. Alan has led his organization to over a dozen major collaborative project wins. He founded and currently leads the oneTRANSPORT initiative, one of the largest Smart City projects in the UK. In the area of 5G Alan’s research interests include next generation internet and advanced applications of NFV/SDN technologies. Alan has over 25 years wireless industry experience spanning every generation of wireless. Prior to InterDigital, he held senior positions at Nortel, Siemens and several wireless startups both in Europe and United States. Alan is an EEE graduate of the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow and also holds a MSc. in Communications & Signal Processing from Imperial College, London. Alan holds many patents covering a diverse range of wireless technology areas. He is a regular invited speaker at wireless industry events and is also author of a wireless futures blog for Computerworld.

Antonella Faniuolo - Head of Network Strategic Planning, Vodafone

Antonella Faniuolo joined Vodafone UK in 2019 as Head of Network Strategy and Digital Transformation and since August 2021 she is leading the Network Planning, Demand, Delivery and Transformation for Europe.

Before Vodafone, Antonella was working for Ofcom, the UK telecom regulator, where she led several projects including 5G, Internet of Things, data strategy and reporting on the status of fixed and mobile infrastructures in the UK. Prior to that, she held several strategic, technical, and commercial roles for major network infrastructure vendors, including Alcatel-Lucent (now Nokia), where she was responsible for wireless market analysis and business strategy with a focus on deployment strategies for new technologies.

Antonella is the author of several patents in the field of wireless cellular technologies. She has a Laurea degree in Telecommunications Engineering (2002) from the University of Bologna, a master’s degree in Radiocommunications Engineering (2003) from Alma Graduate School in Bologna, and an MBA (2011) from Oxford Brookes University.

Christian Farrow - Technical Services Manager, Chronos Technology

Chris has been ‘in sync’ since the mid-1990s when he was involved in significant upgrades with the UK’s major telecom operators as they rolled out SDH and their first dedicated Sync Networks.  At Chronos Chris is responsible for professional services focused on the sync product area including delivery of the Synchronisation MasterClass, Sync Audits, network planning consultancy and acts as a system architect for product development.  Chris has extensive practical knowledge of precise time & timing generation and distribution systems from atomic clocks to GNSS and networked distribution technologies. Chris is an active member of standards groups focused on sync & timing including the  ITU (SG15/Q13). Chris joined Chronos from Marconi’s UK Technical Assistance Centre where he was a sync product specialist and emergency support engineer for the entire product portfolio – from PSTN to optical & packet.

David George - Vice President of EMEA and APAC, Sitetracker

David George is the Vice President of EMEA and APAC for Sitetracker, leading the charge toward operational excellence for critical infrastructure companies. David holds a bachelors degree from Stevens Institute of Technology and an MBA from Santa Clara University. Before joining Sitetracker, David George served as the General Manager of Real Estate and Workplace Solution at California-based, Trimble. Prior to that, George led  APAC Mobile Solutions division. He also spent several years at Ericsson where he was responsible for key commercial relationships for global accounts such as Vodafone and France Telecom.

Zahid Ghadialy - Senior Director, Technology & Innovation Strategy, Parallel Wireless UK & EMEA

Zahid Ghadialy is a Senior Director with a fast-moving and innovative US-based young company called Parallel Wireless (PW) that is on a mission to make deployment of any cellular infrastructure as easy and as cost-effective as Wi-Fi. With an extensive experience of over 20 years in the telecom industry as an engineer, programmer, analyst, researcher, architect, trainer, product manager and technical marketer, he is a technologist with a deep understanding of architecting world-class mobile products and solutions. Zahid is currently 'Future Devices & Technologies' SIG champion. He has also previously been a 'Small Cell SIG' and 'Smart & Intelligent Cities SIG' champion. He is also a Non-Executive Director of eXplanoTech. In his spare time he blogs at 3G4G and you can also catch him on Twitter at @zahidtg.

Erol Hepsaydir - Head of RAN and Devices Strategy and Architecture, Three UK

Dr. Erol Hepsaydir received BSc and MSc degrees in electrical and electronics engineering from Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey, in 1985 and 1987 respectively. He completed his PhD at University of Technology, Sydney in 2001. Currently, he is the Head of RAN and Devices Strategy at Three in the UK. His primary responsibilities are next generation telecommunication and wireless systems including 5G with particular interest on PHY/MAC layer and network architecture. He was appointed as Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor at the University of Kent in United Kingdom where he lectures Digital Communications, Information Theory and Mobile Communications. He is currently focusing on mmWave 5G technology trial and deployment scenarios.

Peter Love - 4G/5G Densification Architect, Nokia

Peter has worked in the mobile communications industry for nearly 30 years, firstly at Orbitel UK and then at Nokia Networks. Peter helped developed the first 2G DCS1800 BTSs to Orange and then continued in building a viable business for network planning & optimisation services in the UK. Holding various roles over the years focusing on UK, Europe and global markets Peter is now a principle services architect in the 5G/densification area helping operators globally to make the most appropriate decisions. Until recently he held the office of chair/vice chair of the Small Cells Forum Operations group where he played a significant role for 5 years.

