Advertise on podcast: Wicked Problems Podcast

Electric vehicles aren't just for driving — they're powerful batteries on wheels. In this clip, Claire Miller breaks down how new V2G (vehicle-to-grid) technology could let you earn money by simply keeping your EV plugged in. From smart tariffs to grid balancing, this is the future of energy — and it's already rolling out.

Join us on Wicked Problems as we explore the groundbreaking world of electric aircraft with Guy Hayden, Chief Commercial Officer at Aerovolt. Discover the challenges and innovations driving this nascent industry, from lightweight aircraft to electric vertical take-off taxis. Guy shares exclusive insights into the first public electric aircraft charging network, the parallels with early EV development, and what the future of sustainable aviation could hold. Plus, don't miss hints about a thrilling race between an electric car and a plane! Guy Haydon is the Chief Commercial Officer at Aerovolt, the disruptor building the world's first public charging network for electric aircraft. With charge points already installed at seven UK airports, and 25 in the pipeline to launch soon, Aerovolt is transforming the future of flight. The company is in talks with nearly 120 more airports to expand its simple, user-friendly rapid chargers across prime airfield locations, both in the UK and internationally.  The company's vision goes beyond infrastructure, aiming to make the UK a global leader in electric aviation by supporting manufacturers and tackling key challenges like range anxiety and operational costs. Haydon's journey from an aspiring Navy pilot—an ambition derailed by a peanut allergy—to leading the charge in electric mobility is one of resilience and adaptability. In this episode, he shares Aerovolt's bold plans for growth, the critical need for investment, and how the team is laying the groundwork for a cleaner, more sustainable future of flight. Aerovolt.co.uk I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected].

Chris Pateman-Jones, CEO of Connected Kerb, discusses the company's efforts to build one of the fastest-growing public EV charging networks in the UK. Connected Kerb focuses on making charging infrastructure equitable, reliable, and accessible, particularly for drivers without home charging. Chris highlights challenges like land access, grid constraints, and government policy, and shares how AI and modular designs are shaping the future of EV charging. Chris Pateman-Jones, Chief Executive Officer: Experienced infrastructure executive with extensive commercial, innovation and strategy experience developing projects in the energy and commodities sectors, initially with Bechtel and more recently as EY's Global Infrastructure Director. He joined the Connected Kerb team in 2018, initially to lead Product and Strategy before becoming Chief Executive Officer in November 2019. In March 2024, he was appointed Chair of ChargeUK, the trade association body for the EV charging.  Connected Kerb - https://connectedkerb.com   Charge UK - https://www.chargeuk.org  Connect with Chris on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-pateman-jones/  I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. Wicked Problems is powered by Adaptavis® Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis.  You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis

Melanie Shufflebotham, co-founder and COO of Zap-Map, the UK's leading app for electric vehicle (EV) drivers to locate charging stations and plan trips, shares Zap-Map's journey from a basic Google Map overlay in 2014 to a robust platform with live data, user reviews, and payment options. Zap-Map also supports businesses and local authorities with insights into EV charging trends to prepare for a sustainable, electrified future; Melanie Shufflebotham is the co-founder and COO of Zapmap, the UK's leading EV mapping app.  Having worked in the space for over ten years, Melanie is an EV market expert, with deep knowledge of the charging market and EV data sets. As co-founder she developed the Zapmap app, products and initial revenue streams. Now, as Zapmap scales ready for the mass take-up of electric cars, she continues to be focused on making charging simple for EV drivers as well as providing data and insights to business & fleets to help them develop their electrified services.   Zap-Map I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. Wicked Problems is powered by Adaptavis® Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis. You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis

