TEES TECH AWARDS 2022
SPONSORED BY BCEGI
UNSUNG HERO
FINALIST
JANICE WEBSTER ( DIGITALCITY )
Hero – Kevin Mann is pictured with Dongwen Yu , lead director of category sponsor BCEGI .
WINNER
KEVIN MANN ( DOUBLE ELEVEN )
The Tees Tech Awards “ unsung hero ” says his experiences in America helped show him the value of mentorships .
Games producer Kevin Mann , of Middlesbrough ’ s trailblazing Double Eleven studio , has quietly but successfully gone about helping establish the Tees Valley digital cluster as a major player , nationally and internationally .
And while he ’ s “ flattered ” to have been nominated for , and be given , the “ unsung hero ” crown , he says his experience in America made him want to replicate it here .
He explained : “ I was really fortunate to be part of a programme called Techstars out in America and they were always about giving mentorships .
“ I ’ ve had mentorships from companies like Microsoft , Google , everybody . So when I got back to Middlesbrough , I wanted to bring that here , so maybe it was some of that influence , the influence Techstars gave me , which helped me get this award .”
Over his career , Kevin ’ s many achievements have included helping start the Techstars accelerator programme , holding business talks with DC and Marvel and even developing a concept Microsoft took on board .
He even changed US employment law to allow for extended temporary work visas for international workers . But his contentment at now working with Double Eleven team is obvious . He said : “ At the moment , I ’ m working on one of the fastest growing video game companies in the world . It ’ s incredible to be part of it and I ’ m doing some really exciting projects and some innovation there .
“ I know Double Eleven are really passionate about giving back to the community , so it ’ s exciting to see what they do .”
SPONSOR ’ S MESSAGE
Dongwen Yu , lead director at BCEGI , said : “ BCEGI is the development partner for the digital hub Boho X . Once complete and occupied , Boho X will play a pivotal role in attracting talent and creating opportunities for the local community . The Tees Tech Awards are the perfect way to support the local digital community and an important platform to encourage the growth of the tech sector as a whole in Middlesbrough . It has been a real privilege to review the high-quality award entries and see the depth of the talent pool here . Exciting times certainly lie ahead and we hope to continue to play our small role in the region ’ s growth .”
Though retired , Janice Webster ’ s passion and vision remain at the heart of Teesside ’ s thriving tech sector . Founder of DigitalCity , Janice created groundbreaking courses such as a master ’ s in computer-aided graphical technology applications ( CAGTA ) in 1987 - the first of its kind in the UK , helping attract many high-growth companies to the area . Her work was instrumental in Teesside being in the top three universities in the world for games and animation in the early 2000s , and she created the Virtual Reality Centre to support the academic portfolio , support applied research and transfer knowledge to SMEs . A true unsung hero , Janice has always pushed the Tees Valley to the forefront while remaining in the background .
> All at Tees Business were saddened to hear of Janice Webster ’ s passing shortly before we went to press with this issue .
FINALIST
PHOEBE KIRKBY ( VIRAL EFFECT )
As head of community at Middlesbroughbased marketing agency Viral Effect , Phoebe flies below the radar in order to make the client look good . However , she is the glue that holds the team together and , aged just 20 , she has led Viral to its greatest accolade – number one in the world on Help Handles – a programme that calculates response rates to determine the speed in which brands reply to social media complaints and enquiries . This ranking meant Viral beat huge businesses such as Santander and Pizza Hut , with a team of just 14 in their little corner of the North- East !
The voice of business in the Tees region | 45