People
Nico Cerni (Principal) has worked internationally in the weapons, automotive, heating ventilation airconditioning and refrigeration (HEVAC), sat communication, security and foodstuffs industries for over twenty five years. He has director level experience in international corporations, holding groups, start ups and he has held a number of other senior positions. He advises leading international corporations, government agencies and professional practices on business development. His areas of expertise include new product development, corporate finance, strategy, marketing, and alliances. Nico started as a commercial marketing graduate, completed a full bank job rotation and after a short period in Northern Italian enterprises, he unfolded his main experience as General, Manager of TRANE WABCO Westinghouse in Central Eastern Europe, Vienna, 1991 to 1995. He studied Semiotics, Linguistics, ( Wimbledon and Hastings ) Thermodynamic Engineering and Systems Integration . He is a member of the American Association of Heating Air-conditioning and Ventilation Engineers (ASHRAE) society (1994) , of the US Foundrymen Society(1997) and of the Gold Coast Innovation Centre of Camarillo, Ventura County , US State University Campus , since 2002.
David Cooper ( Senior Partner , London ) is a highly experienced business development and corporate finance professional with passion for facilitating innovation. He has demonstrated his impact on growth and profitability for all the organisations he has worked for. Client focused, independent, proactive and practical in approach, his 35 years’ experience has been gained across a wide range of industries, transactions and client projects. He has a record of success in the management and control of the full spectrum of business development and corporate finance activities for both emerging and major companies and has significant experience of both senior line and consulting roles. His extensive international experience spans the creation and management of a technology transfer joint venture in the USSR towards the end of the Cold War, to wide ranging overseas business intelligence interests, which have required him to work for clients, frequently as their sole representative, in North America, Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Japan and the Pacific Rim. Roles outside DCA include positions as a Corporate Financier in the new business development group of Robert Fleming’s Corporate Finance Department, where he was responsible for the identification, creation, and evaluation of international investment banking opportunities in high technology with special emphasis on healthcare and the life sciences. He was Director of European Corporate Business Development for the Pfizer Hospital Products Group, responsible for Pfizer’s European Business Development activities in healthcare. David originally trained as a chemist and then read Theory of Education at the University of London, subsequently studying philosophy, psychology and sociology. He combines a lifelong interest in sailing (despite the old saying that sailing is like standing under a cold shower tearing up £20 notes) with a love of music, in particular, opera, classical Indian music, and jazz.