Page 43 - DWF Annual Report 2017

Strategic Board

DWF’s Strategic Board consists of The objectives of our Strategic Board
individuals with wide-ranging relevant are to:
backgrounds, experience, skills and • Develop and maintain vision, mission
knowledge, resulting in a favourable and values
balance that enables the Board to • Develop and drive strategic direction
exercise its tasks and responsibilities, • Establish and monitor policies and
governance
whilst fully taking into account business • Ensure governance compliance Alan Benzie
Chairman FY 16/17
needs. Board Members gained their • Ensure financial and regulatory accountability
business experience in a broad range • Maintain proper fiscal oversight Alan has been DWF’s Chairman since
of industries which collectively include • Maintain effective Board and business 2007; he helps drive and shape our strategic
financial services, accountancy, legal performance. development. Before his retirement from
KPMG in December 2003, Alan chaired its
and consultancy. Northern offices and sat on their UK Board.

Andrew Paul Berry Stephen Miles
Leaitherland CEO, Insurance Services CEO, Commercial Services
Managing Partner and CEO
Before moving to a full-time management Stephen is responsible for driving forward the
As Managing Partner and CEO, Andrew is role, Paul specialised in large and Commercial Services Division, and for looking
responsible for the overall strategic direction catastrophic personal injury work for at alternative ways to deliver growth and
of DWF. Since 2006, Andrew has overseen insurers. He now manages the Insurance increased profitability. Stephen has exceptional
major growth in revenue and people: from Services Division which acts for a variety of legal and management credentials having led
£29m to £199.3m and from 560 to over insurers, adjusters, brokers and corporate Pinsent Masons’ Banking and Restructuring,
2,700 respectively. clients on a wide range of insurance issues. Financial Regulation, Employment and
Pensions practices in recent years.

Chris Stefani David Gray Claire Bowler
Chief Financial Officer Non-Executive Director Partner, Insurance
Services (Elected Member)
Prior to joining DWF in 2016, Chris enjoyed a David is a Non-Executive Member of
17-year career with EY as Finance Director for the DWF Board. After graduating from Claire was one of two founding partners
EMEIA Advisory, overseeing a $2.7bn business. Cambridge, David joined the Leeds office of DWF’s London office in 2008, and has
Chris oversees all of DWF’s financial operations of Eversheds where he specialised in M&A. been proud of its growth from 13 people to
in the UK and internationally, with a focus on David moved to London as Eversheds’ CEO 359 today. Claire sits on the Strategic Board
enhancing revenue, improving profitability and in 2003, a position he held for six years. as the representative for the Insurance
driving working capital management to support From 2009 until 2013, David was Chairman Services Division, and was the first of two
the management of our growth. of Eversheds International. women ever elected to DWF’s main Board.

Paul Rimmer Hilary Ross Helen Hill
Partner, Corporate Partner, Litigation Human Resources
Services (Elected Member) (Elected Member) Director

Paul is a Corporate Partner who has a wide Hilary leads DWF’s Retail, Food and With over 20 years’ experience in generalist
range of M&A experience particularly in the Hospitality sector which has been identified HR positions, across multiple sectors, Helen
Private Equity arena. Paul joined DWF in 2013 as acting for more FTSE 100 retailers than is focused on developing DWF’s HR team’s
from an International Law Firm and was elected any other Law Firm in the UK. She also leads contribution to business growth, performance
to the Strategic Board in 2016. In Paul’s role as the London office which is now fully agile. and profitability through aligning the team’s
Head of UK Locations, he is heavily involved in She is consistently recognised as one of the strategic and operational goals to the overall
driving the culture and values of the business. leading regulatory lawyers in the UK. Group business plans.
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