The Team

Ben Morris

Founder of Skillbasket

Ben graduated from Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design in Product Design, with 8 years experience as a freelancer and contractor and has worked in the UK, Spain and New York. Ben came up with the idea for Skillbasket in 2006 through his frustration in not only finding new interesting work, but also dealing with the admin side of being a sole trader and occasionally needing to engage the help and services of others. He has used his expertise and his experience to put together this new proposition, a single resource where individuals and small companies can find and hire people with the right skills, time and interest as well as portal to market their own time and skills.

"I still find it very dificult to gauge the type of skills and quality of services offered by other individuals and small companies which are advertised in directories or even on the web [...] The problem is that even when you find who you think might be the person with the right skills and abilities or service, you still don't know what they will turn out to be like, and your list of recommended people is often a limited pool"

Ben has spent the last two years building the team to develop this product, working on the design and proposition, starting the company and trying to remember to eat and sleep. The classic car and motorcycle he's hoping to restore and the string of products he's looking to develop will just have to wait a little longer.

People are the key to getting things done, and today it's not who you know, but what who you know knows.

Stephen Strudwick

Stephen, head of development, is a talented software engineer and systems architect with 10 years in the industry, responsible for a number of a number of systems used by ISP's and telecomunications companies.

Stephen is responsible for developing the fabric of the Skillbasket application, with a voratious appetite for overcoming challenges and resolving what many would consider "problems", Stephen understands the importance of producing a powerful application that is easy to use and can be adapted over time to the needs of it's users. By insuring that the back-end (the foundation of any web application) is not only robust but also very adaptable to future needs, the user experience can be developed to be as simple and intuitive as the interface design demands it.

Also a keen sportsman, Stephen races Go-Karts, competes on Trial Bikes and loves Off-Piste skiing, as well as practicing rock climbing, cycling and darts! So not your average computer buff...

Challenges are there to test patience, commitment and success. Finding people who know what they're doing is both hard and critical.

Misha

Software Developer

Misha, when not knees deep in code and nursing servers loves a good spot of rock climbing, long distance cycling and reading up on worldly theories and clever literature, which only a lucky few get to ever understand. A very fine well travelled esquire he is indeed, and a linchpin of Sb since day 1.

Misha, if you're reading this you obviously have a little time off, congratulations!

Please someone take my surplus fridge!

Ian Atkins

Web developer

Ian studied product design at Central Saint Martins College in London before setting up Kith-Kin, a collective of designers and visionary creatives with an collaboration, interrogation and positive change as their agenda. You will find them touting subversive products and propositions at trade fairs, swanky exhibitions and in shop windows.

If you're after a web developer, you can find Ian on Skillbasket!

Skillbasket is awesome, but check out Kith-Kin.co.uk !