Head of Leading National Training Provider Given Prestigious Award

Head of Leading National Training Provider is Given Prestigious Vice-Chancellor’s Outstanding Contribution to Surrey 2019 Award

Qube Learning’s owner, Gavin Whichello, celebrates as he is awarded the prestigious Vice- Chancellor’s Outstanding Contribution to Surrey 2019 Award. The honour was bestowed on him for his wide ranging contribution to the University of Surrey, mentoring several postgraduate and undergraduate students and offering significant financial support to many individuals throughout their studies.

His dedication to help people learn has been applauded and was recognised with the highly regarded acknowledgement. Gavin not only supported pupils, he was a founding member of the Surrey Business School Advisory Board in 2016 and through this, has contributed to the international, executive education and business engagement strategies of the school. An influential voice, he has delivered lectures and workshops on the Surrey Business School MBA programme to both full-time and part-time students, giving up significant time to contribute to the student experience. Uniquely, he has also run live Qube Learning board meetings on the campus for the experience of the MBA students.

His efforts continued as he supported a range of widening participation activities from providing informative classes on the Surrey Business School Young Persons University through to supporting other Surrey Business School projects, both graduate and post graduate. A strong believer in democratizing opportunity, he has been instrumental in the development of the Surrey Innovation and Digital Enterprise Academy (SurreyIDEA), a radical new approach to create the next generation of entrepreneurs.

A working-class boy from London, Gavin was motivated to succeed from an early age and subsequently carved out a successful path for himself. After working on building sites to earn money and survive, he was determined to aim high which paid off as his commitment to self-improvement saw him graduate in 1974 with a BSc in Human and Physical Sciences at Surrey University. He then qualified as a teacher in 1975 and was also a senior lecturer in computer science.

Gavin says, “I am proud to receive such an honour. I came from a background that didn’t present life changing opportunities. Re-igniting my relationship with Surrey University all these years later has allowed me to make a difference to others; I was inspired by the university’s openness to new ideas and they presented a very compelling case to be involved.”

“My next venture with the university is The SurreyIDEA degree which is aimed at what I call the Disrupters – those who show strong entrepreneurial potential but don’t have the traditional academic background. As a South East London boy, I want to support these young people and give them the chance to change the world.”

Andy Adcroft, Deputy Dean of Surrey Business School, says:

”Gavin Whichello has made a huge contribution to the University of Surrey and to our business school – he was one of the founding members of our Advisory Board, has mentored and advised many of our students, has supported our doctoral research and is one of the driving forces behind our Innovation and Digital Enterprise Academy, the SurreyIDEA.

“In working with Gavin over the past five years, I’ve found a kindred spirit, someone who really understands how and why university should be a life changing experience. This award honours his commitment to us in the past but also signals that we’ll continue working together in the future to find new and better ways to transform the lives of young people, and to change how we do business education at Surrey.”

Gavin is the owner of Qube Learning, an OFSTED grade 2 (Good) training provider who works with hundreds of employers across the country to deliver a range of training and qualifications to a multitude of learners.

Gavin has had a long and varied career in the technology and training sectors, working in both the US and the UK. He founded Training International, which became the UK’s largest PC training company and was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1987. Gavin co-founded Winmail, Europe’s leading messaging company, and has held a series of executive roles at both public and private technology companies. He has funded fast-growth technology businesses and taken executive roles to aid those companies in the early stages of development prior to public offering.