Meet our Team
Sharon White
Chairman
Sharon White
Chairman
Started current role: February 2020.
Experience: Sharon became the Partnership's sixth Chairman in February 2020. Sharon moved from Ofcom, the UK's communications regulator, where she served as Chief Executive. Before joining Ofcom, Sharon was Second Permanent Secretary at the Treasury, responsible for overseeing the public finances. She also held Board level positions at the Ministry of Justice and the Department for International Development, worked as an adviser at the Prime Minister's Policy Unit and in Washington DC as a senior economist at the World Bank.
Other appointments: Sharon is a non-executive Board member of Barratt Developments Plc and a Trustee of Sadler’s Wells Trust Ltd. She is a trained economist and studied at Cambridge University and University College London.
BÉRANGÈRE MICHEL
Executive Director, Finance
BÉRANGÈRE MICHEL
Executive Director, Finance
Started current role: January 2021.
Length of time with the Partnership: 12 years.
Experience: Bérangère joined the John Lewis Partnership in April 2008 as Group Head of Financial Strategy, before being appointed Director, Supply Chain Development and subsequently Finance & Strategy Director and Operations Director for John Lewis & Partners. Bérangère became Executive Director, Customer Service in February 2020 and was then appointed Executive Director, Finance in January 2021, replacing Patrick Lewis. Before joining the Partnership, Bérangère spent 11 years at the Royal Mail in a number of finance, change and strategy roles, including as Finance Director of the property division.
Other appointments: Bérangère is Board Trustee at World Animal Protection - a global animal welfare charity.
Pippa Wicks
Executive Director, John Lewis
Pippa Wicks
Executive Director, John Lewis
Started current role: August 2020
Experience: Pippa started her career as a senior manager with strategic management consultancy Bain & Company and then went on to be Group CFO of Europe’s largest textile and clothing manufacturer, Courtaulds Textiles plc for seven years. Becoming CEO of FT Knowledge, a division of Pearson plc and one of the largest business education providers followed and then in 2003 she joined AlixPartners, a global management consulting and advisory firm. There she co-founded the firm’s European operations and took on a number of interim CEO and COO positions at both UK and European companies. In 2013 Pippa became involved with the Co-op when she was part of the team tasked with rebuilding the mutual following a sustained period of difficult trading and boardroom disruption. With the Co-op back on track Pippa was appointed Chief Operating Officer in 2014 and then Deputy Chief Executive in March 2017, with specific responsibility for Strategy and Transformation as well as its market-leading Funeralcare, Legal Services and Co-op Insurance businesses
Other appointments: Pippa has previously been a Non Executive Director for a variety of government departments, Hays plc, Ladbrokes plc, Hilton International plc and Arcadia plc. Pippa is currently Chair of the Foundation Council of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Vice-Chair at AlixPartners and a Non Executive Director of the Metropolitan Police Service.
NIKKI HUMPHREY
Executive Director, People
NIKKI HUMPHREY
Executive Director, People
Started current role: October 2020
Experience: Nikki has over 20 years HR leadership experience across many sectors and joined Virgin Atlantic in March 2017 from Lloyds Banking Group as Chief People Officer, responsible for the People strategy and leading the People team including corporate communications, occupational health & staff benefits. She has held a number of HR leadership roles during 15 years at Lloyds including HR Director for Scottish Widows and Group Talent & Development Director. She is passionate about inclusion and diversity, and has a relentless focus on realising both organisation and individual potential. She is a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development.
Nina Bhatia
Executive Director, Strategy & Commercial Development
Nina Bhatia
Executive Director, Strategy & Commercial Development
Started current role: February 2020
Experience: Nina was previously Managing Director of Connected Home, a global business in the Centrica Group. Nina established British Gas Connected Home in 2012, successfully leading the launch of the Hive Active Heating smart thermostat and the acquisition of AlertMe, the technology platform underpinning the company's 'Internet of Things' activities. Until October 2015, Nina was also the Commercial Director of British Gas, responsible for brand, marketing, sales, product development, customer insight and digital. Nina previously ran one of British Gas's national home services businesses, with over 1,500 field engineers, including the Dyno-Rod franchise. Prior to joining British Gas, Nina was a Partner at McKinsey & Co., working in multiple sectors and markets around the world such as media, energy and healthcare. Nina also led McKinsey's government and public sector practice.
