EM Group
Meet the Team
With decades of experience within their specific markets, EM’s Partners and Non-Execs have built, led and owned search and selection businesses, globally. Their breadth of knowledge and networks enable them and their teams to structure and deliver the best solution for each client scenario.
Carl Thompson - Chairman
Carl is stakeholder and corporate development advisor to EM. He is focused on EM's organic and inorganic growth plans as we capitalise upon human capital opportunities in the recovering economy. Initially brought in as CFO he became Chairman in September 2015. Prior to EM he was most recently CFO and founding shareholder of Hexagon Human Capital Plc, a "buy & build" in the executive search and interim management sectors. The business IPO'd in 2007 with a market cap of £35m and in 2009 generated £25m net income & £6.5m EBITDA. Previously he held FD / MD roles in entrepreneurial high growth businesses within technology and Human Capital, including Mission Testing (which he sold to Capita PLC), Denistron PLC and Fujitsu (ICL). He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Ernst and Young. Email address: [email protected]
David Howell - Managing Director
Since co-founding EM in 1993, David has led teams delivering search and selection campaigns across finance, financial services, and consulting. His own projects have focussed on profit centre leaders and the providers of equity that finance them; including HgCapital, Lloyds Development Capital and Bridgepoint, as well as Associated British Foods plc, 20th Century Fox, and Asda Wal-Mart. David has additionally held responsibility for EM's own development, across four sector specific divisions and three geographic regions. In 2007 EM Group was acquired by private equity investors, and he subsequently led an MBO to take EM independent in 2009. David's early career was in commercial finance, within the defence and publishing sectors, as well as heading the UK division of an international financial recruitment firm. Email address: [email protected]
Jan Shaw - Partner - Board level
With a career spanning Executive Search, Human Resource leadership and Behavioural Science Consulting, Jan is widely acclaimed as a senior level talent acquisition expert. As the architect of Asda’s senior management team in the 90’s, he worked with then-CEO Archie Norman to build a world class pool of talent, many of whom have now gone on to head up other global retailers. His network of long-term relationships across retail, media and consumer facing sectors are to the benefit of his clients, both private equity backed growth and publicly owned businesses, in the UK and Internationally. Prior to Asda, he held senior roles in Human Resources Strategy at Trafalgar House Group, British Airways Imperial (Courage) as well as Lecturing at the National Institute of Industrial Psychology. Email address: [email protected]
Nigel Milford - Partner EM Finance
With a financial recruitment career at Michael Page spanning the Thames Valley, London, Hong Kong and Canada - incorporating senior Executive Search - Nigel is hugely accomplished across all areas of talent acquisition. He is also experienced in start-ups, the growth and leadership of (large) teams of recruiters. Since leaving Page in 2008 he built a successful financial recruitment business in Toronto, which he sold in 2012. Now working with EM Finance he brings over 25 years’ experience in senior level finance search, across all sectors. Nigel graduated from Cardiff University in Accountancy & Law before training with Ernst & Young as a Chartered Accountant. He was then approached to work with the International Audit team at Raytheon, a Fortune 500 manufacturing company on profit improvement throughout Europe, Africa and the USA. Email address: [email protected]
Gemma Hawes - Director of Operations
Gemma has over 18 years search and selection expertise. Her role is in the administration and operational management of assignments including target identification, developing ideas, controlling data, document and diary management and supporting all projects. Gemma also manages a team of dedicated Resourcers, and is in charge of event management, organisation and planning. For the Interims business she manages EM’s contracts and contractors; and maintains relationships with both contractors and clients, including invoice management and credit control. Having previously worked for a specialist boutique focussing on Management level search, she joined EM in 2006 where her coverage has been across the UK, the rest of Europe, North America and Australia. She also looks after Finance & Credit Control. Email address: [email protected]
Henry Courtney-Guy - Partner, EM Legal
Henry leads EM’s Legal Search team, specialising in lateral placements of senior lawyers at top international law firms. Partner-level hires, with a particular focus on Corporate and Private Equity markets, though client experience covers adjacent practices, including Real Estate, Private Client, Commercial and Litigation. Recent searches have been cross-border, particularly into the US and EU.
Henry built his early career at EM covering the full spectrum of the firm’s clients, and assisting EM’s Partners in retained search mandates spanning Finance, Consulting, Legal and Business Leadership.
