Meet the Bupa Dental Care Executive Team

Steven O'Brien, Finance Director

Steven joined the business in February 2024 and with his team, is responsible for delivering our financial strategy, managing all aspects of our financial health and overseeing the finance and accounting operations.

Prior to joining Bupa Dental Care, Steven was CFO at Real Good Dental Group and led Finance teams at various businesses including Heineken and Sky.

Lisa Mendoza-Silgado, People Director

Lisa joined Bupa Dental in September 2024, bringing experience from senior HR roles at BT, Aviva and Morgan Stanley.

Her career has taken her through many business and people transformations, as well as supporting new ventures and scale-up businesses across a number of sectors.

Lou Harvey, Commercial Director

Lou brings retail experience from Asda, Shop Direct Group and Hallmark. She joined the Bupa Health Insurance team in 2011 and has developed and implemented corporate wellbeing strategies for the UK’s most innovative companies.

Her team lead the transformation of Bupa’s Mental Health products leading to a change in perception of how insurers treat mental health conditions. In 2023 she joined BDC as Commercial Director and has implemented multiple new products and services to transform the way that BDC customers experience care. She is passionate about inclusion and believes Bupa play a crucial role in how dental treatment can be funded to help millions of customers access high quality dental care.

Dan Skinner, Director of Risk, Compliance & Sustainability

Dan joined Bupa Dental Care in early 2020. He is responsible for promoting a risk-aware culture, ensuring our practices are compliant, and achieving our sustainability goals, including reducing our environmental impact to become a net zero business.

Dan has degrees in computing and earth sciences, and a doctorate in environmental risk. Before Bupa, he worked in consulting and financial services.

Nick Sawyer, Data and Analytics Director

Nick has over twenty years of experience in data and analytics, having started with EY as a grad and working with companies such as Shell, MoD, Lloyds, and Unilever. He then moved to Sainsbury’s, where he grew the commercial use of data to drive range, price, promotion, and greater customer insight. Following Sainsburys he joined Deloitte, working with retail and CPG companies such as Mondelez, Diageo, and John Lewis, before joining Dr. Martens' as their first CDO to create and run a global data function.

Neil Sikka, Director of Dentistry

Neil is an Associate General Dentist at Moorgate Bupa Dental Care, Chief Dental Officer for Bupa UK Insurance, and a member of the Bupa Foundation Dental Community Committee.

He leverages his clinical and commercial skills to benefit the business and works with the Clinical Advisory Team to enhance the experiences of both employees and patients at Bupa Dental Care.

In addition to his role as Director of Dentistry , Neil is a practicing dentist for Bupa in central London and Chief Dental Officer for Bupa UK Insurance. He leads the Clinical Advisory Team, working with his colleagues to make Bupa Dental Care the number one choice of employer for clinical professionals.

He has recently been appointed a Trustee of the Bupa Foundation and leads the relationship Dentaid, a charity that provides free dental care to the homeless and vulnerable in the UK and abroad.

Zara Doyle, Operations Director (Interim)

Zara joined the business in 2016 and was the Business Development Director up until recently where she has temporarily taken up the role of Director of Operations whilst still managing the Business Development Team.

Zara is passionate about building engaged teams, enhancing customer experience and fostering a culture of continuous improvements. Zara is dedicated to creating operational excellence that delivers lasting impacts and excellent results

Christian Roberts-Smith, Operations Director (Interim)

Christian is a dynamic and experienced leader with a 20-year career spanning the retail and consumer healthcare sectors. Before joining Bupa Dental Care in late 2023, he held senior roles at leading organisations including WHSmith and Mars Petcare, where he built a strong track record of delivering results through operational excellence, strategic thinking, and a passion for people.

Christian is known for his curious mindset (always asking “Why?”) to challenge assumptions and uncover better ways of working. He values listening to understand, embraces challenging the status quo, and brings energy and fun to his teams - living by the mantra “work hard, play hard.”.