Other appointments: Nina has a close affiliation with the non-profit work of the Aga Khan Foundation and institutions.
Andrew Murphy
Executive Director, Operations
Andrew Murphy
Executive Director, Operations
Started current role: February 2020.
Length of time with the Partnership: 28 years.
Experience: Since joining the Partnership in 1992 Andrew has held a number of roles including Managing Director of John Lewis & Partners Aberdeen and of John Lewis & Partners Edinburgh. In 2009 Andrew was appointed Director, Operational Development before becoming Retail Director, John Lewis & Partners in 2010 and Group Productivity and Change Director in 2015. Andrew became Chief Information Officer on 1 February 2018 and then subsequently Executive Director of Operations in February 2020.
Other appointments: Over the last decade Andrew has worked extensively in the pursuit of sustainable improvement in the economic performance of the UK’s cities and city-regions – most notably as a Board member of London First and the New West End Company, the founding Chair of Scotland’s first city centre Business Improvement District – Essential Edinburgh – and, latterly, as Chairman of both the UK China Visa Alliance and the Scottish Retail Consortium.
James Bailey
Executive Director, Waitrose
James Bailey
Executive Director, Waitrose
Started current role: April 2020
Experience: James was until recently the Grocery Buying Director for Sainsbury's, where he was responsible for £16bn or half of Sainsbury's Group revenues. His responsibilities included buying, merchandising, product selection and supplier relationship management. During an 18-year career at Sainsbury’s his other roles included Buying Director for the £7bn Packaged Foods Division (2014-2016) and Buying Director for £4bn Chilled & Frozen Food business (2012-2014). Before Sainsbury’s he worked for three years in the financial industry, having started his career as a management trainee in the National Health Service for three years.
Other appointments: Outside of retail he is an advisor to a number of scale up food and tech companies.
Sharon White
Chairman
Sharon White
Chairman
Started current role: February 2020.
Experience: Sharon became the Partnership's sixth Chairman in February 2020. Sharon moved from Ofcom, the UK's communications regulator, where she served as Chief Executive. Before joining Ofcom, Sharon was Second Permanent Secretary at the Treasury, responsible for overseeing the public finances. She also held Board level positions at the Ministry of Justice and the Department for International Development, worked as an adviser at the Prime Minister's Policy Unit and in Washington DC as a senior economist at the World Bank.
Other appointments: Sharon is a non-executive Board member of Barratt Developments Plc and a Trustee of Sadler’s Wells Trust Ltd. She is a trained economist and studied at Cambridge University and University College London.
Nicky Spurgeon
Elected Director
Nicky Spurgeon
Elected Director
Nominations Committee Member
Remuneration Committee Member
Programme Manager for John Lewis & Partners
Started current role: May 2017
Joined the Partnership Board: May 2018
Length of time with the Partnership: 21 years
Experience: Nicky joined the Partnership in 1998 as a management trainee for John Lewis & Partners and had a number of management roles in shops for five years before joining the johnlewis.com start up team. Nicky then went on to work in John Lewis & Partners Head Office taking on various positions in trading before moving into Project and Programme management. She has delivered projects which are now an integral part of the John Lewis & Partners business. Nicky currently manages customer focused projects that seek to develop new propositions as well as enhance customers experience when shopping with John Lewis & Partners. Nicky’s active involvement in democracy started in 2012 as a John Lewis & Partners Councillor and was followed by three years as a Partnership Councillor until joining the Partnership Board.
Previously: Prior to joining the Partnership, Nicky completed a short service commission in the Royal Navy as a supply and logistics officer.
