Two Blackburn based business leaders have been awarded special honorary awards from the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan).

Melissa Conlon, the Commercial Director at AMRC North West, and Kam Kothia OBE DL, Chief Executive Officer of eBusiness UK, have been granted Honorary Professorships.

The duo has been working with the University across a variety of cyber, engineering and additive manufacturing related projects involving both staff and students for a number of years.

Melissa has a history of working in the information technology and Advanced Manufacturing sector.

In addition to national and international roles for GE and BNP Paribas, some of her roles have been based in Lancashire, including spells at UCLan’s Preston Campus, Blackburn College, Commercial Director of a local digital agency and now in her current role at AMRC’s new multi-million-pound base in Samlesbury.

She said: “It is an honour and great privilege to receive this award and I am committed to supporting both staff and students.

"Over the last few years, I have been fortunate enough to see the outstanding work carried out by UCLan and how it has had a transformational impact on the region.

“We share the same vision in respect of transforming the region through innovation and I very much look forward to building stronger links through our ongoing collaboration.”

Kam is Chief Executive of Blackburn-based digital marketing agency eBusiness UK and Chair of the Star Academies Trust.

He has been working with UCLan’s Professor St John Crean, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research and Enterprise) to maximise opportunities for UCLan to contribute to regional economic prosperity strategies.

As Board Director and Digital Sector lead for the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership (LEP) he has invited UCLan colleagues to support and contribute to the development of the digital sector strategy for Lancashire.

He said: "I am deeply honoured and grateful to receive this prestigious award from the University of Central Lancashire.

"As an engineering graduate, it is truly humbling to be given the opportunity to support the School of Engineering's innovation and enterprise agenda.

"I am excited to share my knowledge and expertise with the students and faculty at the University.

“UCLan is a dynamic and entrepreneurial University with a vitally important role to play in the future prosperity of the region; and with its specific strengths in engineering coupled with its state-of-the-art Engineering Innovation Centre, I look forward to collaborating with the University to inspire the next generation of innovators, entrepreneurs and leaders in the field."

The Honorary Professor roles are initially bestowed for three years.

Professor Crean said: “I’m delighted we can recognise Melissa and Kam with these highly prestigious Honorary Professorships because they are both so invested in building links between ourselves and many areas of innovation within the region.

“I have the great pleasure of working with them both on many research and enterprise initiatives and they are fantastic business advocates who bring a wealth of experience to a variety of student and staff projects.

"They are very well respected, not only within Lancashire’s business community but now on a national level with their strong links to the development of the National Cyber Force.”