More News » Career moves including Jupiter FM, Holland & Barrett and Dairy Crest

Career moves including Jupiter FM, Holland & Barrett and Dairy Crest

CFOs, finance directors and other corporate leaders on the move in the UK and elsewhere.

Jupiter poaches Schroders’ global head of finance for CFO role

FTSE-250 Index listed company Jupiter Fund Management has appointed Wayne Mepham as chief financial officer. Presently, Mepham works with asset manager Schroders as the global head of finance, a role he has held for nine years. He will assume his CFO position in Jupiter from 2 September 2019 and will also be a part of the group’s board and executive committee.

Holland & Barrett appoints Tony Buffin as CEO

Health food chain Holland & Barrett has brought on board Tony Buffin as its chief executive officer. Buffin will replace Peter Aldis who departed in March 2019, after spending 19 years with the company. Aldis was at the helm of company for 10 years and he served in several other positions for nine years. Prior to this, Buffin worked with Travis Perkins as director and before that he served as the chief financial officer of retail company Coles Group. Buffin will continue to serve as the non-executive director at Dyson. Holland & Barrett’s interim executive chairman John Walden will assume his role as the non-executive chairman.

Dairy Crest boss to step down one month after takeover

Dairy products group Dairy Crest has announced that its chief executive Mark Allen will step down from his role, following the group’s acquisition by Canadian company Saputo. The present deputy chief executive and group finance director Tom Atherton will succeed Allen as the new CEO. Allen will retain his position long enough to ensure a smooth handover to Atherton. Atherton will report to Saputo’s president and chief operating officer Kai Bockmann. Saputo’s interest in Dairy Crest is aimed at expanding its international presence and stepping into the UK market.

Chief executive Anson quits Goals Soccer Centres

Five-a-side football company Goals Soccer Centres has announced that its chief executive Andy Anson will step down to take over the CEO position at the British Olympic Association. Anson is already a board member of the British Olympic Association. However, Anson will remain with the company for the next six months.
Goal Soccer Centres’ chairman Michael Bolingbroke said: “Whilst Andy’s decision is disappointing, particularly at this challenging time for the company, the board respects Andy’s decision to take a role that is a once in a lifetime opportunity for him. We are very grateful for all that he has done for Goals and are pleased that he will continue to fully support the company to secure the best outcome in the discussions with our auditors and HMRC.”

Kin + Carta appoints new CFO

Digital marketing consultancy Kin + Carta named Chris Kutsor its new chief financial officer, effective 17 June 2019. Kutsor will replace CFO Brad Gray, who is set to step down from the Board in July. Kutsor has over 20 years of financial management and operations expertise, having worked in various global technology companies. Most recently, he served as the investor relations officer at global Fortune 500 technology solutions provider Motorola Solutions.
Commenting upon the new appointment, Kin + Carta’s CEO J Schwan stated: “Kin + Carta has a strong business platform, bold ambitions, and an exciting future. It is on a rapid growth trajectory, and I look forward to helping the organisation continue to evolve, and realise its potential as a world-class market leader. Kutsor is a proven financial heavyweight in the technology sector – his leadership experience spans billion dollar global business units, venture capital investments, acquisitions, and strategic customer negotiations. The appointment is the next step in Kin +Carta’s exciting evolution and will enable us to propel the organisation as we continue to expand our business globally.”

Barclay’s green guru appointed as first Green Finance Institute CEO

London’s Green Finance Institute (GFI) has appointed Dr Rhian-Mari Thomas as chief executive officer. Thomas is the former global head of green banking of the financial services group Barclays. The GFI is set to launch at the City of London Corporation’s third annual Green Finance Summit that will be held on 2 July 2019.
“The science is clear, we need to act urgently to build a resilient and low carbon economy. To do so will require new forms of cross-sector collaboration, the removal of barriers to investment and ultimately the re-directing of more private capital towards climate change mitigation and resilience projects and strategies,” said Thomas.

Blackpool construction company takes on financial director amid expansion

Create Group’s subsidiaries Create Construction and Create Homes have confirmed Andrew Martin as the group finance director, from his interim finance director position. Martin has over 20 years of expertise in the manufacturing/warehousing and construction sectors. In his role, Martin will undertake responsibility administer the expansion of the firm.