NISH KANKIWALA
Non-Executive Director
NISH KANKIWALA
Non-Executive Director
Joined the Partnership Board: April 2021
Experience: Nish brings a wealth of experience in consumer goods and retail having worked with some of the great global brands. Early part of his career, having started as a Graduate Trainee with Unilever, was spent in The Netherlands, France and then the US, where he held a number of commercial and operational roles. Subsequently, Nish joined PepsiCo and over 10 years ended up being President of the soft drinks business in Europe and Africa. Having spent over 25 years in global FMCG businesses, he then leveraged this experience and commenced his career within Private Equity structured companies. His career spanned consumer retail; being President of Burger King International, a fast moving retail business in over 60 countries and with nearly 4,000 restaurants and also as Non-Exec Director of a large retail business in China. Nish continued his career within Private Equity led businesses with a number of assignments as Chairman and CEO, associated with brands such as Jeyes, Tommee Tippee and Plum Baby Foods. He arrived at Hovis in 2014, initially as Chairman and in the last 5 years, as CEO, where he has led the turnaround of a much loved and cherished UK brand.
Other appointments: Fellow, Institute of Chemical Engineers, Fellow, University College London.
RITA CLIFTON CBE
Deputy Chairman
RITA CLIFTON CBE
Deputy Chairman
Started current role: February 2021
Experience: Rita has worked with many of the world’s leading companies on their brand strategies during her executive career as Vice Chairman and Strategy Director at Saatchi & Saatchi; as London CEO and Chairman at the global brand consultancy Interbrand; and as co-founder of BrandCap. Rita was previously a Board member of ASOS for six years, and held non-executive roles with Dixons Retail, Emap, Bupa and the research firm Populus Group. Non-profit Board experience have included WWF (Worldwide Fund for Nature), the UK Sustainable Development Commission and Trustee of the leading environmental think tank Green Alliance.
Other appointments: Rita currently holds non-executive roles with Nationwide Building Society and Ascential plc and is Chair of Trustees at the leading sustainability organisation Forum for the Future.
Becky Wollam
Elected Director
Becky Wollam
Elected Director
Corporate Responsibility Committee Member
Head of Shop Trade for Waitrose & Partners
Started current role: December 2018
Joined the Partnership Board: May 2018
Length of time with the Partnership: 10 years
Experience: Becky joined the Partnership in 2009 as a graduate trainee. She secured her first Branch Manager position in Leighton Buzzard, before leading branches in York, Leek and Glasgow. After six years in Retail Operations Becky moved into Head Office, spending a year in Finance, representing retail on a large change programme before spending a year leading change within retail. Becky moved back into retail operations as a Regional Manager, accountable for Waitrose & Partners shops in Central London, before becoming Head of Shop Trade. Becky was elected to the Partnership Council in 2015.
Andy Martin
Non-Executive Director
Andy Martin
Non-Executive Director
Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee
Joined the Partnership Board: July 2018
Experience: Andy brings a wealth of experience having worked as a Chartered Accountant and was until 2015, Group Chief Operating Officer, Europe and Japan, for Compass Group plc, having previously been their Group Finance Director from 2004 to 2012. Before joining Compass Group, Andy was Group Finance Director at First Choice Holidays plc and prior to that held a number of senior finance roles at Granada Group plc. Since 2011, Andy has been a Non-Executive Director of easyJet plc, Chairing their Finance Committee, and in 2016 became a Non-Executive Director at Intertek Group plc and Chair of their Audit Committee and Senior Independent Non-Executive Director of global specialist recruitment company, Hays plc in 2017.
BÉRANGÈRE MICHEL
Executive Director, Finance
BÉRANGÈRE MICHEL
Executive Director, Finance
Started current role: February 2020.
Length of time with the Partnership: 12 years.
