Smart Water requires Smart Talent

Amir joined SWAN in 2013 and has been instrumental in growing the organisation into the leading global hub for the smart water sector. Throughout his time, he has helped engage members, develop in-depth research reports, and create innovative tools such as the SWAN Interactive Tool and Knowledge Hub. Amir also helped launch and grow regional SWAN Alliances in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe. He holds a PhD focused on the impact of the Data-as-a-Service model on water and wastewater utilities. Before joining SWAN, Amir completed a dual-master’s degree in Environmental Science and Public Affairs at Indiana University.

Shayna joined SWAN in 2020 driven by her passion for collaborating for a resilient world. She held the role of Events Director, overseeing annual conferences, partner events, and international webinars, and currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer, helping programmes and strategic initiatives run smoothly. Shayna also acts as the organisation’s focal point for the global SWAN Digital Twin Work Group and SWAN Interoperable Utility Group. Before joining SWAN, she completed an MBA specialising in environmental sustainability.

Sandy joined SWAN as Programme Manager in 2021. Her vast experience in customer service, sales and start-ups allows her to better serve SWAN members and help them leverage all of the benefits that SWAN Forum has to offer. Sandy also serves as the main point of contact for RiSWP, SWAN’s global young professional community. As a native Spanish speaker, she hopes to help bridge the gap with SWAN Latin America partners. Sandy holds a BA in Economics and Criminology from the University of Miami and an MA in Environmental Studies from Tel Aviv University.

Maddy joined SWAN in 2024 and is responsible for supporting and coordinating the SWAN Americas Alliance activities, assissting regional members to achieve their smart water goals. She holds a BS in Environmental Studies and a Master’s of Environmental Management from Yale University. Prior to joining SWAN, she worked in education, where she helped her students critically tackle global problems at the intersection of environmental science and social justice.

Zolboo joined SWAN in 2025 overseeing the SWAN Asia-Pacific Alliance and bringing over a decade of experience spanning technology, sustainability, international development, and higher education. She is passionate about inclusive climate action, technology for good, and women’s empowerment. Prior to SWAN, she served as Partnerships Lead for Asia-Pacific in the global technology sector and as a Youth Advisor to the United Nations. Zolboo holds a Master of Public Affairs in Sustainability and Sustainable Development from Indiana University as a Fulbright Scholar, where she also taught international business courses.

Raveena joined SWAN in 2024 as the India Project Manager, with a primary focus on coordinating the SWAN India Alliance and collaborating with members to drive forward smart water initiatives across the region.  She has completed her Bachelor’s in Environmental Engineering and holds an MS in Water Science and Management from Utrecht University. Since 2021, Raveena has been managing the knowledge management system analysing the water technology market trends at BlueTech Research while contributing to research and project management initiatives in water sustainability and innovation. 

Amy joined SWAN in 2025 as the Marketing Director, bringing a passion for storytelling and strategic growth. She is facilitating SWAN’s marketing efforts by creating campaigns, driving engagement, and building the brand voice. With expertise in digital marketing and data-driven strategies, she is helping enhance SWAN’s global visibility and impact.

Ma’ayan joined SWAN in 2025 as Project Manager, overseeing administrative tasks and refining content to support the organisation’s mission. With over four years of experience in Adtech and account management, she brings a strong background in customer success and organisational excellence. Passionate about contributing to the environmental sector, Ma’ayan is dedicated to helping SWAN’s initiatives behind the scenes.

Jen is a CIMA Qualified Accountant who has been working with the SWAN Forum since 2012 providing support with invoicing, payments, cash-flow, banking and financial reporting. She currently works as Head of Finance for Mueller Water Products and previously i2O Water where she has been with for over 10 years.

Fredrick is the current SWAN Council Chair. He has been analysing the global water market for over 15 years and is the Global Leader and Vice President of the Sustainability and Circular Economy practise at Frost & Sullivan. Fredrick led the launch of the Smart Water Program in 2010 and has since focused on shaping the Global Water Research Program around digital transformation and together with his team of analysts has published authoritative reports on Smart Water Grid and related segments. He has a Masters in Environmental Protection and Management from the University of Edinburgh secured as a Shell Centenary Chevening Scholar and has also been conferred the Frost & Sullivan Fellowship.

Siya, as she is fondly known, currently holds the position of Director – Commercial Services within the Water and Sanitation Directorate at the City of Cape Town. Over the course of her 20 -year professional journey, she has extensive experience in managerial and strategic leadership, with a significant focus on South African Local Government. Her qualifications in Finance and Municipal finance management have fortified her expertise, resulting in a decade-long specialisation in this domain. Siya’s proficiencies encompass a wide spectrum, including strategic and business management, Revenue and Debt management, financial sustainability, and innovative customer-centric solutions.