Guy Matthews

Guy has over two decades in roles focused on data as an organisational asset and its exploitation. Guy’s background is one of leading UK and global data and analytics programmes working for a wide variety of organisations across a number of vertical markets such as John Lewis, GE Capital, Orange, LexisNexis, BOC and the NHS. At CGI as Director of Emerging Technology, Guy is helping lead developments in 5G, connected communities/smart cities and immersive technology. One of Guy’s current areas of focus at CGI is the development and modelling of clusters of 5G use cases and how these can underpin economically sustainable 5G implementation programmes at city scale. Guy frequently speaks at industry events, covering 5G, smart cities, immersive technology and advanced analytics/AI in recent months and provides media commentary on industry topics ranging from 5G at a general level through to specific areas such as 5G enabled smart roads.

Emiliano Mezzarobba - Senior RF Systems Consultant, Cambridge Consultants

Emiliano Mezzarobba is a Senior Consultant in the System RF Group.

He graduated in 2002 at Trieste University (Italy) and then worked for Fracarro Radioindustrie and BPT where he was leading innovative developments with Radio over fibre technology for CATV and FTTx products. Some of the products developed in those years are still sold in high volume by both companies.

He moved to the UK in 2007, where he had the opportunity to join Zinwave, a spin-off company of Cambridge University, becoming the Hardware Team Leader to develop the next generation product of their unique (patented) broadband fibre optic DAS system.

In 2011 he started his career as consultant, working as system RF engineer leading projects and becoming experienced in satellite communications, SDR radio and antenna design (granting several patents on products he worked on)

Since joining Cambridge Consultants, he has worked on a wide range of projects. Examples include: system RF for SDR radio designs, first NB-IoT dual band module, massive MIMO antennas and digital beam-forming, mmW automotive radars, digital pre-distortion, custom antenna design for wearables and phased arrays.

Andrew Palmer - Consulting Director, CGI

Andrew has more than 33 years of experience in IT, Telecoms and TV and Media, having worked in various roles for IBM, AT&T, Ericsson, Motorola and Arris. Andrew's present role is to leverage existing CGI capabilities that match the needs of our clients in the Space, Defence and Intelligence sectors, as well as building new capabilities that will support the emerging and changing needs of our client base. Andrew has proven experience in developing and delivering complex SI and Services solutions that meet both business and technology needs.

Andrew has co-authored "UK Telecoms For Dummies", an essential guide to the complicated UK Telecoms sector as well as articles for publications such as the Cambridge Wireless Journal including "How do we build the new world of 5g?". He frequently speaks at conferences and provides media commentary on industry topics like 5G, IoT and Smart Cities, as well as being a member of the techUK Spectrum Policy Forum and the Cambridge Wireless Virtual Networks Special Interest Group.

Yinan Qi - Senior 5G Researcher, Samsung Electronics R&D Institute UK

Dr. Yinan Qi received Ph.D degree in Electronic Engineering from University of Surrey. He is currently a senior 5G researcher in Samsung R&D Institute UK. His main research interests include massive MIMO, cooperative communication systems, green communications and non-terrestrial networks.

Jaime Reed - Vice President, Space Data Platforms and Applications, CGI

Jaime loves working with clients to invent the Space services of the future. He leads Space Data Platforms and Applications team in the UK for CGI, the largest IT and business consulting company in the space sector. Using SatCom and Remote Sensing technologies his team work on topics like smart cities, connected transport, AI, 5G, geospatial applications and HAPS. Jaime has spent 20 years in the space industry as a systems engineer and project manager working on some of the most complex ground, satellite and software systems for clients like the European Space Agency and NASA. Jaime has a Doctorate in Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics and is a Chartered Engineer.

Anvar Tukmanov - Wireless Research Manager, BT

Anvar has been with BT Labs at Adastral Park since 2013 where he is involved in air interface R&D focussing on systems aspects of LTE and NR covering both deployment and evolution timeframes. Until 2016 he contributed to LTE femtocell activities, and is currently leading active antenna systems research. Anvar represents BT at 3GPP RAN1 working group, where he has contributed to standardisation of 5G. Anvar holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Newcastle University and is a Senior Member of IEEE.

Simon Watts - Principal Consultant, Avanti Communications

Simon joined BT after graduation where he worked in a number of satcom engineering roles. He then moved Hughes where he became Chief Engineer Europe and was responsible for the design of its satcom and hybrid services and products. For the last 7 years Simon has worked at Avanti as a Principal Consultant working on EC, ESA and other projects; looking at new technologies, new operational methodologies and the integration of satcom in to 5G.