Experience: Bérangère joined the John Lewis Partnership in April 2008 as Group Head of Financial Strategy, before being appointed Director, Supply Chain Development and subsequently Finance & Strategy Director and Operations Director for John Lewis & Partners. Bérangère became Executive Director, Customer Service in February 2020 and was then appointed Executive Director, Finance in January 2021, replacing Patrick Lewis. Before joining the Partnership, Bérangère spent 11 years at the Royal Mail in a number of finance, change and strategy roles, including as Finance Director of the property division.
Other appointments: Bérangère is Board Trustee at World Animal Protection - a global animal welfare charity.
Ollie Killinger
Elected Director
Ollie Killinger
Elected Director
Audit & Risk Committee Member
Product Owner for Waitrose & Partners
Started current role: October 2018
Joined the Partnership Board: November 2017
Length of time with the Partnership: 11 years
Experience: Ollie joined the Partnership in 2008 as a part-time weekend Partner in Waitrose & Partners Leighton Buzzard, honing his skills across the service counters. He secured a student transfer to Waitrose & Partners Oadby whilst studying at University before returning to Leighton Buzzard in 2013. Since graduating, Ollie has progressed through various management positions in Waitrose & Partners branches, being part of the High Wycombe shop opening at the start of a large change programme looking at the operating model of our shops. This led to various Change Management roles in head office, looking at transformational programmes across Retail, Finance, Commercial, Product Supply and IT. Currently, Ollie is working within the Digital Development team looking at the future of personalisation and loyalty to truly differentiate our customers experience. Ollie was elected to the Partnership Council in 2015, joining the Partner Group, a subcommittee of the Council, at the same time, before moving to Chair the Customer Group in November 2016.
Laura Wade-Gery
Non-Executive Director
Laura Wade-Gery
Non-Executive Director
Nominations Committee Member
Remuneration Committee Chair
Joined the Partnership Board: September 2017
Experience: Laura is a leading British senior executive with experience of multi-channel retail. She has worked for a number of businesses including Marks & Spencer Group plc, where she was Executive Director heading up multi-channel and e-commerce from 2011 to 2016, including, from 2014, responsibility for UK stores. Prior to this she held roles, including CEO of Tesco.com, at Tesco plc, and at Gemini Consulting and Kleinwort Benson. She was an advisor to the Government Digital Service from 2012 to 2016.
Other appointments: Non-Executive Director of NHS England and Chair of NHS Digital, as well as Chair of the Talent, Remuneration and Management Committee, having formerly been a Non-Executive Director and Deputy Chair of NHS Improvement. Laura is also a Non-Executive Director of British Land Company plc and Chair of their Remuneration Committee, a member of the Government Digital Strategy Advisory Board, and is a Director of Snape Maltings Trading Limited and Trustee and Director of charity Britten Pears Arts. She was formerly a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Remuneration Committee of Immunocore Limited. Laura will be stepping down from the Partnership Board on 30 April 2021.
Nominations Committee
The Nominations Committee operates in accordance with the terms of reference. The Committee's responsibilities are to support the Chairman in ensuring that:
- There are strong succession plans in place for the Partnership Board
- There is necessary breadth of talent within the Partnership to provide the skills and expertise needed on the Partnership Board in the future
- There is a robust process for making appointments to the Partnership Board.
Audit and Risk Committee
The Audit and Risk Committee operates in accordance with the terms of reference. The Committee is responsible to the Board for the oversight of:
- The integrity of the Partnership's Annual Report and Accounts, and other formal announcements relating to the Partnership's financial performance
- External audit activities
- Internal audit activities
- The Partnership's systems of risk management and internal control including an annual review of the effectiveness of their processes.
Remuneration Committee
The Remuneration Committee operates in accordance with the terms of reference.
- The Remuneration Committee has oversight of the application of the pay policy, including Rule 61 and Rule 62, to executive remuneration for the Chairman, Executive Directors, Senior Managers who report to the Chairman, Non-Executive Directors and the Partners' Counsellor
- The policy aims to attract, retain and motivate executive management of the quality required to run the Partnership successfully without paying more than is necessary and informed by market rate information.
