February 2024 C-suite appointments: A recap of HR movements of the month

In February 2024, the corporate landscape underwent notable changes in executive leadership. Several leaders took on new challenges, transitioning from established corporate environments to the dynamic world of startups. Concurrently, others ventured into uncharted sectors, bringing their wealth of experience to enrich work cultures and people strategies across diverse industries. 

Without delay, let's delve into the key executive movements that unfolded in the second month of this year, providing insight into the dynamic shifts shaping the upper tiers of corporate leadership.

Shemara van den Heuvel

Enreach, a communications platform headquartered in Europe, appointed Shemara van den Heuvel as its new Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO). With over 25 years of experience spanning various industries such as marketing, FMCG, management consulting, banking and finance, HR consulting, pharmacy, and food retail, Shemara brings a wealth of expertise to her new role. 

She is overseeing recruitment, talent retention, and HR initiatives, while fostering a self-driven and empowering workforce and nurturing an inspiring culture. Shemara previously held the position of Senior Vice President of Global Human Resources at MediaMonks. Prior to that, she served as HR Director at Red Bull Netherlands, HR Advisor at Deloitte, and HR Manager at RandStad. Additionally, she has worked with Deep Blue Capital, Ethos, Ahold, and Optiver. Shemara holds an MBA degree from VU Amsterdam University.

Cindy Ryan

MassMutual, a US-based insurance and financial services firm, appointed Cindy Ryan as its Head of Human Resources. With over 25 years of experience in the healthcare sector, Ryan is leading the company's people strategy, focusing on fostering an inclusive culture, promoting holistic employee well-being and growth, and attracting and retaining a diverse workforce. 

Prior to joining MassMutual, she served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer at the Cigna Group, where she held various leadership positions over two decades at Cigna Healthcare. Ryan holds a BS degree in Management from SUNY Geneseo and a Master of Industrial and Labor Relations (MILR) degree in HR from Cornell University. Her expertise spans talent acquisition and management, total rewards, HR operations, employee relations, learning and development, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

Nichola Archibald

CFC, a UK-based insurance company, appointed Nichola Archibald as its Interim Chief People Officer. With over 25 years of experience spanning BFSI, Consulting, and Oil & Gas sectors, Nichola is leading the company's people strategy, engagement, and workplace culture initiatives. Prior to her current role, she served as an executive coach at NARC Consulting Ltd and her own company, Work Stories Coaching. 

Nichola has also worked with Archibald Flynn as an HR Consultant and Company Director, Hannover Re as the Head of HR, Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) as an HR Business Partner, and Bupa International as the Lead HR Consultant. Her previous roles include positions at Marks & Spencer, Homebase, RSA, ABN AMRO Bank, and BP, where she demonstrated expertise in succession planning, performance management, talent management, executive coaching, employee engagement, HR consulting, employee relations, strategic HR, HR policies, and change management.

Craig Ayers

Syniti, a US-based software company, hired Craig Ayers as its Chief People Officer. Bringing over 25 years of leadership experience in operations and finance, Craig is leading global HR functions, focusing on talent management, recruitment, and employee engagement. He will also oversee Employee Resource Groups, cultivating a sustainable and inclusive culture. Previously, Craig held key positions at Journey, where he served as Co-Founder, Chief Financial Officer, and Chief Operating Officer, and at Capgemini, where he worked as Senior Vice President, CFO, and COO. 

He also held roles at Capgemini Invent’s Frog as CFO and COO for over eight years. Earlier in his career, he worked at Accenture in various leadership capacities, including Director of Mergers & Acquisitions, Director and Country Head of Mauritius operations, and Director of North America operations.

Mairead Nayager

Unilever named Mairead Nayager as its new Chief People Officer, starting June 1. Mairead will succeed Nitin Paranjpe, who plans to retire from the company later this year. Nitin has held the position since January 2022. Currently, Mairead serves as the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) at Haleon, a British multinational consumer healthcare company. Prior to her role at Haleon, she served as CHRO at Diageo from 2015 to 2022.

Luke Lu

Circles, the Singapore-based technology company, appointed Luke (Shao Chuan) Lu as its Chief People Officer. Luke brings over 18 years of HR leadership experience, having worked across various sectors such as telecom, e-learning, e-commerce, consulting, and manufacturing. Prior to joining Circles, he served as the Chief People Officer at LingoAce. Luke has also held positions at Lazada Group, McKinsey & Co., Ooredoo Myanmar, Ooredoo Qatar, ADA Cellworks, and Mitchell Mill Systems throughout his career.