Henry holds a degree in Modern History from the University of Bristol.
Email address: [email protected]
Miles Ruggiero - Partner, EM Legal
Miles contributes significantly to EM's global legal search team, specialising in facilitating lateral placements for junior to mid-level lawyers across a spectrum of law firms, from boutiques to large international practices. His focus is particularly honed into the dynamic realms of Commercial and Residential Real Estate.
With a diverse client portfolio spanning Corporate, M&A, Private Equity, Private Client, Commercial, Construction, and Litigation sectors, Miles has successfully connected legal professionals with exciting opportunities in the market.
Miles’ passion for executive search spans over 6 years. He brings a wealth of experience in - and an understanding of – candidate talent pools, adding value to careers and delivering successful outcomes for his clients’ businesses. He is dedicated to helping legal professionals navigate their career paths effectively.
Email address: [email protected]
Ashley Nicholls - Partner
Following a successful career as Director of Marketing and Business Development in global professional services firms, including EY, BDO and Grant Thornton, Ashley launched her own marketing and business development recruitment business in 2009 to provide a very personal and bespoke recruitment service in the UK and globally. Many of Ashley's former employers became clients and her team members candidates and/or referrers to support the growth of the business. Clients included Arup, Baker McKenzie, BCLP, BDO, CBRE, EY, FTI Consulting, Grant Thornton, KPMG, Weil and Withers in professional services and Coutts, Mitie and Rolls Royce, amongst others, in industry. With an extensive network of professional contacts, Ashley has now joined forces with EM Group to additionally recruit Partners and C-suite Executives in the UK, the US and globally. Ashley lives in London and holds an Executive MBA from the University of Kingston. Email address: [email protected]
Naomi Drummond - Partner - Digital & Technology
Naomi brings over a decade of experience in recruitment focusing on the Regulatory Financial Services, Gambling, e-Commerce markets. She has a wealth of knowledge within Digital, Technology and Compliance gained at two leading international recruiters, before launching her own business, Ivy-DigitalRS, in 2021. She continues to grow and build within these sectors; differentiating by focussing on the People aspect to add to client processes and growth of their teams and brand. Assignments successfully delivered have varied from mid-level to Senior Executives and the C-suite; clients have ranged from start-ups to large well renowned global established brands. Email address: [email protected]
Chris Shaw - Partner - Board level - SME
Chris has nearly 20 years’ experience in the recruitment and search sector. He has specialised in SME Industrial, Retail, and Leisure & Hospitality Operations. He has recruited in both dynamic agency environments and structured in-house roles, including Michael Page and Walgreens Boots Alliance. Clients through his career include Punch Taverns, Tiffany & Co, Office Shoes, Boots Opticians, Enterprise Inns, and Whitbread Group, placing roles such as Managing Director, Head of Retail, HRD, and Operations Director. Chris takes a highly flexible approach to assignments, understanding that one size does not fit all. He looks to understand the broader needs of the client through his strong academic background with a Masters from Warwick Business School and CIPD qualification, and hands on experience. Email address: [email protected]
Jacqui Rome - Partner
Jacqui has over 20 years' experience working for corporations and clients across the U.S., EMEA and APAC, where she has engaged with Heads of Departments, CEOs and Boards. Her Executive Search career spans multiple sectors including Agriculture; Animal Nutrition; Chemicals; Food & Beverage; Sustainability; Retail; Pharma; Digital Media & Publishing; Finance and Manufacturing. Jacqui is highly skilled in shortlist generation, producing excellent results in research and candidate development, ensuring each placement exceeds expectations for both the client and the candidate. Earlier, Jacqui spent six years with Goldman Sachs in London, giving her an excellent grounding in interacting / influencing a diverse mix of professionals globally and she also worked in Israel, for emerging businesses, honing her sense of urgency, follow-through and creativity that are essential to Executive Search. A native of London, England, Jacqui received her BA Modern European Studies & Politics degree from Nottingham Trent University. Email address: [email protected]
Ena Vieira - Partner