Sharon White
Chairman
Sharon White
Chairman
Started current role: February 2020.
Experience: Sharon became the Partnership's sixth Chairman in February 2020. Sharon moved from Ofcom, the UK's communications regulator, where she served as Chief Executive. Before joining Ofcom, Sharon was Second Permanent Secretary at the Treasury, responsible for overseeing the public finances. She also held Board level positions at the Ministry of Justice and the Department for International Development, worked as an adviser at the Prime Minister's Policy Unit and in Washington DC as a senior economist at the World Bank.
Other appointments: Sharon is a non-executive Board member of Barratt Developments Plc and a Trustee of Sadler’s Wells Trust Ltd. She is a trained economist and studied at Cambridge University and University College London.
BÉRANGÈRE MICHEL
Executive Director, Finance
BÉRANGÈRE MICHEL
Executive Director, Finance
Started current role: January 2021.
Length of time with the Partnership: 12 years.
Experience: Bérangère joined the John Lewis Partnership in April 2008 as Group Head of Financial Strategy, before being appointed Director, Supply Chain Development and subsequently Finance & Strategy Director and Operations Director for John Lewis & Partners. Bérangère became Executive Director, Customer Service in February 2020 and was then appointed Executive Director, Finance in January 2021, replacing Patrick Lewis. Before joining the Partnership, Bérangère spent 11 years at the Royal Mail in a number of finance, change and strategy roles, including as Finance Director of the property division.
Other appointments: Bérangère is Board Trustee at World Animal Protection - a global animal welfare charity.
Pippa Wicks
Executive Director, John Lewis
Pippa Wicks
Executive Director, John Lewis
Started current role: August 2020
Experience: Pippa started her career as a senior manager with strategic management consultancy Bain & Company and then went on to be Group CFO of Europe’s largest textile and clothing manufacturer, Courtaulds Textiles plc for seven years. Becoming CEO of FT Knowledge, a division of Pearson plc and one of the largest business education providers followed and then in 2003 she joined AlixPartners, a global management consulting and advisory firm. There she co-founded the firm’s European operations and took on a number of interim CEO and COO positions at both UK and European companies. In 2013 Pippa became involved with the Co-op when she was part of the team tasked with rebuilding the mutual following a sustained period of difficult trading and boardroom disruption. With the Co-op back on track Pippa was appointed Chief Operating Officer in 2014 and then Deputy Chief Executive in March 2017, with specific responsibility for Strategy and Transformation as well as its market-leading Funeralcare, Legal Services and Co-op Insurance businesses
Other appointments: Pippa has previously been a Non Executive Director for a variety of government departments, Hays plc, Ladbrokes plc, Hilton International plc and Arcadia plc. Pippa is currently Chair of the Foundation Council of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Vice-Chair at AlixPartners and a Non Executive Director of the Metropolitan Police Service.
NIKKI HUMPHREY
Executive Director, People
NIKKI HUMPHREY
Executive Director, People
Started current role: October 2020
Experience: Nikki has over 20 years HR leadership experience across many sectors and joined Virgin Atlantic in March 2017 from Lloyds Banking Group as Chief People Officer, responsible for the People strategy and leading the People team including corporate communications, occupational health & staff benefits. She has held a number of HR leadership roles during 15 years at Lloyds including HR Director for Scottish Widows and Group Talent & Development Director. She is passionate about inclusion and diversity, and has a relentless focus on realising both organisation and individual potential. She is a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development.
Nina Bhatia
Executive Director, Strategy & Commercial Development
Nina Bhatia
Executive Director, Strategy & Commercial Development
Started current role: February 2020
Experience: Nina was previously Managing Director of Connected Home, a global business in the Centrica Group. Nina established British Gas Connected Home in 2012, successfully leading the launch of the Hive Active Heating smart thermostat and the acquisition of AlertMe, the technology platform underpinning the company's 'Internet of Things' activities. Until October 2015, Nina was also the Commercial Director of British Gas, responsible for brand, marketing, sales, product development, customer insight and digital. Nina previously ran one of British Gas's national home services businesses, with over 1,500 field engineers, including the Dyno-Rod franchise. Prior to joining British Gas, Nina was a Partner at McKinsey & Co., working in multiple sectors and markets around the world such as media, energy and healthcare. Nina also led McKinsey's government and public sector practice.
