Our Coaches
Industry practitioners, not lecturers


James Cotton
Co-Founder of iO-Sphere
James co-founded iO-Sphere with a mission to make data careers accessible to everyone. With experience at Expedia Group and WorldRemit, he brings real-world data leadership to every cohort.

Oscar Colin
Co-Founder
Oscar brings deep expertise in data engineering and curriculum design. Before co-founding iO-Sphere, he worked at Nurture and Into, building data platforms at scale. He designed the Prism training environment.

Tash Joslin
Data Coach
With over 20 years in data strategy, and experience co-founding Mojo, Tash brings sharp business thinking to her role at iO-Sphere. She helps learners turn numbers into clear stories that land with stakeholders.

Izzy Weber
Head Coach
Izzy leads the coaching team at iO-Sphere. With experience at DataCamp and PwC, she brings a deep understanding of what employers look for and how to get trainees job-ready.

Jen Godlonton
Head of Curriculum
Previously Black Swan Data, Jen now heads curriculum at iO-Sphere — designing how learners move from foundations to confidence across data and AI.

Jonas Torres
Head Part-time Coach
Jonas leads the part-time coaching programme at iO-Sphere. With experience at Truv, he brings real-world data expertise to flexible learning formats.

Abdul Mafe
Data & AI Coach
Abdul spent years leading enterprise data governance at Three Network before joining iO-Sphere. Now a Data and AI coach, he helps learners build the quality, compliance, and judgement that real data teams run on.

Martin Stanley
Data Analytics Coach
Over two decades working across consulting, retail, and telco, Martin has led teams applying data analytics in the real world. Now at iO-Sphere, his focus is data analysis and visualisation, guiding learners from raw data to insights that move decisions.

Andrew Lane
Data & AI Coach
Before joining iO-Sphere, Andrew worked as a governance and transformation consultant for an insurance and finance organisation in the City of London. Trained as a lawyer, he works at the intersection of AI, change and ethics.

Lisa Symons
Accelerate Coach
Lisa is an Accelerate coach at iO-Sphere. With experience at Beyond, she provides tailored career support to help graduates land their first roles in data.

Abigail Samuelson
Accelerate Coach
A PCC (ICF) credentialed coach with a Postgraduate Diploma in Coaching, Abigail joined iO-Sphere from HyperionDev. She partners with learners from day one to turn new skills into real career progression.

Andrea Buwalda
Head Accelerate Coach
Andrea leads the Accelerate career support programme. With experience at EDX, she helps graduates prepare for the job market through CV workshops, interview prep, and employer introductions.
Interested in joining our coaching team? Get in touch →