Ena holds an LLB Honours degree from Buckingham University (UK), and is a previously certified Fellow of the Institute of Recruitment Professionals (UK). Ena has led and managed the recruitment process for Executive, Managerial and Professional positions for a wide range of sectors across the UK, Europe and the USA spanning Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology, Construction and FMCG. In addition to start-up businesses and SMEs, her portfolio includes a number of global brands such as Procter & Gamble, Pfizer, SkyTV, EDF Energy, GlaxoSmithKline, GE, Diageo, Mars, Gillette, and Vinci. Having recently returned to the UK following 4 years based overseas in the Caribbean, where she worked as the Group Head of Talent for a large Caribbean Conglomerate covering sectors such as Financial Services and Banking, Manufacturing, Retail, Distribution, and Media. Fluent in Portuguese and with working knowledge of French and Spanish. A Certified Assessor in DISC Methodology behavioural profiling through Thomas International. Ena holds an LLB Honours degree from Buckingham University (UK), and is a previously certified Fellow of the Institute of Recruitment Professionals (UK). Email address: [email protected]
Carol Cheung - Partner International Markets
Carol has over 20 years commercial experience across Banking, Publishing, Energy, Infrastructure and Private Equity. Her formative years in General Management provided her with a firm foundation in Human Capital where she gained unique exposure to working with C-Level executives and Management Boards, globally. Carol’s understanding of people and cultures across Asia Pacific, Middle East & Europe afford her the innate ability to “size up” potential candidates incisively for complex and sophisticated roles. Her most recent role position was with IL&FS Transportation Networks, one of the largest public listed infrastructure companies in India, as a Human Resources Director, International Business covering Asia, Middle East, Eastern Europe and US. In her early career, she managed advertising and sponsorship for a leading Publications business. She was also the Marketing & Events Manager for Sentosa Golf Club, the most prestigious golf club in Singapore. Carol is trilingual in Mandarin, Cantonese and English. Email address: [email protected]
Louise Bartlett - Consultant
Louise has approximately 15 years’ Executive Search experience, with her primary specialism being the consumer sector in particular FMCG companies and food retailers. In her time in search, however, she has had experience of working across a range of other sectors too including her secondary specialism, professional services, and other sectors, TMT, and higher education. She has operated across B2C as well as B2B, pureplay digital companies as well as traditional high street bricks and mortar businesses. She has delivered executive search briefs both in boutique search firms and in-house, at Betfair PLC, the online gaming business, where she was responsible for delivering their executive search requirement. Although with a predominant focus on finance, strategy & legal searches, over her career she has partnered with most business functions being engaged on senior, cross-border and C-level appointments, and also working on market mapping, competitor intelligence and board assessment projects. Louise graduated with a 2:1 in French & German from the University of Bristol. Email address: [email protected]
Giuglia Gainsborough-Waring - Research Associate
Giuglia comes to us from EY, having joined EY London in September 2015, based in the London Bridge office and also working remotely, serving TAS, TAX, PAS and Advisory. During her time with EY Giuglia: Participated in Head Hunting, Diversity, Psychometric assessment, Developed Talent Acquisition GDS Poland with internal networking, Was a facilitator for "Building Winning Relationships" across UKI region, Advisory, Rating score “Gold”. Giuglia is a senior recruiting professional having recruited at all levels in multi-platform industries. Her career has taken her into several industry sectors including Professional Services (Booz Allen & Hamilton), Banking (Bear Stearns), Life Sciences and Manufacturing (Pall Corporation + Philips Nederland), Aerospace (SITA Aero), and Insurance (Genworth Financial formerly GE). During her career Giuglia has recruited to Board Level and worked on major projects including a new office build in Turkey, a manufacturing start-up in Slovakia and the development of a multilingual Customer Service Centre in Finland. She has a strong global mindset and natural passion for connecting with people. Email address: [email protected]
Jo Goatcher - Research Associate
Jo is part of EM’s dedicated team of Researchers. With over 20 years of experience within senior recruitment, talent management & HR, Jo is well placed to advise on a broad range of search assignments. Having started her career at Robert Walters plc in London, she then joined GE as European HRBP partnering with 15 CFOs across Europe, managing internal talent management, succession planning & recruitment. After 12 years with GE, Jo joined the Cooperative Group within HR and Talent Acquisition and had further assignments with The Body Shop HQ, Lloyds Banking Group & most recently at Schroders where she was the recruitment manager for their Horsham campus. Jo has deep knowledge of Finance & Tax recruitment across Professional Services, Financial Services & Wealth management plus private equity / fund management. Jo holds a BSc (Hons) degree in "Strategic Systems Management" from Bournemouth University and lives in West Sussex with her husband and two children. Email address: [email protected]
Tom Panagos - Research Consultant