Other appointments: Nina has a close affiliation with the non-profit work of the Aga Khan Foundation and institutions.
Andrew Murphy
Executive Director, Operations
Andrew Murphy
Executive Director, Operations
Started current role: February 2020.
Length of time with the Partnership: 28 years.
Experience: Since joining the Partnership in 1992 Andrew has held a number of roles including Managing Director of John Lewis & Partners Aberdeen and of John Lewis & Partners Edinburgh. In 2009 Andrew was appointed Director, Operational Development before becoming Retail Director, John Lewis & Partners in 2010 and Group Productivity and Change Director in 2015. Andrew became Chief Information Officer on 1 February 2018 and then subsequently Executive Director of Operations in February 2020.
Other appointments: Over the last decade Andrew has worked extensively in the pursuit of sustainable improvement in the economic performance of the UK’s cities and city-regions – most notably as a Board member of London First and the New West End Company, the founding Chair of Scotland’s first city centre Business Improvement District – Essential Edinburgh – and, latterly, as Chairman of both the UK China Visa Alliance and the Scottish Retail Consortium.
James Bailey
Executive Director, Waitrose
James Bailey
Executive Director, Waitrose
Started current role: April 2020
Experience: James was until recently the Grocery Buying Director for Sainsbury's, where he was responsible for £16bn or half of Sainsbury's Group revenues. His responsibilities included buying, merchandising, product selection and supplier relationship management. During an 18-year career at Sainsbury’s his other roles included Buying Director for the £7bn Packaged Foods Division (2014-2016) and Buying Director for £4bn Chilled & Frozen Food business (2012-2014). Before Sainsbury’s he worked for three years in the financial industry, having started his career as a management trainee in the National Health Service for three years.
Other appointments: Outside of retail he is an advisor to a number of scale up food and tech companies.
Sharon White
Chairman
Sharon White
Chairman
Started current role: February 2020.
Experience: Sharon became the Partnership's sixth Chairman in February 2020. Sharon moved from Ofcom, the UK's communications regulator, where she served as Chief Executive. Before joining Ofcom, Sharon was Second Permanent Secretary at the Treasury, responsible for overseeing the public finances. She also held Board level positions at the Ministry of Justice and the Department for International Development, worked as an adviser at the Prime Minister's Policy Unit and in Washington DC as a senior economist at the World Bank.
Other appointments: Sharon is a non-executive Board member of Barratt Developments Plc and a Trustee of Sadler’s Wells Trust Ltd. She is a trained economist and studied at Cambridge University and University College London.
Nicky Spurgeon
Elected Director
Nicky Spurgeon
Elected Director
Nominations Committee Member
Remuneration Committee Member
Programme Manager for John Lewis & Partners
Started current role: May 2017
Joined the Partnership Board: May 2018
Length of time with the Partnership: 21 years
Experience: Nicky joined the Partnership in 1998 as a management trainee for John Lewis & Partners and had a number of management roles in shops for five years before joining the johnlewis.com start up team. Nicky then went on to work in John Lewis & Partners Head Office taking on various positions in trading before moving into Project and Programme management. She has delivered projects which are now an integral part of the John Lewis & Partners business. Nicky currently manages customer focused projects that seek to develop new propositions as well as enhance customers experience when shopping with John Lewis & Partners. Nicky’s active involvement in democracy started in 2012 as a John Lewis & Partners Councillor and was followed by three years as a Partnership Councillor until joining the Partnership Board.
Previously: Prior to joining the Partnership, Nicky completed a short service commission in the Royal Navy as a supply and logistics officer.