Create Group’s chief executive Paul Mathison said: “Andrew’s breadth of experience and substantial knowledge of the construction industry will be instrumental in ensuring that the finance department continues to support the growth of the group.”

CCLA announces Peter Hugh Smith as new CEO

London’s CCLA Investment Management has hired Peter Hugh Smith as the CEO to replace Michael Quicke, who will retire after 13 years of leadership. Smith served as the managing director of investment management provider Link Fund Solutions and will join CCLA on 9 July 2019.

Nicola Walker appointed chief executive of Sported

Sport for development charity Sported has welcomed Nicola Walker as its new chief executive. Walker will succeed Chris Grant who departed from the company last year. Previously, Walker served as the chief commercial officer of the data-tech firm InfoSum and has held senior level positions at companies such as Aimia, Nectar, Tesco Clubcard and Avios.

David Welch becomes CEO of Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex

Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex (AAKSS) has appointed David Welch as its chief executive, effective 1 August 2019. At present, Welch is the chief executive of Leeds Cares, having held leadership-positions at various health-related charities in Scotland and north of England. He has over 25 years of experience in the health and international aid and development field.

Durkan names new CEO as revenue rises to £165m

Independent developer contractor Durkan has promoted its current finance director Ronan Murphy to the position of chief executive. The transformation is followed by strong annual results as announced by the company. “The results are a great indication of the progress we are making as a business. This makes us all the more confident that now is the right time to push forward with our ambitious business plan,” commented Murphy.

VW Financial Services UK appoints Jean Smith as chief financial officer

VW Financial Services UK has named Jean Smith its new chief financial officer for the UK. Smith has 30 years of captive and non-captive financial services experience and has worked in various international positions in VW. She is set to replace Albert van den Bergh, who is now with VWFS in Germany. Previously, Smith was the head of international controlling Europe for VWFS in Germany and held the role of joint managing director of VW Pon Financial Services in Netherlands.
“I have been fortunate to have a number of global assignments throughout my career, including setting up operations for VWFS China in Beijing in 2004. I am excited to take on the challenge of leading the next chapter of VWFS UK within an industry that’s constantly changing with new regulations, advances in technology and shifts in consumer behaviour,” commented Smith upon her new role.

Finastra names Mark Miller as chief financial officer

Fintech giant Finastra has appointed Mark Miller as its chief financial officer, effective 13 May 2019. In his new role, Miller will report to Finastra’s CEO Simon Paris. He succeeds the departing CFO Rob Binns, who held the role for three years. Miller brings with him over 25 years of experience in global technology, finance and operational functions, having worked with various leading businesses in the industry. Prior to this, he worked with Marketo as its CFO, before which he worked for 18 years in various leadership and executive positions with travel technology company Sabre Corporation.
Finastra’s Paris stated: “On behalf of the Executive Team, I would like to welcome Mark to Finastra. We are extremely pleased to have him join us, to help build on our vision for the future of banking. He brings extensive financial and strategic planning experience, which will provide significant value to us as we continue to build and deploy our next-generation technology. I’d also like to extend my thanks to Rob Binns for his outstanding service. We wish him all the best for the future.”

Cowing confirmed as whisky firm Grant’s new CFO

UK-headquartered Scottish whisky distiller William Grant & Sons has appointed Helen Cowing as the group chief financial officer. Prior to this, Cowing worked with financial services and energy group Octopus in a similar position. She will be a part of Grant’s supervisory and executive boards. She has over 30 years of experience with various leading organisations around the globe in various roles such as CFO at ISG, senior-level finance positions at PepsiCo, Novartis, AP Moeller, Nestle and Kraft Jacob Suchard, as well as other roles at Selecta Group and FatFace.

New chief financial officer for Ageas UK

Insurance company Ageas has appointed Jonathan Price as the new chief financial officer for its UK business. Price brings with him wealth of knowledge of the UK insurance sector. In his new role, he will be a part of Ageas’ UK executive team and undertake management and decision making for the company. Prior to this, he worked as the UK CFO at Aspen Insurance Group.

“His appointment completes another part of the management structure changes I announced towards the end of last year. Jonathan has broad and valuable finance experience, and I look forward to working closely with him,” commented Ageas UK CEO Andy Watson.