Rina Pandya

NHS Property Services, based in the UK, appointed Rina Pandya as its new full-time Chief People Officer. With around two decades of experience, Rina joined the company in 2016 as the Head of Human Resources and later served as the Head of People Transformation and Culture. In her new role, she is shaping the company’s people strategy and cultivate an inclusive workplace culture. Rina's previous experience includes roles at Avenues Group as the Non-Executive Director of People Culture and Reward, and at the Department of Health and Social Care as the Chief of Staff and HR Business Manager. She has also worked with Publicis Groupe and Centrica earlier in her career.

Holly May

Petco Health and Wellness Company named Holly May as its new Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO). In her role, May is leading the development of an HR strategy aimed at driving profitable growth and exceptional performance. Bringing over two decades of experience in human resources, May joins Petco from Walgreens Boots Alliance, where she held executive positions. Throughout her career, she has built innovative programs, policies, and practices at renowned companies such as Starbucks, Abercrombie & Fitch, and Visa.

Marion Kaehlke

Phrase, a leading provider of cloud-based localisation software, named Marion Kaehlke as its Chief People Officer. In this capacity, Kaehlke is overseeing the company's global human resources efforts. Bringing over 25 years of experience in serving the global enterprise workplace, Kaehlke most recently served as the Senior Vice President of People, Culture & Workplace at Ada Health. Prior to this role, she held leadership positions at prominent companies such as Philips, Beiersdorf, TUI, Tektronix/Danaher, YOC AG, TA Triumph Adler GmbH, and Monedo Holding GmbH.

Sharon Coburn

Saffery Trust, a UK-based finance advisory firm, appointed Sharon Coburn as its new Associate Director of the People and Culture team. With over 30 years of experience spanning BFSI, real estate, and manufacturing sectors, Sharon succeeds Jane Wade, who is retiring after four decades of dedicated service to the company. 

In her previous roles, Sharon held key positions such as Head of HR Transformation at Praxis, Group Head of Human Resources at PraxisIFM Group, and Human Resources Officer at Bank of Bermuda (Guernsey) Ltd. Sharon's extensive expertise encompasses various HR domains, including recruiting, employee engagement, performance management, talent management, succession planning, and more. She is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and a Chartered Member of the Chartered Management Institute (CMI).

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Jen Swensson

Casepoint, a US-based legal discovery software solutions platform, named Jen Swensson as its new Vice President of People. With over two decades of HR leadership experience spanning IT and Software, Media and Broadcasting, and Legal sectors, Jen joins Casepoint from her role as Chief People Officer of Deepwatch and a member of CPOHQ. 

Prior to that, she held key positions such as Vice President Global HR at KLDiscovery, HR Business Partner at MHM Services, Senior Manager of Human Resources at RCN Business, and Director of Human Resources & Administration at Aptela.

Kerri O’Neill

Ipsos, a global marketing and consulting firm, has appointed Kerri O’Neill as its Chief People Officer for the UK and Ireland teams. With nearly 20 years of experience across retail, communications, and healthcare sectors, Kerri joins Ipsos from Aviva, where she served as the Group Head of People Analytics, Insight, and Workforce of the Future for over a decade. 

Prior to that, she held roles at House of Fraser as the People and HR Director and at Ofcom as the People and Transformation Director and HR Director. Kerri brings expertise in L&D solutions, employee relations, digital transformation, leadership development, workplace transformation, ESG, employee engagement, people analytics management, and employer branding to her new role.

Jean-Louis Amice

Louvre Hotels Group, Europe’s renowned hotel chain, named Jean-Louis Amice as its new Chief Human Resources Officer, effective immediately. With more than 23 years of experience spanning the hospitality, consulting, IT & cybersecurity, cosmetics, and real estate sectors, Amice joins Louvre Hotels Group from Nexity, where he served as CHRO for the past four years. In his new role, he will spearhead the global HR strategy for the hotel chain.

Amanda Lim

Socomec, a leading global expert in Low Voltage (LV) power management, named Amanda Lim as its new Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) for the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. In her new capacity, Amanda is overseeing HR strategies throughout the region, with a focus on talent development, employee engagement, and fostering an innovative and inclusive culture. With over 25 years of professional experience, Amanda brings a wealth of HR expertise and leadership to drive Socomec's strategic initiatives forward.

