James founded Brightsparks while studying at Durham University, where he graduated in 2003. After graduating and before returning to run Brightsparks on a full-time basis in 2005, James gained experience as an Analyst within Lloyds of London and as a Graduate in Equities at Cazenove, the British Investment Bank.

James’ original concept for Brightsparks was to build a company that offered students the job he wished had been available to him as a student. Since then Brightsparks has employed 14,000+ students and graduates to work at over 17,000 events, amassing over 2.6 million staffing hours; that’s equal to 297 years! From this foundation and having experienced the graduate milkround first-hand, James evolved Brightsparks into a business that specialises in talent and recruitment solutions across the whole Student, Graduate and Emerging Talent space. Brightsparks combines technology with a real-world community and experience to connect graduates and emerging talent with the careers and organisations in which they are most likely to succeed.

Outside of Brightsparks, James is an active investor in other businesses and is a co-founder of Fig and NMVC, a small venture capital group based in London. He is a keen sportsman who loves spending time with family and friends, but never sits still for long.