NISH KANKIWALA
Non-Executive Director
NISH KANKIWALA
Non-Executive Director
Joined the Partnership Board: April 2021
Experience: Nish brings a wealth of experience in consumer goods and retail having worked with some of the great global brands. Early part of his career, having started as a Graduate Trainee with Unilever, was spent in The Netherlands, France and then the US, where he held a number of commercial and operational roles. Subsequently, Nish joined PepsiCo and over 10 years ended up being President of the soft drinks business in Europe and Africa. Having spent over 25 years in global FMCG businesses, he then leveraged this experience and commenced his career within Private Equity structured companies. His career spanned consumer retail; being President of Burger King International, a fast moving retail business in over 60 countries and with nearly 4,000 restaurants and also as Non-Exec Director of a large retail business in China. Nish continued his career within Private Equity led businesses with a number of assignments as Chairman and CEO, associated with brands such as Jeyes, Tommee Tippee and Plum Baby Foods. He arrived at Hovis in 2014, initially as Chairman and in the last 5 years, as CEO, where he has led the turnaround of a much loved and cherished UK brand.
Other appointments: Fellow, Institute of Chemical Engineers, Fellow, University College London.
RITA CLIFTON CBE
Deputy Chairman
RITA CLIFTON CBE
Deputy Chairman
Started current role: February 2021
Experience: Rita has worked with many of the world’s leading companies on their brand strategies during her executive career as Vice Chairman and Strategy Director at Saatchi & Saatchi; as London CEO and Chairman at the global brand consultancy Interbrand; and as co-founder of BrandCap. Rita was previously a Board member of ASOS for six years, and held non-executive roles with Dixons Retail, Emap, Bupa and the research firm Populus Group. Non-profit Board experience have included WWF (Worldwide Fund for Nature), the UK Sustainable Development Commission and Trustee of the leading environmental think tank Green Alliance.
Other appointments: Rita currently holds non-executive roles with Nationwide Building Society and Ascential plc and is Chair of Trustees at the leading sustainability organisation Forum for the Future.
Becky Wollam
Elected Director
Becky Wollam
Elected Director
Corporate Responsibility Committee Member
Head of Shop Trade for Waitrose & Partners
Started current role: December 2018
Joined the Partnership Board: May 2018
Length of time with the Partnership: 10 years
Experience: Becky joined the Partnership in 2009 as a graduate trainee. She secured her first Branch Manager position in Leighton Buzzard, before leading branches in York, Leek and Glasgow. After six years in Retail Operations Becky moved into Head Office, spending a year in Finance, representing retail on a large change programme before spending a year leading change within retail. Becky moved back into retail operations as a Regional Manager, accountable for Waitrose & Partners shops in Central London, before becoming Head of Shop Trade. Becky was elected to the Partnership Council in 2015.
Andy Martin
Non-Executive Director
Andy Martin
Non-Executive Director
Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee
Joined the Partnership Board: July 2018
Experience: Andy brings a wealth of experience having worked as a Chartered Accountant and was until 2015, Group Chief Operating Officer, Europe and Japan, for Compass Group plc, having previously been their Group Finance Director from 2004 to 2012. Before joining Compass Group, Andy was Group Finance Director at First Choice Holidays plc and prior to that held a number of senior finance roles at Granada Group plc. Since 2011, Andy has been a Non-Executive Director of easyJet plc, Chairing their Finance Committee, and in 2016 became a Non-Executive Director at Intertek Group plc and Chair of their Audit Committee and Senior Independent Non-Executive Director of global specialist recruitment company, Hays plc in 2017.
BÉRANGÈRE MICHEL
Executive Director, Finance
BÉRANGÈRE MICHEL
Executive Director, Finance
Started current role: February 2020.
Length of time with the Partnership: 12 years.