Tracy is a Technical Director for Advisory Services at Stantec, a leading global design and engineering firm. She leads the company’s community of practice for Digital Services and Innovation. She has more than 17 years of research and consultancy experience in both the water and energy sectors and has supported transformational projects in Australia, Singapore, and South Africa. Her previous roles at Griffith University (Queensland) and Jacobs involved digital technology, specialising in Smart Systems, Internet of Things (IoT), Communication Protocols (NB-IoT/LoRa Wan), demand management and end use analytics. Tracy has a particular interest in how to manage end-to-end smart systems, open data environments, removing organisational silos and changing behaviour/working practices.

Andy is Head of Smart Water at Anglian Water Services, which provides water and water recycling services to almost 7 million customers in the East of England. Over the past 35 years, he has worked both within the UK and on several overseas projects specialising in Non-Revenue Water (NRW) and network management. Andy leads with a focus on people and has a passion for cross-sector collaboration and innovation. His current role combines his core strengths of disruptive thinking and tenacity to drive digital transformation within the water sector, with the aim of creating the water utility of the future.

Eric currently serves as Senior Manager of Strategic Insights at Xylem. His areas of expertise include digital water technology, company strategy, water finance and investment, and water and climate policy. Prior to joining the SWAN Council, he led the SWAN Americas Alliance Research Group for three years, for which he was awarded an Outstanding Leadership Award by industry peers and professionals. Eric holds an MA in Global Development Policy from Boston University.

Jim serves as the global director for water at Arcadis with 20 years experience as a certified operator, professional engineer, and utility manager. Jim brings a passion for people enabled by technology, with an education background in Civil Engineering and Artificial Intelligence. He brings deep industry relationships as Chair of the American Water Works Association Engineering & Construction Division, Advisory Board Member of BAYWORK, Inaugural Chair of the AWWA Digital Twins Committee and AWWA AI Subcommittee, and Chair of the Intelligent Water Infrastructure Committee at Virginia Tech University.

Cecilia is the Global Water Industry Solutions Strategist at Bentley Systems. With 20 years of experience in the water sector, she has worked with river basin authorities, engineering consultancies, utilities, and digital solution providers. At Bentley, Cecilia oversees global strategy for the water sector, focusing on digital technologies, strategic partnerships, and helping utilities build smarter and resilient infrastructure to meet climate and urban challenges. Her goal is to support a sustainable and efficient water-wise world, where infrastructure is smarter, decisions are based on data, and communities are better protected.

Shirley serves as SWAN’s Senior Advisor, guiding staff and volunteers along an outcome-driven culture. Since 2016, she has led innovation and strategic activities, supporting SWAN’s regional and global expansion. She has developed strategic plans, established smart water frameworks, curated unique workshops, facilitated global innovation sessions, and managed strategic research projects. A certified PMP, she is the CEO & Founder of Bird Eye Consulting, an impact-driven project management firm working with public, private and non-profit clients across water, smart cities, digital transformation, and sustainability. Prior to SWAN, Shirley completed an MSc. in Sustainability Management from Columbia University focused on water resource management and sustainable cities.

Nav has over 20 years experience in utility management, fiscal and strategic planning, and policy development in the public sector. She has been the Director of Utilities for the City of Bellevue for 7 years and was the Deputy Director for 6 years prior to that, overseeing Engineering, Operations and Maintenance, and Resource Management and Customer Service. Nav previously worked as a researcher in the field of cancer endocrinology at the British Columbia Cancer Agency in Vancouver. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in biochemistry from University of British Columbia and a Master’s degree in business administration from City University.

Gigi is an independent consultant of Karmous-Edwards Consulting. She consults on digital strategy and transformation, and now focus on digital twin technology. She currently works with global smart cities on integrating digital twin technology across sectors applying her 25+ years technical career in big data and IoT analytics. Gigi recently founded and is the co-Chair of the SWAN Digital Twin Work Group to help accelerate the adoption of holistic water utility management using digital twins. She has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering and an M.S. in Electrical Engineering.

Tertius Rust, founder of The Innovation Consulting Company, specialises in innovation strategy and transformative change in the utility sector. With global experience across the UK, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, the Philippines, and South Africa, Tertius develops methods to help teams implement impactful solutions at scale. An expert in behaviour science, AI, and IoT, Tertius fosters innovation through frameworks like Innovation Accounting and Incubator models. An endurance athlete and family-oriented leader, he balances professional goals with mentoring future leaders and sharing knowledge to drive business success.

Juan Carlos is an independent consultant and founder of Finance & Risk Advisory. He consults in green growth, energy and water utilities, finance, and sustainable project management. Prior to launching his consultancy, Juan Carlos worked as a CEO, CFO and consultant for several energy and water companies. He also worked for development banks, private and public agencies across various sectors including international cooperation in carbon, sustainability, technology and corporate green finance. His vision is to help the Colombian water sector improve its coverage, quality efficiency, digitalisation and sustainability by increasing awareness and knowledge of the global best practices. As a SWAN Ambassador he hopes to grow SWAN’s reach across Colombia and Latin America.

Robin is Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of TeamSolve, a pioneering Singapore tech company using Generative AI to revolutionise the operations workforce in the water sector. He has over 2 decades of experience in the water sector, previously held leadership roles at Xylem and Royal Haskoning. He is based in Singapore and lived overseas in Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Chongqing covering the APAC water business. Robin also serves as a Council member on the Singapore Water Association since 2019 and holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) in Civil Engineering from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.