Toby and Jon Burdekin dive into the challenges and opportunities of fleet electrification. They discuss the evolution of electric vehicle infrastructure, the growing role of salary sacrifice schemes in making EVs more accessible, and the misconceptions surrounding EV adoption. Jon shares insights on how businesses can smoothly transition their fleets while avoiding common pitfalls. Jon has 30 years' experience in the UK leasing and fleet finance industry, having previously worked for such major leasing companies as Alphabet GB Ltd and GE Capital Fleet Services.  His 15-year career with Alphabet incorporated roles as Account Manager, Head of Account Management, and Head of Consulting Services.  Client relationships that Jon had direct responsibility for included McDonald's, BOC, Shell, Oracle, Royal and Sun Alliance and the BBC. By managing such large vehicle fleets, he has gained extensive knowledge in helping clients transition to electric – incorporating all the component parts of that journey.  A subject matter expert in the adoption of electric vehicles and salary sacrifice schemes, Jon led Alphabet's Electric Vehicle proposition, AlphaElectric, and is the accredited EV and salary sacrifice trainer for both the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) and the Association of Fleet Professionals (AFP).  Jon has also delivered EV training directly for such clients as LV=, Leaseplan, AA Drivetech, Arval, United Rental Group, SG Fleet, Athlon, Select Car Leasing, Volvo, Citygate Group, Holdcroft Group and Norton Way Motors.  Delegate satisfaction rates consistently exceed 95% and Jon is able to demonstrate measurable improvements in EV confidence and knowledge of between 60% and 300%.   Jon has run his own consultancy business since January 2019 with the aim of enhancing subject matter knowledge on all aspects of Salary Sacrifice and EV adoption, and helping clients educate their customers for the transition to 100% electric by 2030 (cars), or 2035 (LCVs).   Jon on LinkedIn JB Consulting I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. Wicked Problems is powered by Adaptavis® Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis. You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis

Toby speaks with Neill Emmett, Global Marketing & Brand Director at Gilbarco Veeder-Root, a company with a 160-year legacy in refueling and energy solutions. Now leading the EV transition, Gilbarco's Konect provides turnkey solutions for fuel retailers adapting to electric charging. Neill shares insights on seamless EV infrastructure, retail profitability, and the future of fuel stations in the electrified world. Neill Emmett is the Global Marketing and Brand Director at Konect, a subsidiary of Gilbarco Veeder-Root. He has over 25 years of experience leading award-winning campaigns in vehicle electrification and financial services. Known for strategic expertise and team empowerment, he joined Konect to redefine EV charging infrastructure delivery.  Konect provides a turnkey electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure ecosystem, enabling seamless integration with existing fuelling, payment, and service offerings.  Links: Konect Product Konect Solution I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. Wicked Problems is powered by Adaptavis® Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis. You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis

Toby speaks with George Symes, founder of Evaluate Strategy, a consultancy specialising in decarbonising complex fleets. With over 15 years in transport and infrastructure consulting, George shares insights on the challenges and opportunities of electrifying emergency services, rental fleets, and logistics companies. From the UK's ZEV mandate to fleet telematics, this discussion dives into the future of sustainable mobility. George runs EValuate Strategy Consulting, helping complex fleets to decarbonise. These fleets include emergency services, and shared mobility operators such as car rental, car sharing and e-scooter operators. Typically, they are characterised by unpredictable and "spikey" demand, critical services and a "many-to-one" relationship between the drivers and vehicles.  George has over 15 years strategy consulting experience in the infrastructure, automotive and mobility industries, with experience across fleet and charging infrastructure in the UK, mainland Europe and Australia. He has diverse experience within new mobility in both advisory and operational roles: with Neuron Mobility (e-scooter and e-bike sharing), Zipcar (car and van sharing) and Avis.  Prior to EValuate he worked at GrainCorp and KPMG, focused on infrastructure, transport and energy clients.  Links: Evaluate Strategy: www.evaluatestrategy.com  George's LinkedIn profile: www.linkedin.com/in/georgesymes  I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. Wicked Problems is powered by Adaptavis® Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis.  You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis

Matthew Lumsden, CEO of Connected Energy, discusses how his company repurposes second-life EV batteries for energy storage solutions. Connected Energy, founded in 2013, emerged from an EV charging project that highlighted grid limitations. By working with Renault and securing investments from Volvo Energy and Caterpillar, they've created an innovative approach to sustainable energy. Matthew shares insights into battery sourcing, quality control, and the future of energy storage. Matthew has worked in the renewable energy and clean tech sector since 2000 when he joined energy consultancy, TNEI. He then established an electric vehicle related consultancy in 2009 where he was responsible for delivering several major EV trails, charging infrastructure roll outs, V2G trials and strategies for major industry players.   Connected Energy was born out of the insight and knowledge gained in the EV industry and the challenges facing OEMs around electric vehicle batteries. Combining the worlds of energy storage, electric vehicles and the circular economy, the company commercialised its innovative E-STOR system which is now in operation at businesses across the UK and in Europe. The company is now scaling up in response to the growing availability of second life EV batteries and is developing utility scale battery energy storage sites.  Connected Energy I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. Wicked Problems is powered by Adaptavis® Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis. You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis

