Meet the Kene Partners Team

Adam Kene

Managing Director

Previously held Senior Business Development and Consulting positions at the two largest R&D Tax consultancies in Europe prior to starting Kene Partners. Currently sits on HMRC’s R&D Incentives and Reliefs Consultative Committee. Worked with over 150 companies successfully submitting 500+ R&D tax claims

Ali Lyons

Head of Operations

Having graduated from Exeter in 2016 with a degree in English and Philosophy, Alistair began his career at Raffler. At Raffler, he was responsible for generating and maintaining new revenue streams, and during his time there it grew to become the UK’s #1 Lifestyle App on the App Store. From Raffler, Alistair moved to Motive Partners, a next-generation investment firm based between New York and London, where he worked as an Analyst, supporting the innovation arm of the business working with an international ecosystem of financial services and technology firms.

Tonye Vianana

Head of Finance

Tonye Vianana has worked in a variety of key finance positions within Financial Services and other sectors. She recently worked for a fintech start-up (right from infancy all through to its £40m acquisition by private equity), where she was responsible for the delivery of the finance function; mainly accounting, budgeting, tax, treasury, and senior stakeholder management.

Chanh Dip

Head of Business Development

ATT Qualified, Chanh is an experienced Business Development leader with extensive experience working within the Top 100 in the accountancy industry, providing tax advisory services to SME’s across all sectors nationwide. Chanh supports clients and introducers in a consultative, knowledge-based sales approach, and is responsible for identifying and delivering successful partnerships in the business.

Joe McGurk

Head of Consulting

Joe leads the Consulting team, having joined Kene Partners from his previous role as a Senior Manager at the UK’s largest specialist research and development tax credit agency. With over 10 years of tax experience in advising OMB and high net-worth individuals, Joe understands that getting to know clients, their businesses and their accountants are key to a successful, lasting relationship.

R&D tax incentives are still under-utilised but, applied correctly, will encourage and reward innovative companies operating in all sectors. The opportunity to help UK businesses access these valuable cash incentives is what makes Joe so passionate about the job.

Outside of work, Joe likes to spend time with his family at their home in the Cotswolds, watching rugby and seeing friends and family.

Sage Lakhani

R&D Tax Manager

Previously held positions at two boutique Tax consultancies working with entrepreneurs and growth businesses across a range of sectors. Specialised in the implementation of technically robust tax solutions, developing and managing the processes/workflow management to ensure consistent quality of delivery, client relationships and team management. Qualified Chartered Tax Adviser, having started her career with PricewaterhouseCoopers London. Enjoys running in all weather, pilates and is a qualified personal trainer.

Loren Burgess

HR Coordinator and Hiring Manager

Previously assisted in building out the People, Operations and Marketing functions for two medium-sized start-ups prior to joining Kene Partners. Currently enrolled on 24 Assets, a course designed to assist in building our Internal and External Assets. Enjoys long distance road cycling across the often cold and windy Kent hills.

Vishnu Pillai

R&D Tax Consultant

Vishnu joined Kene Partners having completed his studies of Materials Science and Engineering MEng at Imperial College London – areas of specific study included: Nanotechnology, Structural Ceramics, and Advanced 3D modelling. His current role as Assistant R&D Tax consultant involves working closely with multiple clients and Project Teams predominantly in manufacturing, engineering, construction and software.

Dr Anjana Raman

R&D Tax Analyst

Anjana joins Kene Partners with extensive R&D experience, she graduated with a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from University College London in 2018. Subsequently, she worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Birmingham on a project funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). Specific interests include railway, construction, biomedical, software, and automotive sectors. Outside of work, Anjana has been learning Spanish for 10 years, enjoys travelling, and keeping fit.

Dr Isil Top Martinez

R&D Tax Analyst

Isil obtained her PhD degree in materials science and engineering from Queen Mary University of London, where she focused on innovative coatings for energy-efficient windows. Before joining us at Kene Partners, she worked for a small but very dynamic R&D  start-up that explored innovative ways to use material technologies. She enjoys doing yoga which she believes to be a great way to connect the body and brain. She is also keen on travelling and learning new cultures.

Max Braham

R&D Tax Analyst

Max previously worked as an Account Manager for a national banking facility before joining us at Kene Partners. He earned a master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering while at university and enjoys getting involved in a wide variety of sports including football, golf, and skiing.

Grant Aldridge

Senior R&D Tax Consultant

Grant has been on both sides of the R&D process starting off his career as an Electrical Engineer for a large oil and gas company where he was heavily involved in the testing of new subsea modules through the R&D process. Grant has experience in compiling R&D claims for various sized companies across a range of industries from Food Technology to Aerospace Engineering. He has also spent a large proportion of his time performing Quality Assurance of R&D claims, this has meant in many cases he was the last port of call before the claims were being submitted to HMRC making sure the claims were robust.

Dan Handforth

Senior Business Development Manager

Held Directorships, Senior Business Development, and Strategic Consulting Roles for Large Corporates across legal, accountancy, wealth management and tax consulting organisations. His current role involves developing our Strategic Partnership and client network. He spends much of his free time being the “Dad Taxi” for his three children, and is a keen sailor, being a member of the French Sailing Federation. He is also a former board member of Anti-Slavery International.