Meet the Team
Christine Stewart
Role: Head of the Lean University
Tel: 70410
Email: StewartC1@cardiff.ac.uk
Christine Stewart is the Head of the Lean University. She accepted the role in 2006 and since its inception has effectively established the Lean University Team as a core service within Cardiff University.
With a BEng (Hons) in Manufacturing Systems with Management Christine prior to joining the University has worked in the financial, manufacturing and insurance sectors. While working for Bae Systems she discovered the philosophy of Lean, implementing a number of improvement tools and techniques across the business noticing how improvement is sustainable when implemented using the skills and knowledge of the people who do the job and have the senior management backing to implement the changes.
Christine drives forward and oversees her Teams work to facilitate and support Lean applications that make sustainable improvements and help create a culture of continuous improvement within Cardiff University. Key to this work are the learning programs such as Lean Skills for Leaders which increase the Lean knowledge and understanding of University staff members through providing a supportive education platform.
Christine in her spare time loves reading and the cinema. In more energetic moments she practices Tai Chi and tries to hit (successfully) the target in Field Archery. She has also proven herself useful with a sugar glass bottle!
David Melkevik
Role: Lean University Support Officer
Tel: 70737
Email: MelkevikDJ@cardiff.ac.uk
David Melkevik left Leicester University in 2000 with a BSc. in Psychology and joined the Housing Benefits section at North East Lincolnshire Council. Aiming to pay the right benefit, to the right person at the right time, David was already on the road to Lean thinking without even knowing it!
In 2003, David arrived at Cardiff University as a Clerical Officer for the School of Biosciences. His three years there was a great introduction to the inner workings of an academic school, the University and the eternal mystery that are students.
David has been with the Lean Team since its formation in 2007 and as a Lean University Assistant Facilitator he is heavily involved in the mentoring of participants on the Lean Skills for Leaders training. He also has a keen interest in 5s, office layout and workflow.
Outside of work he has a passion for cinema, his favourite movie genres being horror and dreams of winning an Oscar but would happily settle for a free tub of popcorn. David can also been seen down his local gym where he is training to become a mean, lean, mapping machine.
Sarah Richards
Role: Lean University Facilitator
Tel: 70446
Email: RichardsSC@cardiff.ac.uk
Sarah Richards joined the Lean Team in 2008 and has led many Lean projects at a strategic level and also provided support and mentoring for continuous improvement activities.
As her project for Practical Leadership for University Management course, Sarah set up the Lean Community of Practice (CoP) which aims to get people talking about process improvement and meeting to share good practice.
Before joining Cardiff University, Sarah worked in the utilities sector, primarily with Welsh Water, where she was introduced to Lean in practice. Her roles included Business Process Re-engineering Manager, Service Delivery Alliance Relationship Manager and Customer Experience Manager.
Sarah has a BSc Econ and MBA from Cardiff University, is a member of the Institute of Customer Service and a committee member for the charity WaterAid in Wales.
Sarah likes to spend her weekends and spare time with her husband and daughters in Mumbles walking on the beach and eating far too much ice-cream!
Yvonne Taylor
Role: Assistant Lean University Facilitator
Tel: 70433
Email: TaylorY@cardiff.ac.uk
Prior to joining Cardiff University in 2006, Yvonne worked at the CBI (Confederation of British Industry) and previously at Cardiff Civil Justice Centre, and has a background in both project and event management.
Since commencing work at the University in 2006 Yvonne has worked within Human Resources on the University's Positive Working Environment Programme, managing a number of projects and events that took place as part of this initiative. Having undertaken a secondment to the Lean Team in 2010, Yvonne joined the team on a more permanent basis as a Lean Facilitator in 2011.
Yvonne enjoys the way in which Lean thinking can help to ensure the effective management and delivery of projects of various sizes and also enjoys the emphasis that Lean places on good communication and a culture of respect. Yvonne has worked on a wide variety of Lean projects throughout the University, and is currently coordinating a collaborative pilot study project for a number of the University's schools, using both her Lean and project management experience.
Yvonne is a graduate of Cardiff University and has a BA Honours in Communication from Cardiff's School of English, Communication and Philosophy.
Yvonne is preparing herself for her own major change programme and is currently on maternity leave returning in January 2013.
Katie Hales
Role: Lean University Administrative Assistant
Tel: 70445
Email: HalesKL@cardiff.ac.uk
Katie Hales joined the Lean Team in August 2010 as a Lean Support Officer dealing with all administrative and clerical duties. Katie has recently completed her first Lean project as part of the Lean Skills for Leaders training and is hoping to get involved with more projects going on around the University.
After leaving school in 2004 Katie worked for the Department of Work and Pensions as a Customer Service Administration Officer, providing support to senior members of staff and liaising with customers on a daily basis. Katie left the DWP in 2006 to begin work for the BBC as a HR Advisor.
In Katie's spare time, she enjoys spending time with her son and socialising with friends when opportunity arises.
Sówande Sówemimo-Coker
Role: Assistant Lean University Facilitator
Tel: 70737
Email: Sowemimo-CokerS@Cardiff.ac.uk
Sówande Sówemimo-Coker has recently joined the University Lean Team on secondment from the Human Resources Division. Prior to joining the University, Sówande pursued a career in legal practice and is a non practicing solicitor.
Sówande's favoured aspects of Lean practice are process mapping and route cause analysis. Since joining the Lean Team, Sówande has undertaken work on the Criminal Records Bureau project and is looking forward to being involved in more projects around the University.
Outside the office, Sówande enjoys cinema and playing sports particularly rugby and squash. He is also involved in a local charity as a volunteer and trustee.
Qualifications: LLB (Hons), Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice
John Evans
Role: Assistant Lean University Facilitator
Tel: 70433
Email: EvansJD8@cf.ac.uk
John Evans joined School of Medicine in 2007 where he has carved a career within the research sphere as a Data and Information Manager, currently with the South East Wales Trials Unit. Having also had the opportunity of working over a number of years in the private and public sector prior to joining the University, John has developed a clear understanding of the needs associated with the collecting, manipulating and disseminating relevant data from various sources by means of Information Systems. John established his career with an MSc in Health Information Management from the University of Wales, Aberystwyth following an honours degree in Information Technology from the University of Glamorgan.
John has joined the Lean Team on secondment for a year since Feb 2012 after successfully completing the Lean Skills for Leaders Course in May 2011. He is keen to increase his understanding and application of Lean through visual management applications to motivate and promote a productive working environment, both personally and for the projects he's working on. This exceptional opportunity will provide his role with the foundation to develop and implement operations and processes that support research, learning and teaching through continuous improvement within the University.
An avid music collector with a large array of CDs and concert tickets, John has a black belt in Korean Kickboxing and is also a keen gardener. He also enjoys other activity sports such as ski-ing, mountain biking and hiking the countryside and spends his holidays tracking through jungles, rainforests or deserts visiting ancient civilisation sites, all of which he can't wait for his one year old son to be able to join him in.