Draft:Stephen Lawless

 Stephen Lawless 

Stephen Lawless (born 15 April 1957, in Liverpool, England) is a British entrepreneur and IT specialist, renowned for his contributions to IT Service Management and his roles as CEO of Purple Griffon Limited and ITAMOrg.

 Early Life and Education 

Stephen Lawless was born at 60 Cumpsty Road, Litherland, Liverpool. He attended Litherland Moss Primary School and then Waterloo Grammar School. He furthered his education at Hugh Baird Technical College, Liverpool Central College of Art (now part of John Moores University), and Preston Polytechnic (now the University of Central Lancashire).

 Career 

 Early Work Life 

Lawless began his career in 1975 as a print originator at RC Walmsley Printing, a position he held until 1979. He then moved to Allied Bakeries Computer Centre, where he worked from 1979 to 1985. His next role was with Provincial Insurance, where he served in various capacities including Technical Support Analyst, Service Desk Supervisor, and Capacity Manager from 1985 to 1996. After AXA Insurance acquired Provincial Insurance, Lawless continued with AXA until 2001. Subsequently, he took on several contracts with Independent Insurance, O2, HMCE, and Barclays Bank.

Current Work Life

In 2002, Lawless co-founded Purple Griffon Limited, an IT Service Management training and consultancy company, alongside colleagues Dave Rimmer, Ken McGunnigle, and James Mitchell. Since its establishment on 17 October 2002, he has served as the Chief Executive Officer.

In January 2024, Lawless took over as CEO of ITAMOrg, a professional organisation dedicated to IT Asset Management.

Publications

Stephen Lawless is a co-author of "Artificial Intelligence Foundations - Learning from Experience," a book published by the British Computer Society (BCS), written in collaboration with Dr. Andrew Lowe. The book covers a broad range of topics, providing a comprehensive understanding of ethical and sustainable human and artificial intelligence, artificial intelligence and robotics, applying the benefits of AI along with the challenges and risks, starting AI by building a Machine Learning toolbox both in theory and practice, and the management, role, and responsibilities of humans and machines.