Business is a balancing act between vision and execution. However, in today’s increasingly hyper-digital world, the balance has shifted dramatically. Technology is no longer just a support function tucked quietly behind the scenes; it has become the force that determines who thrives and who fades into irrelevance. The modern enterprise must do more than just adapt to each new technology development. It has to anticipate, innovate, and transform with every wave of change. From the explosion of data to the growing demand for operational efficiency, leaders across industries are realizing that staying ahead requires more than just technical solutions alone; it requires strategic foresight, adaptability, and partners who understand both the language of technology and the rhythm of business.
This is where Ilesh Kotecha, CEO of Technical One, steps into the spotlight. With a sharp eye for opportunity and a leadership style that fuses technical expertise with business acumen, Ilesh has built Technical One into a key solutions provider in the world of education technology. Under his leadership, the company doesn’t just respond to challenges; it anticipates them, crafting scalable strategies that empower clients to achieve lasting success.
A Multifaceted Journey of Leadership and Transformation
Ilesh Kotecha’s career reflects resilience, versatility, and vision. With an academic foundation in computer science and statistics, his leadership instincts surfaced early when he taught statistical inference to medical students during his undergraduate years. This intersection of technology and education would later shape his professional journey.
He went on to spend over a decade in global finance, serving in senior roles at leading American, Swiss, Middle Eastern, and British financial institutions. From his early position as an investment strategist at Bank of America to becoming Head of Global Fixed Income Strategy at Credit Suisse, Kotecha developed cutting-edge expertise in data-driven decision-making and gained international exposure.
During this time, he also served on the UK’s FTSE100 Committee, the body that oversees stock selection for inclusion in the prestigious FTSE100 Index, further reinforcing his stature within the global financial ecosystem. Alongside his finance career, he continued to nurture education, lecturing at City, University of London, and contributing for decades to the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investments (CISI) examiner panel.
A turning point in his career came when personal circumstances led him to entrepreneurship. Returning to London as a single parent, he applied his financial and technological expertise to create a digital platform that helped his son prepare for the UK’s competitive 11+ exams, used to grant access to elite, selective secondary schools. This personal initiative quickly gained national traction, evolving into Technical One Limited and its sister company, Eleven Plus Exams Tuition. Today, these ventures stand as evidence of Kotecha’s ability to transform challenges into opportunities, leaving a lasting mark on education and EdTech.
Levelling the Playing Field through Innovation
The foundation of Technical One was born out of Ilesh Kotecha’s conviction that technology should be used to level the playing field in education. What began as a personal initiative to create tailored digital tools for his son’s 11+ exam preparation evolved into a vision for a company that could transform how students and families prepare for competitive examinations.
Under Kotecha’s leadership, Technical One has grown with a singular mission: to make quality educational resources authoritative, accessible, and affordable. His belief in education as a catalyst for social mobility stems from his own journey as a refugee who forged his own path forward through resilience, always seeking out new learning opportunities. Guided by this principle, he has positioned Technical One not simply as an EdTech service provider but as a platform that empowers students to compete on equal footing, regardless of background.
Kotecha’s mission-oriented approach has ensured that the company consistently invests in research-driven innovation. Technical One designs solutions that respond to the evolving
needs of young learners and parents by merging financial analytical rigour with educational insight. The company’s trajectory reflects Kotecha’s leadership philosophy: that true impact lies in shaping a sustainable, equitable future for education.
Redefining Educational Excellence through Data-Driven Insights
What sets Technical One apart under Ilesh Kotecha’s leadership is its ability to merge the precision of financial asset analytics with the demands of competitive modern education. Drawing from his experience as a global investment strategist, Kotecha introduced a proprietary data-driven approach to EdTech, enabling unprecedented depth in performance tracking and student evaluation. Kotecha feels compelled to explore all technological
innovations in education. In his words, “parents trust us with their most important asset: their child. They trust that we can help alter, for the better, the course of the trajectory of their future in education.
Through the company’s data-centric Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), parents and students gain access to detailed, real-time insights into academic strengths and strategic areas for improvement. Unlike conventional learning platforms that provide surface-level assessments, Technical One offers a more granular view of student performance, breaking down achievements on subject, topic, and subtopic levels, while also benchmarking progress against anonymized peer groups, including past in-house students who have used the VLE and achieved success in their entrance exams. This creates an informed, transparent journey for those families navigating the fiercely competitive 11+ landscape.