Tom leads searches for EM internationally and particularly in Asia Pac and the United States. He has over 14 years of global executive search experience across a broad range of industries and functions, of which nine years was as a partner with a small boutique, retained search firm. Tom left the firm to start the in-house executive search function for an enterprise software company that received a large series of funding and supported them during over a two-year period of hyper-growth, supporting the C-Team in higher their next level of executive management globally. Born in New York, he spent 10-years living and working in Singapore, then onto San Francisco and now calls Las Vegas, Nevada home. Tom received BS in Management Information Systems and Marketing and an MBA in Marketing and Operations Management from Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York. Email address: [email protected]
Philippa Mack - Research Associate
Philippa began in search as a Graduate Trainee in the International Technology Practice of Heidrick & Struggles’ London office in 1997 where she worked on software, hardware, services and IT function searches for household name clients. She later joined the London office of Boyden, where she continued as a Research Consultant in technology as well as completing a wide range of CXO roles in IT, HR and Finance in a variety of sectors and geographies. Her core knowledge remained with the technology function within FTSE, European and US clients, eventually specialising in placing CISOs. Due to a family relocation, for the last 3 years before joining EM she was HR Manager for the Kuwait office of GAC, a global logistics and shipping agency, giving her a unique understanding of international recruitment from a different perspective. Philippa has a BSc from Leeds and an MSc in Animal Behaviour from Exeter University. Email address: [email protected]
Caroline Warwick-Smith - Research Associate
Caroline Warwick-Smith has over fifteen years in Executive Search, garnered within the Tech industry, from B2B Technology through to the Consumer Internet. With a perennial focus on commercially-led leadership roles, Caroline has a wealth of experience working with earlier-stage technology businesses to grow their leadership teams, including Chief Technology Officers and Chief Product Officers. Caroline has recent experience in working with the FinTech space, including blockchain players and a number of tech platforms disrupting the broader financial services industry. Caroline has extensive experience of working across North America and Europe in addition to being fluent in French. She has a BA Hons from the University of Leeds in French with Italian.” Email address: [email protected]
Sarah Benson - Research Associate
Sarah's 15 years in global Recruitment have been spent primarily in-house as part of HR and Talent teams. As Resourcing Business Partner for Yell she developed key skills in assessment, selection, management hiring and leadership development giving her unique insight early on. Over the years she has recruited across multiple areas of business for brands such as United Biscuits, and Treasury Wine Estates, honing her skills in assessment and identification of talent. Her ability to match business goals with candidate skills and culture fit has seen her place high potential individuals in MD, Marketing, Finance, Supply Chain and Manufacturing roles across EMEA, Australia and Latin America. Sarah launched her Executive Search career with a boutique, Africa search firm where she focused on CXO and CXO -1 Hires across, Private Equity, Consumer Banking, Tech, Agriculture, FMCG, Mining and Construction across the African Continent. Born in Hong Kong and raised in Surrey Sarah graduated from Oxford Brookes University with a BSc in Biology and Business Management. She joined EM early in 2020. Email address: [email protected]
Adeola Dosunmu - Executive Research
Adeola is part of EM’s dedicated team of Researchers. He has experience in search and selection across all sectors, with deep knowledge of Investment Banking, Private Equity, Risk & Regulatory, Transformation, Strategy, and Insurance. His expertise in Exec Search Research has been honed during former careers in Sales & Marketing and cross-border Private Equity Research. Credited with identifying targets for some of EM’s most challenging mandates in the UK and Internationally, he brings his diverse skillset to bear, efficiently delivering successful results. Adeola previously worked as an Analyst with Thomson Reuters, covering Investment funds across Europe and holds an MSc in Finance and Investment Economics from the University of London. Email address: [email protected]
EM Legal
Clients include private practice and in-house teams in the UK and Internationally. With a focus on Corporate and Commercial, appointments are at Partner level, particularly within alternative business and self-employed structures.
Who We Are
EM is a leader in executive search and interim management both nationally and internationally. With over 25 years experience providing Financial and Consulting solutions, EM Group have worked with some of the worlds best known companies.
Get in Touch
Based in Mayfair, London. Our experienced and friendly consultants will help you find the perfect job in the financial sector. Visit our contact page for more information and to be contacted by a recruitment agent.
