Simon Godfrey

Commander
DISC Type : D

Business Advisor at Appian

London, England, United Kingdom

Overview

Simon Godfrey is the Founder and CEO of Probing Minds, a firm dedicated to helping businesses navigate and succeed within the UK Public Sector. A Harvard-educated professional with over 30 years of experience, he has advised major companies like Oracle and BT and served as a strategic advisor to the Prime Ministers office.

Beyond his corporate advisory roles, Simon is deeply committed to social impact, serving as the Deputy Chair for Scope, a prominent disability equality charity. He is driven by a personal mission to ensure everyone has an opportunity to thrive. An avid fan of American football, he enjoys discussing economics and philosophy.

He is a recognized authority on public sector procurement and was instrumental in shaping the UK Governments commercial playbooks.

Personality Overview

Impact-Driven

Very Quick

Strong-Willed

More than the product, they care about the effectiveness of the product.  They are not focused on building rapport and relationships. They like to be in a position where they can control the conversation and terms.

Topics They Care About

UK Public Sector
He is an expert in the UK public sector market, advising international businesses on strategy, market access, and navigating government complexities.
Disability Equality
As Deputy Chair of the charity Scope, he is passionate about creating an equitable society and ensuring disabled people have the same opportunities as everyone else.
Tech in Public Services
Through leadership roles at techUK and the BSA, he has consistently championed the use of technology to enable and deliver government missions.

Media Appearances

Speaker Profile: Simon Godfrey – Founder & CEO, Probing Minds Limited. Featured in International Security Expo

See Now

Work History

9-2025
Business Advisor at Appian
8-2024
Founder & CEO at Probing Minds Limited
11-2022
Advisory Board Member at Dragonfly Aerospace
11-2021
Deputy Chair at Scope
12-2020 - 9-2025
Public Sector Board at techUK

Education

10-2017 - 10-2018
Organizational Leadership from Harvard University
9-1977 - 6-1982
Economcs & Business from Harvard Business School

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 29 Location : London, England, United Kingdom Job Level : Leadership Designation : Business Advisor at Appian
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Insights For Selling To Simon

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Get to the point quickly instead of spending time doing small talk
  • When negotiating terms, help them build an impression that they are the ones calling the shots
  • Refer to testimonials from well-known industry leaders

DONT's

  • Don’t take too much time in sending them information if they ask for any
  • Don’t focus on process and rules, give the impression of being a ‘gets it done’ person
  • Avoid being a storyteller and don’t try to oversell

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Simon is

  • Conviction around the impact matters the most to them, followed by a sense of achievement and ROI.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Simon

  • If they decide not to use your product, they will say no clearly.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Simon move?

  • They can take decisions very fast if you manage to convince them.
  • Can Simon take some risk or not?

  • The risks don’t matter much to them.

You And Simon

Personality Compatibility


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