Our Story

Palantir is a combination of consultancy, corporate finance house and skunkworks. We are focused on creating new and rapidly growing existing businesses. Our team of business architects* are focused on envisioning what could be and then helping the people who are running the companies we work with execute on the plan such that vision becomes reality. Great businesses can make the world a much better place and vastly improve people’s lives. We are passionate about helping create and grow great businesses.

Palantir was formed from the merging of a number of established niche consultancy organisations, including Cave and Holland, Thinksmart Consulting, P3M and empower consulting, in the business development, marketing and sales arenas. The founders of these organisations felt there was a better way to provide their services and the creation of Palantir is the culmination of a number of year’s investigation on the most effective structure to help a company achieve its full potential in the complex, the flexible and ever changing world of 21st century global business.

Our team have an average of twenty years plus experience and knowledge of successfully creating, building, growing, fixing and selling a wide range of businesses. All have gained many grey hairs holding executive positions in a diverse array of industrial sectors and organisational sizes and types.

We have a virtual business operation so the only people you will deal with are the senior folks who have the experience and will add the value. When you buy from us you get the team and our partners even if you only ever interact with one of us. So welcome to our team:

Our People

Photo of Justin Speake
Justin Speake

Justin has over 25 years experience in managing people, finances and change within Sales, Service and Operations. He has worked at general manager, and VP level for major organizations including Computer Associates, RR Donnelly, Debug Holdings plc and Centura Software Limited. He has spent the past 10 years fixing existing and building new businesses in Europe and the US.

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Terry Cave

Terry has over 20 years senior management experience in the technology and communications industry that includes plc Board experience in both an Executive and Non-Executive capacity. Particular expertise in taking start-up, early stage and distressed businesses through to successful exit. International credentials, having worked across Europe and in the US, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa.

Photo of Roger Sanford
Roger Sanford

Roger has over 20 years of senior management experience and significant marketing and branding knowledge. He has launched over 20 companies and 50+ products. He built his own self-capitalised company and led it to the top 10 ‘Privately Held Silicon Valley Companies’. He has extensive experience in marketing, defining competitive advantage and the marketplace, investor relations, customer service, sales, support, and presentation.

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Owen Ashby

Owen’s experience spans nearly 20 years working both client side in various sales and marketing roles and more recently in agency and consultancy where he was one of the founding directors of Think Smart Group and a key figure in the development of breakthrough new marketing approaches. Owen has reputation for facilitating customers in cutting through the “noise”; helping them to gain and retain relevance, differentiation and customer focus and taking their sales and marketing teams straight to the money.

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John Bowman

John possesses over twenty-five years of broad finance and operations business experience. He holds an MBA in Finance, from the University of California, Berkeley, and has held a variety of senior executive positions (CFO, CEO, COO) at companies such as Wireless Data Systems Network, Centura Software Corporation, Hickey & Hill and Unisys Corporation. His particular expertise is in situations requiring determined management and inventive problem-solving skills.

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Richard Fiorella

Richard excels in Senior Business Development and Operations Management, with a Masters degree in Management from Stevens Institute of Technology. He is currently the VP for Business Development at GlobalIDs, and also leads Surrugo Consulting: a hybrid consulting firm formed through the collaboration of a small, powerful group of ex-Fortune 500 executives. Previous companies include Quantum AI Corp. (President), NCS Technologies, Cap Gemini Ernst & Young, and AT&T

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Martin Adams

Martin is an experienced, hands on Finance professional with 25 years experience in the IT industry. Strong commercial orientation and customer focus, both internal and external. Integral member of senior management teams, resulting in a direct influence over the strategy and management of the business. Significant experience with US companies, European subsidiaries and small to medium size businesses, with the ability to work at all levels.

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Michael O'Leary-Collins

Michael has over 25 years of transactional and investment experience in various emerging markets around the world and, in the last 10 years, has either arranged or been an investor in various transactions across the emerging markets of Europe. In Serbia, he estabalished Greenhouse Telecommunications Holdings b.v. that was later renamed to Orion Telekom and is now the largest fixed line operator after the state owned incumbent, Telekom Serbia.

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Craig Spoule

Craig Sproule is the Founder and CEO of Metavine where he is responsible for the company’s vision, product development and the entire customer experience. A successful entrepreneur since 1990, Craig has founded and sold a number of technology businesses. He has a solid technical background holding a number of patents and was previously named as Australian Developer of the year.

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Sammy Thomas

Sammy has over thirty years of telecommunications, software, and high tech experience in diversified areas of strategic and financial planning, worldwide business development, financial management, operations, P&L management, forecasting, and business evaluation. During this time he held Executive positions at Telecordia and NYNEX (now Verizon)

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Rob Wirszycz

Rob Wirszycz is an expert in outsourcing, software, e-commerce and consumer electronics. He works variously as a Chairman of scale-up businesses, Advisor to publicly quoted and private equity backed businesses, a mentor to start-ups, and an entrepreneur within a number of other ventures, including Chord Group. Prior to this he worked in Asia, Africa, US and UK as Marketing Director or CEO of a variety of different businesses.

Photo of Richard Rose
Richard Rose

Specialising in M&A Transaction Synergies, Operational Turnarounds and Outsourcing. Richard has over 25 years of experience in IT Services, Internet Infrastructure Fixed and Mobile Telecommunications together with over 3 years experience as a Board member of 5 different companies – one as chairman. Richard is a visionary with proven ability to deliver complex technology strategies into business solutions.

* Business Architect – A professional (master-builder) responsible for devising, making or creating more effective ways to fulfill customer needs through the purchase and sale of products and services. They initiate new ventures or lead business innovation, design winning business models and then facilitate turning these into a sustainable balanced business for lasting success.