

Karen Matthews to Lead New Business Skills Solutions Unit
Karen Matthews to Lead New Business Skills Solutions Unit
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Amy Cross-Webber
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7 July, 2025

We’re delighted to announce that we’ve further strengthened our leadership team with the appointment of Karen Matthews as Director of Business Skills Solutions, a newly created unit designed to enhance our organisation’s business and management training offer.
Karen, who has been with Realise for seven years in a variety of roles including Partnership Manager, steps into the new role with over 25 years of experience in the training industry. Her background spans adult skills, apprenticeships and welfare-to-work, working across FE colleges, charities, and the prison sector.
The new unit forms part of the recently launched Realise Training Group, which brings together six specialist areas: Early Years, Health and Social Care, Smart Gas, Passenger Transport, Adult Skills and Business Skills Solutions.
Commenting on her new role, Karen said:
“We’ve delivered business and management training for many years, and this new unit allows us to focus our resources more effectively. We’re committed to developing innovative learning pathways that incorporate emerging technologies, including AI, to help learners thrive and progress in their careers.”
“Alongside our core apprenticeship programmes, we’ll be expanding our commercial training offer across management, project management and HR disciplines. I’m proud to lead a fantastic team and look forward to helping thousands of learners and employers benefit from our enhanced offer.”
The Business Skills Solutions team currently includes around 50 colleagues, primarily trainers and training managers. The senior leadership team includes:
- Alix Harrison, Product Manager
- Sandra Lewis, Head of Operations
- Ross Edwards, Senior Partnership Manager
- Amy Cross-Weber, Marketing Manager
We currently deliver Level 2 to Level 5 apprenticeships in customer service, business administration and project management. Our clients include large Civil Service departments and private sector employers such as Selco Builders Warehouse, Screwfix, and Lithia.
With a network of over 500 expert trainers supporting more than 16,500 learners each year, we’re one of the largest apprenticeship and adult education providers in England. The launch of Business Skills Solutions marks another important step in our mission to deliver impactful, career-enhancing training nationwide.
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