Folk2Folk chief Giles Cross resigns

Peer-to-peer business lender Folk2Folk has announced the resignation of its chief executive Giles Cross, after serving for less than 18 months in the role. Cross joined Folk2Folk in June 2017 as the chief marketing officer and was promoted as the chief executive in January 2018. The company’s current head of loans, risk and portfolio Roy Warren has been appointed as interim managing director.
“I’m proud of what we’ve achieved together and the growth and success of the business so far,” he added. “Folk2Folk is an exciting company with a brilliant team of employees and I look forward to following the company’s future success,” stated Cross upon his departure from Folk2Folk.

Tim Delaney named CEO of UK’s Funnel Music

Funnel Music, the UK-headquartered music company, has welcomed Tim Delaney as the chief executive officer. Delaney is a recognised industry figure with over 25 years of expertise in the entertainment industry. He has worked with various record labels across UK, US, Australia and Asia, such as Island, Mercury, RCA, Arista and J Records.
Funnel Music’s co-founder and executive chairman Ric Yerbury commented: “Tim Delaney is an internationally respected industry executive who has worked at the most senior level at some of the most high-profile music companies and with some of the biggest artists in the world. He has wide-ranging experience across both music and technology, most recently helping new companies grow their offerings. He brings valuable insight and leadership to businesses such as our who are developing new ways to approach the artist/industry/fan dynamic.”

United Kingdom Homecare Association appoints interim CEO

The United Kingdom Homecare Association (UKHCA) has named its Board member Dr Jane Townson as the interim chief executive, for an initial span of six months. Townson has been the acting as the association’s vice chair. She served as the CEO of non-profit firm Somerset Care Group.
Townson, commenting upon her appointment said: “I’m delighted to join the team at UKHCA to help guide the Association’s work in coming months. This is an important time, as the UK prepares to exit from the European Union, and we respond to the forthcoming green paper on social care policy in England – and a comprehensive spending review and Budget which will determine the short and medium-term funding available to social care. Homecare is an essential service which enables people to remain independent at home. We will be looking at new ways to support our members to develop the workforce, and to deliver innovation in a challenging operating environment by businesses which are financially sustainable.”

Bishopsgate gets new chief executive

Insurance broker Bishopgate has hired Jonathan Turnbull as chief executive, subject to regulatory approval. Turnbull will succeed Neil Pearce who was the CEO of Bishopgate since 2017. Turnbull brings over 25 years of expertise in the insurance broking field and was the former CEO of RFIB. He joined Bishopgate’s parent company The Adronagh Group as the CFO of speciality in October 2018.

Orchard Care strengthens top management team

Care provider Orchard Care Homes has bolstered its senior leadership with the appointment of Hayden Knight as the new chief operating officer (COO). Knight will work parallel to the group’s CEO Tom Brookes. He has over 20 years of experience and will head the operational management of a network of 40 homes at Orchard.

“As COO Hayden will assume responsibility for driving the operational performance across all aspects of our business. With his extensive background in the sector and our commitment to quality care, he is a natural fit to our culture and values,” stated Brookes.

New CFO for Yorkshire tech talent firm

IT resourcing specialist Cranford Group has appointed Matthew Hardill as its chief financial officer. Hardill joins the group with over 20 years of industry experience.

The CEO of Cranford Group David Bentley, Matthew’s brother-in-law said: “Trusting relationships are very important to us as an organisation, and we pride ourselves on having a close-knit, family-focused team. This is one of the primary reasons I approached Matthew to become our finance director – he has all of the credentials we need, plus I’ve known him for 25 years. I’m delighted to welcome him to Cranford Group in the month we celebrate a decade in business.”

Veganuary hires new CEO in preparation for international expansion

UK non-profit vegan charity Veganuary has welcomed Ria Rehberg as its new CEO. Rehberg will succeed Simon Winch who departed after 18 months with the organisation. Her appointment comes as a part of Veganuary’s plan to expand its international presence.
Commenting upon her appointment, Rehberg said: “I have been a huge fan of the incredible work the organisation has done over the last few years and the fantastic relationships Veganuary has built with restaurants, retailers and brands all over the country. Moving forward our focus will be to build on the tremendous success of previous campaigns and work even more closely with the corporate sector to ensure that Veganuary continues to reach hearts, stomachs and minds all over the UK and beyond.”

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