Bethany Smith

Milliken & Company  named Bethany Smith as its new senior vice president and chief human resources officer. Smith succeeds Craig Haydamack, who has departed from the company. In her new role, Smith will oversee all HR matters for the diversified global manufacturer. Prior to her appointment, Smith served as the interim chief human resources officer for Milliken's Corporate Support functions since October 2023. In this capacity, she served as the HR business partner to senior leaders across these functions, while actively participating in Milliken's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion program.

David Ard

Bumble Inc appointed David Ard as its new Chief People Officer. With nearly three decades of experience spanning various sectors including software technology, luxury fitness, and retail, Ard joins Bumble from Salesforce, where he served as Senior Vice President of Employee Success. 

In his new role, Ard will lead the company's people and work strategies, focusing on cultivating a positive work culture, talent acquisition and development, and ensuring employee well-being and engagement. Prior to joining Bumble, Ard held senior leadership positions at Slack and Equinox, among others, where he demonstrated expertise in HR strategy, culture change, and talent management.

Mary Sweeney

TridentCare, a leading healthcare company based in the US, appointed Mary E. Sweeney as its new Senior Vice President (SVP) of Human Resources, effective immediately. With over two decades of experience in the education and healthcare sectors, Mary brings a wealth of expertise to her new role. In her capacity as SVP of Human Resources, Mary will lead the HR team, leveraging her extensive experience in recruitment and retention, organisational effectiveness, talent management, employment law and compliance, and diversity and inclusion initiatives. 

Prior to joining TridentCare, Mary served as Vice President of Human Resources and Employee Experience at Arcadia University. She has also held senior leadership positions at Trinity Health and St. Mary Medical Center, where she played pivotal roles in shaping human resources strategies and driving organisational excellence.

Andrea Haan

The World Insurance Group, a prominent insurance brokerage firm based in the US, appointed Andrea Haan as its new Chief Human Resources Officer, effective immediately. With over 25 years of HR leadership experience spanning the media, martech, and insurance sectors, Andrea brings a wealth of expertise to her new role. As Chief Human Resources Officer, Andrea will be responsible for overseeing human capital strategies, including merger and acquisition integration processes, HR operations and infrastructure, and change management initiatives within the company. 

Her extensive background in global talent management, coupled with her proven track record of driving organizational success, positions her as a valuable asset to The World Insurance Group. Most recently, Andrea served as Senior Vice President of Global Talent at Circana, where she played a key role in shaping talent initiatives and driving organizational growth over the past four years.

Uma Amuluru

Boeing, the renowned US-based aerospace company, named Uma Amuluru as its new Chief Human Resources Officer and Executive Vice President of Human Resources, effective April 1. Uma will assume responsibility for key areas including talent planning, global talent acquisition, learning and development, compensation and benefits, employee and labour relations, and diversity and inclusion initiatives. 

Uma succeeds Michael D'Ambrose, who is retiring in July after an illustrious career spanning over 40 years. Throughout his tenure, Michael held pivotal roles at esteemed organizations such as Archer Daniels Midland, Toys R Us, First Data Corp, Citigroup, Westwood One, The Travelers Mortgage, and Ingersoll Rand. His contributions have left a lasting impact on the industry and workforce.

Michael Meston

Green Dot Corporation, a leading US-based fintech company, has named Michael Meston as its new Chief Human Resources Officer, effective immediately. With over four decades of leadership experience spanning various industries including manufacturing, IT, semiconductor, and technology, Meston brings a wealth of expertise to his new role. In this capacity, Meston will spearhead culture and people initiatives, working closely with George Gresham, the Chief Executive Officer of the company, to drive organizational growth and development. 

Prior to joining Green Dot, Meston held prominent positions at renowned companies such as Bruker, Dexcom, Western Digital, and Intel, where he demonstrated a strong track record in HR leadership and strategy implementation. Meston's core competencies encompass a wide range of HR functions including employee benefits, compensation and benefits, workforce planning, mergers and acquisitions, talent management, performance management, strategic HR, and team leadership. His appointment underscores Green Dot's commitment to fostering a dynamic and inclusive workplace culture while supporting the company's strategic objectives for continued success.