Experience: Bérangère joined the John Lewis Partnership in April 2008 as Group Head of Financial Strategy, before being appointed Director, Supply Chain Development and subsequently Finance & Strategy Director and Operations Director for John Lewis & Partners. Bérangère became Executive Director, Customer Service in February 2020 and was then appointed Executive Director, Finance in January 2021, replacing Patrick Lewis. Before joining the Partnership, Bérangère spent 11 years at the Royal Mail in a number of finance, change and strategy roles, including as Finance Director of the property division.
Other appointments: Bérangère is Board Trustee at World Animal Protection - a global animal welfare charity.
Ollie Killinger
Elected Director
Ollie Killinger
Elected Director
Audit & Risk Committee Member
Product Owner for Waitrose & Partners
Started current role: October 2018
Joined the Partnership Board: November 2017
Length of time with the Partnership: 11 years
Experience: Ollie joined the Partnership in 2008 as a part-time weekend Partner in Waitrose & Partners Leighton Buzzard, honing his skills across the service counters. He secured a student transfer to Waitrose & Partners Oadby whilst studying at University before returning to Leighton Buzzard in 2013. Since graduating, Ollie has progressed through various management positions in Waitrose & Partners branches, being part of the High Wycombe shop opening at the start of a large change programme looking at the operating model of our shops. This led to various Change Management roles in head office, looking at transformational programmes across Retail, Finance, Commercial, Product Supply and IT. Currently, Ollie is working within the Digital Development team looking at the future of personalisation and loyalty to truly differentiate our customers experience. Ollie was elected to the Partnership Council in 2015, joining the Partner Group, a subcommittee of the Council, at the same time, before moving to Chair the Customer Group in November 2016.
Laura Wade-Gery
Non-Executive Director
Laura Wade-Gery
Non-Executive Director
Nominations Committee Member
Remuneration Committee Chair
Joined the Partnership Board: September 2017
Experience: Laura is a leading British senior executive with experience of multi-channel retail. She has worked for a number of businesses including Marks & Spencer Group plc, where she was Executive Director heading up multi-channel and e-commerce from 2011 to 2016, including, from 2014, responsibility for UK stores. Prior to this she held roles, including CEO of Tesco.com, at Tesco plc, and at Gemini Consulting and Kleinwort Benson. She was an advisor to the Government Digital Service from 2012 to 2016.
Other appointments: Non-Executive Director of NHS England and Chair of NHS Digital, as well as Chair of the Talent, Remuneration and Management Committee, having formerly been a Non-Executive Director and Deputy Chair of NHS Improvement. Laura is also a Non-Executive Director of British Land Company plc and Chair of their Remuneration Committee, a member of the Government Digital Strategy Advisory Board, and is a Director of Snape Maltings Trading Limited and Trustee and Director of charity Britten Pears Arts. She was formerly a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Remuneration Committee of Immunocore Limited. Laura will be stepping down from the Partnership Board on 30 April 2021.
Nominations Committee
The Nominations Committee operates in accordance with the terms of reference. The Committee's responsibilities are to support the Chairman in ensuring that:
- There are strong succession plans in place for the Partnership Board
- There is necessary breadth of talent within the Partnership to provide the skills and expertise needed on the Partnership Board in the future
- There is a robust process for making appointments to the Partnership Board.
Audit and Risk Committee
The Audit and Risk Committee operates in accordance with the terms of reference. The Committee is responsible to the Board for the oversight of:
- The integrity of the Partnership's Annual Report and Accounts, and other formal announcements relating to the Partnership's financial performance
- External audit activities
- Internal audit activities
- The Partnership's systems of risk management and internal control including an annual review of the effectiveness of their processes.
Remuneration Committee
The Remuneration Committee operates in accordance with the terms of reference.
- The Remuneration Committee has oversight of the application of the pay policy, including Rule 61 and Rule 62, to executive remuneration for the Chairman, Executive Directors, Senior Managers who report to the Chairman, Non-Executive Directors and the Partners' Counsellor
- The policy aims to attract, retain and motivate executive management of the quality required to run the Partnership successfully without paying more than is necessary and informed by market rate information.