Linda Grave, founder of EV Driver, discusses her journey from renewable energy to pioneering the EV charging sector. She shares how she built and sold a successful charging network, her passion for user-friendly EV solutions, and the importance of interoperability. Linda offers insights on industry challenges, innovations like battery storage and solar PV integration, and promotes her upcoming EVEX 2025 event, aimed at showcasing the future of electric vehicles and renewable energy technologies. Linda Grave is an entrepreneur who has built successful companies within the renewable energy and EV sectors over an 18-year period, with a wealth of experience in building successful EV Charging networks. Linda is focused on business growth and development within the EV sector. In 2016 she started to build the EV Driver network of public charge points in the East of England, with an emphasis on providing an easy access PAYG network for all to use. She sold the network in January 2020 to allow her to focus on helping others create the best user-friendly EV charging solutions. Linda is a pioneer in EV roaming and interoperability in the UK, passionate about ensuring the barriers to access are lowered and that customer satisfaction is paramount. EV Driver Linda on LinkedIn EVEX 2025 Recognised as one of the Top Women in EV 2022 Awarded one of the prestigious EV Champion awards 2022 by Green Fleet I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. Wicked Problems is powered by Adaptavis® Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis. You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis

We dive into the critical role of truth and clarity in the world of clean energy and technology. Join us as we explore the myths and misconceptions surrounding electric vehicles, renewable energy, and sustainable living. Dan Caesar, CTO and presenter of the Fully Charged Show discusses how misinformation impacts progress and what we can do to empower communities with facts, inspire action, and drive change. Whether you're an EV enthusiast or simply curious about the truth behind the headlines, this episode is packed with insights to charge your mind and fuel your understanding. After more than two decades of advocating for 'cleaner technologies', Dan has driven electric since 2015 and has led the Fully Charged Show for 7 years. A passionate promoter of electric vehicles of all shapes and sizes, and home energy tech too, Dan has played a transformational role in developing the Fully Charged Show on YouTube, pioneering its exhibition programme, expanding its 'Everything Electric' offering and recently launching Electric Vehicles UK. Passionate about products that can tackle air pollution and climate breakdown, Dan is practical, that it is in fact, better tech that will inspire the most change. Dan has been a champion of cleaner technologies for over two decades. Since 2015, he's driven electric and, for the last seven years, led the Fully Charged Show. As CEO and presenter of Fully Charged, the world's no.1 clean energy and electric vehicle show, Dan's mission is to inform, educate, and inspire millions globally on the benefits of cleaner energy and transport. A fervent advocate for electric vehicles and home energy tech, Dan has transformed the Fully Charged Show on YouTube, pioneered its exhibitions, expanded its 'Everything Electric' range, and recently launched Electric Vehicles UK. Dan has conceived and delivered multiple groundbreaking projects like Fully Charged LIVE, Stop Burning Stuff, Zero Carbon Kitchen, and the Renewables Roadshow. These initiatives have attracted a loyal audience of over 2.5 million YouTube viewers, 3-5 million episode views per month, over 1 million subscribers, and 100k+ attendees. Passionate about tackling air pollution and climate breakdown, Dan believes better tech drives the most change. Dan has collaborated with clients and partners like Ceres Power, Solar Media, Accelerating Clean Technologies, and the Department of Energy & Climate Change.   Fully Charged YouTube Channel Fully Charged Website Everything Electric Electric Vehicles UK Follow Fully Charged on Twitter   I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. Wicked Problems is powered by Adaptavis® Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis. You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis

