Biographies
Giroma was set up as a limited company in December 2003 by three founding directors.
Rob Gorle - Managing Director
Rob has been an entrepreneur all his life. As a student in Australia, he used summer holidays to experiment with business ventures ranging from fly screens to children's adventure holidays. After completing his first degree, he taught in Africa and the South Pacific, rising to Head of English at a private school in Sydney. In his spare time he directed school plays, co-wrote a textbook and took on a range of DIY projects. Among these were two sailing boats which he built from scratch, and a timber house whose construction he supervised, doing much of the practical work himself.
Rob has lived in Africa, the US, Australia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and the UK, observing a variety of approaches to building and becoming especially interested in the use of renewable energy and other "green" techniques. During the 1990s he gradually moved from teaching into media, producing a number of educational and promotional films before starting Voyager Media Productions Ltd in 1995. Over the next few years he did all his own administration, increasing his skills in financial management, business strategy and marketing. This stood him in good stead as he became involved in property investment, refurbishment and management during the same period.
In 2002 he established the Wye Gold Property Syndicate in order to attract other investors, and this grew into Giroma Property Development Ltd at the end of 2003.
Rob's formal education consists of a B.A. (Pacific Union College, California), a B.Ed. (University of Sydney) and an M.Litt. (University of New England, Australia). For a more detailed account of his work in property, see our Company History.
Gill Gorle - Communications Director
During her first career Gill taught in Zimbabwe (where she married Rob), then in Australia, Papua New Guinea and the UK. In Sydney she worked for a while in marketing and public relations, developing computer and desktop publishing skills along the way. Although her teaching track was mostly in literature and communication at college and university, she taught other subjects and age groups as needs arose. She also found time to write articles for both general and scholarly journals.
A turning point came in 2001 when she did some writing for a literacy project spearheaded by the Youth Justice Board in the UK. This led to other writing opportunities which in turn took Gill out of teaching and into full-time employment with Voyager Media Productions in 2002. The family's burgeoning property activities involved her too, of course - viewing houses, learning more about investment, stripping off wallpaper, etc. Although the communications side of the business takes up most of her time, she also likes wearing overalls and doing things on site when she can.
Gill's formal education consists of a B.A. (Hons) from the University of Reading, a P.G.C.E. (University of London), an M.A. (University of Queensland) and a Ph.D. (University of Reading).
Matt Gorle - IT Director
A computer enthusiast since childhood, Matt ensures that Giroma's IT systems run smoothly and are safely backed up. During his parents' early years in business, he completed his high school education and went on to study computer science at university. Coming home to lend a hand during his vacations, he became increasingly enthused about property investment. His computing experience has convinced him that Linux provides superior protection from the viruses that bedevil so many businesses today. As a result, he has given Giroma a multiplatform computer system which uses Linux for day-to-day functions and uses Windows where necessary (for instance, when sending information to companies whose systems only run Windows).
Matt built our website and manages all aspects of its operation, including the news updates. He also does the layout for our quarterly newsletters and looks after most of our in-house accounts, liaising regularly with the company's accountant. As Giroma grows, he is fully involved in all strategic decisions and is beginning to take on some site supervision.
Matt has a B.Sc. (Hons) in computing and information systems from the University of London.