The impact of this leadership-driven innovation is reflected in the company’s outcomes. Year after year, over 90% of students secure placements at their first or second choice of selective secondary schools, including globally renowned, elite super-selective institutions. By turning complex, granular data into actionable intelligence, Ilesh Kotecha has positioned his enterprises not simply as specialised tuition providers but as trusted partners in shaping student success.
Turning Setbacks into Catalysts for Growth
‘I always tried to turn every disaster into an opportunity.’
John D. Rockefeller
For Ilesh Kotecha, challenges have been defining moments of leadership. During the pandemic, when Technical One’s in-person tuition and exam preparation model collapsed almost overnight, he acted swiftly by expediting the launch of a digital preparation and mock exam platform. This lifeline safeguarded students’ preparation and laid the groundwork for the company’s fully integrated Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), which continues to thrive today.
A personal challenge also reshaped his leadership. Following a heart attack and open-heart surgery, Kotecha was compelled to delegate more responsibility to his team. The outcome was transformative: the business fostered greater resilience in its staff and a stronger culture
of shared ownership and investment in its projects. By converting adversity into opportunity, Kotecha has strengthened both his leadership and Technical One’s position as an innovator in education.
A Culture of Ownership and Innovation
At the heart of Ilesh Kotecha’s leadership strategy is his belief that great companies are built by the people who feel empowered to own and contribute to them. He has consistently invested in nurturing the energy and creativity of young, ambitious talent, bringing graduates directly into the business and giving them both responsibility and trust from the outset. This approach fosters a sense of ownership in his employees, allowing them to grow within the company’s vision whilst also contributing fresh perspectives to its development.
Rather than relying solely on established expertise, Kotecha prioritises a blend of potential and passion, shaping his teams through close mentorship and hands-on guidance. He provides early opportunities to take charge of projects, while remaining a steady source of support should any challenges arise. This balance of independence and security has cultivated an environment where creativity thrives, and where individuals feel inspired to innovate rather than conform.
Kotecha also leads by example, instilling resilience and adaptability as core values within Technical One. His ability to transform setbacks into turning points has set the tone for a culture that views challenges not as threats, but as catalysts for growth. Ilesh Kotecha has built an organisation that is both technologically innovative and deeply human in its
leadership ethos, by combining strategic foresight with an unwavering focus on the people at the heart of his business.
Milestones that Define a Legacy of Innovation
Vision is powerful, but impact is measured in milestones. Under Ilesh Kotecha’s leadership, Technical One, a start-up, has turned bold ideas into transformative achievements that continue to redefine the education landscape.
- Pioneering Digital Firsts in Education: Among the first in the UK to create 11+ ePapers tailored to specific examining boards.
- Building a Nation-Wide Learning Community: Founded the UK’s largest free 11+ online forum with 40,000 members, 58,000 discussion topics, and over 790,000 posts.
- Transforming Study Resources: Authored 75+ 11+ textbooks with full explanations, enabling independent learning at scale.
- Innovating with Virtual Learning: Created one of the first 11+ Virtual Learning Environments, offering 60,000+ practice questions, 1,700+ videos, and 400+ mock exam papers.
- Data-Driven Insights: Launched Peer Compare™, a proprietary tool that benchmarks student paper-based practice scores against anonymized peers for relative analytics and to build deeper exam-readiness for students.
- Proven Student Success: 90% of students secure places in their 1st or 2nd choice selective secondary schools through entrance exam success. In 2025 alone, 59 students were placed at one of the UK’s most highly selective schools, Queen Elizabeth’s School, Barnet (out of just 180 seats and 4,000+ applicants).
Recognized by Leading National and Local Media and Institutions
- The Telegraph
- The Guardian
- The Tutors’ Association Magazine
- National radio appearances highlighting the impact of Technical One and Kotecha’s pioneering work in education.
