About

The thinking behind Platformation

Platformation was founded by Andrew and Maria Walsh to bring clarity to sponsorship decisions that carry real commercial weight.

We work with Rights Holders, Brands and Agencies on questions of value, performance and investment, where evidence needs to be clear, credible and able to stand up to scrutiny. Our focus is on understanding what sponsorship is worth in practice, and how that insight can be used to support confident business decisions.

Valuation sits at the centre of our work, but it is not the end point.

We combine analysis, experience, and objectivity to help organisations interpret evidence, test assumptions, and apply insight in real commercial situations.

Independence is fundamental to how we work. We are not tied to specific tools, inventories or media agendas. This allows us to use the most appropriate data and methods for each project, and to provide advice that reflects the evidence rather than a preferred outcome.

We are also direct in our approach. If findings challenge expectations, we explain why and what it means. Clear decisions depend on honest interpretation, not blind reassurance.

Over time, this approach has led to long-term relationships with clients operating at different stages and under different pressures, from early planning through to situations requiring the highest level of scrutiny.

Platformation exists to make sense of sponsorship value and ensure evidence is used with confidence, consistency and accuracy.

ISO 9001:2015 Certified

"Platformation Enterprise Services Limited is certified to ISO 9001:2015 by CQS (Certified Quality Systems) Ltd, an International Accreditation Board Registered Firm (Certificate No. GB2006233).

This certification covers the provision of Partnership Evaluation and Consultancy Services to the Sports, Entertainment, Arts and Charity Sectors — the full scope of our work.

Our quality management system is subject to ongoing independent audit, ensuring that the rigour behind every project we deliver is externally verified, not self-assessed."

"Certificate issued: 18 May 2026 | Valid until: 17 May 2029 | Certificate No: GB2006233"

Andrew Walsh

Andrew — Chief Executive Officer & Founder

For 30 years, Andrew has specialised in business development, commercial consultancy, and corporate strategy, establishing himself as a leading authority in the global sports and entertainment marketing sectors. He brings a forward-looking perspective underpinned by an extensive network of deep-rooted relationships with the industry's most influential brands, agencies, broadcasters, rights holders, and key decision-makers worldwide. Andrew has a strong track record of building new business units, directing high-stakes corporate mergers, and leading multinational teams to consistently exceed ambitious commercial targets. This instinct for identifying and acting on market opportunity is what led him to champion Platformation's investment in a technology-led approach to sponsorship evaluation — strategically steering the business from an expertise-based consultancy into a structured, data-driven market leader.

Maria Walsh

Chief Operating Officer & Director

Maria has built a career at the highest levels of global sports business and commercialisation, with a particular talent for bringing organisations and people together around ambitious commercial objectives. Her standout strength is the ability to work with complex data and draw from it clear, well-grounded conclusions that translate directly into practical strategies for action. As Chief Operating Officer, she channels this analytical and structural acumen into Platformation's organisational development, international communications, and product innovation as the business evolves into a structured, technology-led enterprise. Fluent in three languages, with a working knowledge of three others, Maria has a genuine understanding of multicultural business relationships and is well-practised in navigating cross-border partnerships and scaling global operations. Outside the business, she remains actively involved in volunteer roles supporting local grassroots sports initiatives.

Sandra Greer

Research, Insight & Strategy Consultant

Sandra brings over 30 years of experience developing and implementing measurement, research, and evaluation programmes for global brands and rights holders. She has a strong command of multi-dimensional datasets and a proven ability to turn complex metrics into clear, actionable intelligence that supports long-term strategic decisions. Her work spans the full partnership lifecycle — from property selection and asset valuation through to bespoke post-campaign performance tracking. Sandra's career includes senior executive roles at dentsu Sports Analytics, MKTG, and Repucom, and she is a recognised figure in the sponsorship research community. She serves as Co-Course Director for the European Sponsorship Association's Introduction to Sponsorship Certificate, providing specialist input on ROI and ROO methodologies, and holds the MRS Diploma as a Certified Member of the Market Research Society.

Elena

Technical Lead

Elena brings over 20 years of experience managing high-impact projects across the technology, arts, and charity sectors. She is skilled at bridging the gap between technical capability and business need, with a strong focus on digital transformation, technology implementation, and cross-functional project delivery. As Technical Lead at Platformation, Elena oversees the planning, coordination, and delivery of the company's technology solutions. She is committed to ensuring that new technologies are adopted in ways that are practical, responsible, and aligned with long-term organisational goals — with a clear focus on usability and sustained value.

Andriej

Technical Consultant

Andriej is an information security expert and technology strategist with over 25 years of experience securing complex systems across demanding technical environments. A co-author of multiple books on network security, he has an exceptional ability to translate intricate technical architectures and vulnerabilities into clear strategic recommendations for business. His specialist focus is the security implications of emerging technologies, including adversarial testing and secure infrastructure design. As Technical Consultant at Platformation, Andriej applies this expertise to strengthen security awareness, reinforce the company's digital posture, and ensure that Platformation's technology products are robustly protected against an evolving threat landscape.

Platformation did a great job for MarkSetBot on this project. It really helped launch both our marketing and fundraising efforts. We highly recommend them!

Matthew Morin

Co-Founder and Director of External Affairs, MarkSetBot

A valuable partner offering constructive input and innovation from across the world of football and beyond.

Petr Zascherinsky

Chief Financial Officer, FC Zenit St. Petersburg

Platformation have provided great insight and recommendations across our broad, diverse portfolio of events and content.

Walter Böhm

Head of Content Acquisition & Partner Management, Red Bull Media House

Andrew’s experience and understanding of the field offered great confidence and the rigour they applied to such a complex challenge was best in class.

Fiona Fletcher-Smith

Executive Director, GLA

Andrew and his international network of suppliers delivered a comprehensive set of valuable insights.

Simon Thomas

Senior Advisor, Colgan Bauer

Resourceful and skilled, with a fantastic network and incredible experience. A valued and trusted business partner.

David Sim

Head of Football & Broadcast, CSM

Insights and Analysis

Our Insights bring together research, reporting and observations, from our work across sponsorship, media, and events. They range from structured reports to practical commentary, focused on understanding what is happening, why it matters, and how evidence should be interpreted.