Battery chemist and founder of Plug Life Television, Dr. Euan McTurk, uncovers the facts behind EV batteries, from ethical sourcing and recycling to cutting-edge technology that's driving down costs and boosting range. Discover why EV fires are rare, how new charging methods can extend battery life, and what the latest advancements mean for the future of small, powerful, and sustainable cars. Dr Euan McTurk is a Consultant Battery Electrochemist who has been working on - and driving - electric vehicles since 2009.  Having worked on next-generation cell chemistries during his PhD at the University of Oxford, developed ways to study how electric vehicle cells fail and how to stop them failing (at WMG*, University of Warwick) and built up a state-of-the-art 200 kW battery test facility in Edinburgh, Euan founded Plug Life Consulting, which provides technical, strategic and public outreach services to projects involving battery electrochemistry, electric vehicles, energy storage systems and charging infrastructure.  Euan is also the creator of Plug Life Television, a YouTube channel on batteries and EVs that explains complex electrochemistry in a way that anyone can understand and busts common myths and misconceptions about electric vehicles.  *Warwick Manufacturing Group  LinkedIn: Euan McTurk www.pluglifetelevision.co.uk I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis. You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis

About the episode: EV industry pioneer Sam Clarke, a record-holding entrepreneur with over two decades in electric mobility shares his journey from importing electric motorbikes in the early 2000s to founding a zero-emissions logistics company and advising on national EV infrastructure. We discuss debunking myths around electric vehicles and explore how the concept of 'grazing' can reset our expectations of electric vehicle charging. Guest Name: Sam Clarke Sam Clarke is a life-long entrepreneur, industry advisor, EV owner/driver for over 20 years and a multiple Guinness World Record Holder for EV driving. His EV journey started back in 2002 with electric motorbikes before founding a zero-emission logistics firm (Gnewt) which he sold to John Menzies Plc in 2017. He now works on national charging infrastructure needs for GRIDSERVE in particular leading on the £100M+ Government funded (ZEHID) eHGV Electric Freightway Project. He is also a founding member of The EV Café webinar and news channel. In 2015, Sam was a Great British Entrepreneur's Award winner. By 2022 he was made a GreenFleet EV Champion for services to the industry and in 2024 he was voted #1 in the Motor Transport Power Players 2 list and #14 in the greenfleet.net 1 top 100 most Influential list. He also holds two Guinness World Records for the longest distances ever driven in an electric car and van on a single charge 7 (569 and 311 miles respectively). In 2009 he founded the all-electric last-mile logistics business Gnewt which subsequently won multiple awards nationally and globally and was acquired by John Menzies Plc in 2017. During his tenure, he created the UK's largest fully electric commercial fleet, the largest privately-owned smart charging infrastructure and UK's most advanced private V2G (Vehicle to Grid) network. With Sam at the helm, the business was able to deliver over 10 million parcels in its first 10 years of trading 3, mainly in Central London, courtesy of a trail-blazing fully zero-emission fleet, the first of its kind anywhere in the UK. Most recently, Sam has extended his role from Board advisor at GRIDSERVE to become their Chief Vehicle Officer 4. His role is to drive forward mass uptake of electric vehicles through the creation of a net-zero EV leasing division, commercial charging infrastructure build-outs and support the nationwide roll out of high-powered Electric Forecourts and upgrade of the GRIDSERVE Electric Highway network that resides on 85% of the service stations nationally. In 2023 he led the successful bid for a £100M+ Innovate UK Government fund (ZEHID 6) whose purpose is to roll out eHGV charging infrastructure nationwide, the second largest award ever issued by Innovate UK to private enterprise. Sam is a high-profile member of the EV community, a regular public speaker for the industry and has previously been invited to speak at the Transport Select Committee in Westminster and at the European Commission in Brussels. He is also a founding member and Company Director/Shareholder of The EV Café Ltd 5. which is a popular webinar series discussing all aspects of EV adoption on regular weekly and monthly sessions. The EV Café has a number of high-profile sectoral sponsors including companies such as, but not limited to, The AA, Europcar, Bridgestone and Webfleet. Links: LinkedIn: Sam Clarke www.gridserve.com I hope you enjoy the show and if you have any comments or suggestions, please write to me at: [email protected]. About Adaptavis Adaptavis is a Business Performance Management and Transformation consultancy aimed at forward-thinking leaders, based in London UK. The company specialises in helping organisations to enhance operational efficiency, drive business growth, and navigate complex transformations. From strategy to execution, they focus on providing insights and practical solutions to improve the overall performance of businesses, ensuring they can adapt to changing market conditions and achieve sustainable success. Toby Corballis is a Partner at Adaptavis. You can find out more about their work by visiting: www.adaptavis.com Enjoy, Toby Corballis