- Keynote speaker on AI in Tuition at the National Tutoring Conference 2025, addressing over 400 tutors at the Royal Lancaster in London
- Participant in the UK Education Trade Mission to China in 2024
- Participant in the UK Education Trade Mission to the Middle East in 2025
Building Influence through Academic Partnerships
For Ilesh Kotecha, partnerships have been a catalyst for scaling Technical One’s impact. His engagement with the University of Cambridge through its Generative-AI in Business course and his status as a Partner of Artificial Intelligence in Education Oxford University (AIEOU) reflect his commitment to embedding ethical and research-driven AI into education.
These collaborations give Technical One early access to advanced AI tools, allowing students to benefit months before they reach the wider market. Under Kotecha’s leadership, such alliances go beyond commercial growth; they position the company at the forefront of shaping the future of learning through innovation and responsible practice.
Envisioning Tomorrow’s Education Landscape
For Ilesh Kotecha, the future of education is inseparable from technology, with artificial intelligence emerging as the most transformative force in centuries. He foresees AI becoming intrinsic to how learning is delivered, personalised, and scaled across the globe.
He emphasises adaptive learning powered by machine learning, enabling every student to access tailored instruction at their own pace. Equally, he highlights the growing demand for data-driven insights, as parents and institutions seek transparency and measurable outcomes. Platforms that turn student data into actionable intelligence will define trust in the sector.
Kotecha also points to the rise of hybrid education, where digital tools complement, rather than replace, traditional methods of teaching. For him, innovation must amplify educators and strengthen the learning experience through efficient knowledge transference to students.
By positioning Technical One at the forefront of these shifts, Kotecha reinforces his belief that the future of education will be built upon innovations that are inclusive and that strive towards equity.
Building an Equitable Future with AI in Education
Ilesh Kotecha envisions a future where education is defined by adaptability and personalisation. He believes artificial intelligence will not replace teachers but serve as a powerful partner, amplifying their impact.
At the heart of his vision is the creation of AI-powered personalised learning journeys (PLJs) that adjust to each student’s pace and strengths, ensuring that education adapts to the learner rather than the other way around. His goal is to make advanced learning tools accessible to all, breaking down barriers and widening opportunities.
Technical One is developing solutions that deliver intelligent feedback, automate repetitive administrative and reporting tasks, and free teachers to focus on mentorship. Looking ahead, Kotecha foresees AI learning companions that guide students in setting goals, building independent habits, and sustaining long-term growth.
For him, the future of education must be both data-driven and deeply human, where technology empowers students and educators to achieve their maximum potential.
An Open Letter to Aspiring EdTech Entrepreneurs
Dear Changemakers,
When I first launched my education technology startup, I believed passion and a great product would be enough. I quickly learned otherwise. Education doesn’t move at the pace of innovation – it moves at the pace of trust, as there is often no roll-back in education.
Selling to schools is challenging. Procurement is slow, risk-averse, and layered with bureaucracy. Even free pilots can take months to approve, and years before they translate into paying customers. Beyond decision-makers, winning the trust of teachers and tutors (the real users of your products and services) is crucial.
Every institution is different, with unique infrastructure and culture. Clever features often matter less than simplicity and traction in solving a real, tangible problem. Teachers are already overwhelmed; adding “just another tool” helps no one.
Credibility is everything. Impact data, testimonials, and case studies matter as much as your product does. In EdTech, you’re not just selling software, you’re shaping how children learn and how teachers teach. That’s both exciting and a big responsibility.
With purpose, Ilesh Kotecha,
CEO, Technical One
Redefining Education Through Data-DrivenLeadership and Human-Centered Innovation
- Visionary Leadership Rooted in Resilience – From a refugee to global finance strategist and now AI-EdTech pioneer, Kotecha’s journey reflects how personal challenges can be transformed into powerful opportunities.
- Technology as an Equalizer – Through Technical One, Kotecha champions the idea that technology should level the playing field in education, ensuring accessibility and equity for students regardless of background.
- Data-Driven Educational Excellence – By merging financial analytics with education, he introduced a unique performance-tracking system that provides deep, actionable insights, driving over 90% student placement success rates.
- Turning Adversity into Growth – Both the pandemic and personal health challenges became catalysts for innovation and stronger organizational resilience under his leadership.
- Building the Future of Learning with AI – Kotecha envisions AI not as a replacement for teachers, but as a partner that personalizes learning, enhances equity, and empowers both students and educators worldwide.
