Colin Adamson
Born in India and educated in Scotland, Colin Adamson is a leading European specialist consultant in customer service, complaint handling and consumer affairs. He has advised government, public sector organisations as well as major companies and professional bodies in the UK and abroad
DIVERSITY AND INNOVATION
After an initial marketing training with Lever Brothers and Associates, he worked with Consumers' Association, the publishers of Which?, then in local government and the Office of Fair Trading. He became interested in the idea of representing the customer's interest within a business and became Consumer Adviser to a multiple footwear retailer - the first appointment of its kind in the UK. In the early 1980s, he became a full-time consultant where an early project was to set up consumer panels for the newly privatised BT.
CUSTOMER SERVICE AND COMPLAINT HANDLING SPECIALIST
He has undertaken projects to improve customer service and complaint handling with companies in the EC, Eastern Europe, Australia and the Far East in the areas of customer response and service quality. In the UK he organised a series of research studies for a number of Ombudsman offices. He is a founder member and past Chair of the Society of Consumer Affairs Professionals (SOCAP). He currently serves on the Board of SOCAP in Europe and is a fluent French speaker.
WRITER AND TRAINER
He wrote Consumers in Business (NCC, 1982) and contributed to The Guide to Good Corporate Citizenship (Director Books, 1990) and to the Hodder & Stoughton/Consumers' Association book The Consumer Revolution. He has trained many consumer representative bodies such as Watervoice, the former OFTEL telecommunications advisory committees, Postwatch and the Rail Passengers Council.
COLIN AT M-A-C
Colin takes the lead in the Partnership's research projects such as the evaluation of the ICAS pilot scheme where he devised the questionnaire used and wrote the report. He also managed the survey of the complainant experience commissioned by the Homerton University Foundation Trust Hospital. He also worked with Andrew Craig on the PCT consultation on continuing care - writing and editing the consultative document as well as collating and summarising the representations received. He has also worked with the Welsh Assembly Government to devise and consult on an appraisal scheme in connection with the NHS Wales Complaints process.