The Executive Team

Neil Stephenson has been with the Onyx Group for the past ten years and has been an integral part of the growth of the company from Internet start up to full service group. Neil graduated from the University of Sunderland with a degree in Computers in 1993 and started work as a marketing executive at Vaux Breweries that same year. In January 1996, Neil left Vaux to become marketing manager at Onyx Internet, which was at the time a fledgling start up Internet company. He was soon promoted to operations manager, became group sales & marketing director in 2001 and was promoted to CEO in 2007. During his time at Onyx, Neil has been instrumental in the growth of the business. He was involved in the sale of the company in 1999, and then two separate management buy outs, the first in 2001, the second in 2006. Neil was also part of the team that built and launched the Databanx business and led the acquisition of Askaris last year and Interv8 in May 2006, the first of a series of strategic acquisitions for the group. Neil has helped to mentor many local technology businesses as well as supporting the embryonic Digital City project in Teesside. He is also a member of the NTI board to help shape the region’s IT strategy.

Maitland Hyslop – Chief Operating Officer

Maitland Hyslop started his career in the IT sector 15 years ago, and has combined commercial and academic approaches to the subject. He has joined Onyx Group to use this experience to help the Group achieve its goals. Maitland started his career as an officer in the British Army, before moving on to hold a variety of technical, business and public sector posts. Maitland is a graduate, post-graduate and former tutor at Durham University, a graduate of Huddersfield University Business School and Manchester University and a former Research Fellow in Telecommunications Resilience at Northumbria University. He is a founder member of the Dartmouth College (USA) and Purdue University (USA) Critical Information Infrastructure Team, advising the US government on homeland security. He is also an independent adviser to the European Network Information and Security Agency. Maitland joined Onyx Group from Ross and Cromarty Enterprise in Scotland, where he was chief executive. Before that he worked at the European Telecommunications Resilience and Recovery Association as a director and spent four years as Head of Knowledge, Information and ICT at One North East. He is also affiliated to the Disaster and Development Centre at the University of Northumbria.

Sean Allison – Askaris Managing Director and Onyx Group Technical Director

Sean Allison has more than 23 years experience in the IT industry, working in a variety of different areas to gain a broad base of IT knowledge and expertise. His career started as an apprentice at Systime Computers in Leeds in 1982. After three years working at Systime, he moved to work at Croft Computers in Newcastle for the next 11 years. In 1995, Sean founded the Internet start up Sapphire, which he ran successfully for the next 12 months, providing web solutions to local businesses and gaining contracts with high profile local businesses such as Vickers and Pickerings. In November 1996, he sold Sapphire to Read-Holdings but stayed on to manage the business until 1999. In March 1999, Sean and his wife Susan co founded the network security business Askaris, based in Richmond. The company specialised in providing bespoke security solutions and soon won contracts with clients such as PSI Net and Thales. In July 2006, Sean sold Askaris to the Onyx Group and relocated the business to the Onyx Group headquarters in Middlesbrough. He continues to head up the Askaris business and is also the technical director of the Onyx Group, advising on IT security systems and network security for all group clients.

Alastair Waite – Director

Since moving from accountancy to technology many years ago, Alastair Waite’s career has gone from strength to strength, as CEO of the North East’s leading Internet services company. Alastair trained as an accountant and started work at Safeway as a management accountant in 1978. Alastair’s next move was to Bede plc, before moving to Onyx Internet in 1999. Alastair led the MBO at Onyx Internet in December 2001 and has remained an influential force in the growth of the company ever since becoming the CEO in 1999 and steering the company through the successful launch of DataBanx in 2004 and acquisition of Askaris in 2005 and Interv8 this year. He was also instrumental in the group restructure completed in May 2006, which saw the Onyx Group take the first step towards a planned flotation on the AIM within the next three years. To aid in this process in July 2007 Alastair changed his role to focus on acquisitions, financing and strategic development.