Career moves including HSBC, Debenhams and Salesforce

HSBC chief executive quits After 18 months

Banking giant HSBC’s chief executive, John Flint has stepped down after 18 months of service. He was responsible for the bank’s retail and wealth management business before taking over as the chief executive last year. His decision was taken by mutual agreement with the bank’s board. He will be replaced by Noel Quinn as the interim chief executive.

About his decision to step down, Flint has said: “I have agreed with the board that today’s good interim results indicate that this is the right time for change, both for me and the bank.”

Debenhams confirms ‘turnaround expert’ Stefaan Vansteenkiste as new CEO

Multinational retailer Debenhams has brought on board Stefaan Vansteenkiste as its new chief executive with effect from September following the handover by current Chairman Terry Duddy. Vansteenkiste joined the company in 2014 and currently holds position as chief restructuring officer.

Commenting on his appointment, Stefaan Vansteenkiste said: “I am very excited about Debenhams’ strong prospects and with a restructured balance sheet there is a robust platform from which to build a turnaround based on Debenhams’ clear brand focus, broad customer reach and differentiated product offer.”

Salesforce appoints new head of UK, Ireland businesses

Cloud-based software company Salesforce has appointed Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia as the new CEO of the UK and Ireland business. Gadhia was the founder and CEO of Virgin Direct until 2018, which later changed its name to Virgin Money. After that she set up a tech start-up company called Snoop that uses consumer information to save money on household bills.

Gadhia received the title of ‘Dame’ in the New Year Honours list of 2019 for her contributions to financial services and towards women in the financial sector. She was commissioned by the UK government in 2015 for a survey into the representation of women in senior executive roles in the financial sphere.

Publisher INM names new CEO

Independent News & Media, owner of the Belfast Telegraph, has appointed Belgian executive Marc Vangeel as its chief executive officer of the media group. Prior to this appointment, Vangeel held position of executive of Mediahuis and will be succeeding Michael Doorly. Furthermore, INM’s present managing director of publishing, Richard McClean, will assume the role of the chief operating officer (COO).

Commenting on the appointment, Michael Doorly said: “This is indeed a historical day for INM and in many ways, the end of an era, but most importantly, the start of an exciting new chapter for the company.”

TMW Unlimited appoints Chris Mellish as CEO

London-based customer engagement agency, TMW Unlimited, has hired the former Razorfish boss Chris Mellish,as chief executive to replace Chris Pearce who stepped down from his role earlier this year. Mellish was the UK chief executive at Razorfish and its predecessor DNA Consulting for 14 years before joining digital consultancy, Blackbook London, where he rose from managing director to chief executive.

Mellish said, “In today’s complex and interconnected marketing landscape, TMW’s deep digital expertise, combined with its heritage in CRM, means it can offer clients a unique way to develop ideas that drive tangible actions across the entire customer experience.”

HSBC Global Asset Management appoints head of DWS Group as chief executive

The Global Asset Management (GAM) division of multinational banking company HSBC, has appointed Nicolas Moreau as the firm’s new chief executive officer. Moreau held the role of chief executive at Deutsche Bank’s asset management business, DWS Group, since mid-2016. Before that, he held the positions of chairman and chief executive at AXA France, and group chief executive of AXA UK and Ireland. He will replace the current CEO of HSBC GAM, Sri Chandrasekharan, who will assume a separate senior role at the same company.

CEO of Retail Banking and Wealth Management at HSBC Charlie Nunn, said about the new appointment: “We’re delighted to welcome Nicolas to HSBC. Asset management is a key area of focus for us and one we are committed to growing in line with increased client demand for products and solutions that help meet their long-term financial ambitions.”

Ultimate Sports hires Prudential executive as CEO

Venture capital company, Ultimate Sports Group, has taken on board former Prudential executive Matthew Farnum-Schneider, as chief executive after the retirement of Geoffrey Simmonds. Farnum-Schneider has previously served as senior advisor to the CEO of Credit Suisse Tidjane Thiam, and the managing director of the chief executive office of Prudential. Before that, he also served as advisor to the US government.

Ultimate Sports executive chair Richard Owen said he was happy that “someone the calibre of Matthew will be joining USG as CEO and has committed himself to spearhead the corporate development of the group.”