Scott has worked in the water industry for over 21 years. His experience includes end-to-end process water management, treatment and conservation. He is now VP Industrial Technology at Aquaphoenix Scientific. Scott holds a BS in Biochemistry from Auburn University.

Jennifer is the previous Chief Transformation Officer at Greater Western Water and SWAN Council Chair. She has over 20 years’ experience across diverse industries where she has gained excellence in digital technology, transformation, project management and change management. Jennifer was named as one of the Top 50 CIO’s in Australia in both 2021 where she was number 5 in Australia and 2020 and was recently named one of Victoria’s Top 50 Women Public Sector Women for 2021. Jennifer has a Master of IT Management, Master of Business Administration, a Bachelor of Business, is a Graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and has a range of ICT and project management industry accreditation’s. She also is the Deputy Chair of the Intelligent Water Network Executive Group, and Wyndham Tech School Committee.

Rik has over 25 years of experience in innovation and business development in several sectors including 12 years in the water utility domain. He is leading the business development department at Vitens, the largest water utility in the Netherlands serving 5.4 million customers. In addition to his responsibility in establishing Vitens’ smart grid infrastructure, Rik is also leading innovative programs on customer technology, sustainability and circular economy. Rik holds a BSc in microbiology, a Business Administration & Business strategy degree from the Academy of Management (IBO-University Groningen) and finished the Leading Digital Transformation & Innovation programme at INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France.

Ken has 38 years of experience in the industry and is a Senior Technology Fellow for Jacobs in their Denver Office. He serves as the Global Technology Leader for IoT and Smart Sensors for the Jacobs Digital Solutions Team, which includes the design and implementation of smart systems for water, wastewater and other sectors. Ken has managed or served as the technical lead in many Surveillance and Response systems and water quality optimisation projects. Prior to joining Jacobs, Ken worked for public utilities in water, wastewater, recycled water system operations, process evaluation, water quality, and regulations.

Manuel is Vice President of Practice Management at Xylem. He previously served as the Business Development Director, Software Solutions – Americas at AVEVA. Manuel has become an avid and active voice in the smart water networks space and has authored numerous articles, white-papers and presentations on various smart water topics. He has a degree in Business Administration from the University of Murcia (Spain) and a B.A. in European Business from Manchester Metropolitan University (UK).

Amir is the Founder & CEO of TaKaDu, a global leader in Central Event Management (CEM) solutions for water utilities. TaKaDu was honored as a Technology Pioneer by the World Economic Forum of Davos and featured as a Harvard Business School case study. In addition, Amir is a Co-Founder of SWAN. A serial entrepreneur, Amir founded YaData in 2005, serving as CEO until the company’s acquisition by Microsoft in 2008. Prior to that, he founded Cash-U in 1999 (later named Unipier). Amir holds a B.Sc. in Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and an MBA from INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France.

Andrew is a the CTO of PA’s global Energy and Utilities practice. He leads science and technology development and advisory out of PA’s Cambridge Global Innovation and Technology Centre drawing on nearly 1,000 scientists and engineers covering physical and digital technologies. His focus is on Carbon Capture, Hydrogen, Electrification and Water technology. Within the water sector, Andrew has 18 year’s experience developing and implementing innovative physical and digital technologies in clean and wastewater networks working with global water utilities. He has a deep understanding of the application of data driven methods to improve network and associated assets performance and more specifically pressure and leakage optimisation. He co-founded i2O Water in 2005 and was one of the founding council and board members of SWAN. He sits on the advisory board of the UK Government Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council Water Infomatics Science and Engineering Centre for Doctoral training working with Exeter, Bristol, Bath and Cardiff Universities, is an advisor to a number of technology businesses in the water sector and is a member of the IWA Waterloss taskforce.

Simon is the Senior Manager (Business Development) at SUEZ Digital Solutions. His 35-year career in control systems engineering has given him specialist expertise in PLC programming, SCADA systems and database systems as well as broader ICT/IoT and Technology matters. In this respect he has been an avid technology contributor to many engineering publications and international conferences over the last 20 years. In 2000 Simon used his experience to design the complex software at the heart of the Aquadvanced Energy Software (previously Derceto Aquadapt), the world’s first commercially available real-time pump scheduling optimiser. This led Simon to be selected as New Zealand’s Engineering Entrepreneur of the Year in 2005. He has been instrumental in continuing to develop the roadmap for the Aquadvanced Energy Software. During this time Simon has also held business development roles in the Asia, US, Europe, UK and the Middle East. Simon brings a wealth of international knowledge especially around cloud hosting, cyber-security, data collection/management, communications systems, performance monitoring, control systems and operations optimisation.

Keith has 20 years experience in the water industry both working for a UK Water Utility and in the smart water space through the supply chain for Sensus, I2O Water and now Invenio Systems. He has led a number of innovative projects across the world to assist water utilities in reducing non-revenue water through a data driven approach.