Ravi Gurumurthy To join Nesta as chief executive

Innovation foundation Nesta has hired Ravi Gurumurthy as chief executive to replace Geoff Mulgan. Gurumurthy currently serves as chief innovation officer and founder of Airbel Centre at the International Rescue Committee in New York.

About joining Nesta, Gurumurthy said, “I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to build on the terrific work done by Geoff Mulgan and the team, and harness the skills, networks and resources of Nesta to tackle the biggest societal challenges of our time.”

Harworth Group appoints Katerina Patmore as new CFO

Land and property regeneration company Harworth Group has named Katerina (Kitty) Patmore as the new chief financial officer and executive director of the company, with effect from October 1, 2019. Jenny Cutler will act as the interim finance director until Patmore takes up her position.

Prior to this, Patmore was the Director of Harwood Real Estate, the property section of Harwood Capital Group, since 2016. She was also the National Director of the Investment Property Forum. Patmore joins Harworth Group and has 14 years of experience in finance, banking, and real estate lending.

Chief executive of Harworth Group, Owen Michaelson, said, “We are delighted to welcome Kitty to the Board following a rigorous recruitment process.  She brings a wealth of real estate expertise and capital markets knowledge and will be an extremely strong addition to our senior team.  Kitty’s skills and experience will be invaluable in supporting our ongoing growth ambitions and the continued delivery of market-leading returns.”

ITWP  announces key promotions and appointments to C-Suite leadership team

Private investment firm ITWP, parent of Toluna, Harris Interactive Europe and KuRunData, has promoted Pierre Camagne as chief financial and operations officer. Camagne joined the company in 2015 as chief financial officer and will be expanding his responsibilities to involve global operations in this new role. He will develop and oversee ITWP’s financial strategy as well as lead the operations team to establish efficiency and high-value approach to deliver insights on-demand on a global basis.

CEO of ITWP, Frédéric-Charles Petit commented on the appointment: “The recent role expansions for some of our high-performing senior leaders, and the hiring of a global Chief Human Resources Officer signal a significant milestone in the evolution of our company. We have a world-class senior management team dedicated to continuing to deliver the on-demand insights that build transformative businesses.”

Northants finance director to leave after 12-month term

Northamptonshire County Council’s finance chief Ian Duncan has decided to step down after 12 months of service. He will be succeeded by Barry Scarr who currently serves as interim director of finance at Bradford City Council, Scarr will take up office in September.

Chief Executive of the Council Theresa Grant commented on Duncan’s decision: “I would like to recognise what Ian has done in his time with us, helping us deliver the significant challenges of last year’s 2018-19 budget and supporting our improvement work.”

Fidelis names new chief executive in Ireland

Insurance holdings firm Fidelis has promoted Robert Kelly as its chief executive officer while maintaining his position as chief financial officer. Kelly joined the company as CFO in 2018 from PartnerRe and will be taking over the position previously held by Colm Lyons.

Chairman and Group CEO & CUO of Fidelis, Richard Brindle stated: “Both Simon and Rob have proven their business acumen and expertise since joining Fidelis, and I am pleased to confirm their appointments to these roles.”

Essence promotes APAC chief Kyoko Matsushita to global CEO

Media company, Essence has announced the promotion of Kyoko Matsushita as its global chief executive who has currently served as chief executive for Essence in APAC overseeing expansion across countries. Matsushita will be replacing Christian Juhl and will be based out of San Francisco.

Speaking on her appointment, Kyoko Matsushita said: “I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to lead this truly exceptional agency at a time when data and technology give us so much potential to unlock value for our clients.”

CEO of Nordic telecoms group Telia in surprise resignation

Mobile network operator company, Telia’s chief executive officer Johan Dennelind has decided to step down after seven years of service. The search process for a successor has already begun with Dennelind continuing in his role with 12 months’ notice until the new appointment.

Veteran city employee takes over as Glendale’s finance director

City of Glendale has promoted Michelle Flynn as its new director of finance following the departure of previous finance director, Bob Elliot. Prior to her appointment, Flynn held the position of city’s interim director of finance and has held various roles like principal internal auditor, budget administrator, city auditor and assistant director of finance.

Commenting upon her promotion, Michelle Flynn stated in an email: “I intend to keep the momentum going in finance and [encourage] my staff to continue to grow professionally and expand their knowledge of the other departments within the city to best serve the needs of the Glendale community.”

Comments are closed.