This week's London appointments

Fern Wake, Cazoo

Cazoo, a digital automotive start-up, has announced that it has appointed Fern Wake as its chief of operations.

Fern was most recently COO at Farmdrop where she oversaw a team of 180 across purchasing, distribution and fulfilment.

At Cazoo, Fern will be responsible for the operations and logistics teams including Cazoo’s reconditioning facilities in Corby in partnership with BCA and its distribution hubs across the UK as well as its team of over 100 delivery specialists and fleet of single car transporters.

Fern commented: “I am delighted to have joined the Cazoo team. The pace at which the team are moving and what they have achieved so far is very exciting.

“I am looking forward to working with the teams in both Corby and London and in our hubs across the UK and ensuring we are operationally efficient in order to ensure Cazoo delivers an exceptional experience for UK used car buyers.”

Paul Whitehead, chief commercial officer of Cazoo, added: “We are delighted to welcome Fern to the Cazoo team.

“Her extensive operations and logisitics experience will add real value to the team and ensure we deliver on our promise to make buying a used car no different than buying any other product online today and that our customers love the process of buying a used car as much as they love the car itself.”

Martin Mcphee, Access Sport

Sports inclusion charity Access Sport has announced the appointment of business strategist, Martin Mcphee, as its new chair.

Martin brings 25 years of experience to the role, having led many Fortune 100 companies alongside now being CEO of Exponential M Ltd and sitting on the global advisory board of cyber security company, Digital Times Transformation.

He commented: “I have been involved with Access Sport for just over six years.

“The more I got involved, the more passionate I became about the charity and about its beneficiaries gaining access to inclusive community sport regardless of ability or background.

“Being appointed the chair is a great privilege and honour. What I bring to the role is someone who has worked in world class organisations that have led the way in building inclusivity and diversity, delivering amazing results.

“Bringing a little of this secret sauce will hopefully inspire the team to achieve all that they want to achieve.”

David Matthews, ICAEW

ICAEW has announced that its new president for 2020/21 is David Matthews.

David became an ICAEW Council member in 2010, and served as a member of the Professional Standards Board and as Chair of the Technical Strategy Board.

He commented: “Chartered accountants have a fundamental role to play in creating strong and sustainable businesses, and therefore strong and stable economies.

“Societies and governments want businesses to deliver more than just short-term profits, and by identifying risks and providing insights to support sustainable decision-making, chartered accountants can help organisations provide more meaningful information to achieve broader policy goals, such as net zero emissions.

“This is particularly important now, given the post-pandemic focus on economic restart and recovery.

“Our profession is changing, and so are the expectations which are placed on it by society. We have a responsibility to meet these expectations but also those that will arise from reforms currently being considered, particularly with regards to audit.”

David Greenhalgh, Excello

London-based employment lawyer David Greenhalgh has joined national law firm Excello from Joelson, where he was a partner and head of the employment department.

David commented: “I am looking forward to getting back to the city and joining Excello Law and its London employment team.

“In the post COVID world, there will be many demands from clients looking for fairer value for their legal spend without compromising the quality of the employment law advice they receive.

“The Excello model allows me to deliver these more flexible solutions, supported by a national team advising across all areas of commercial law.”

George Bisnought, managing director, added: “David is a recognised, leading employment lawyer and we’re delighted to welcome him to the firm.

“With a busy and expanding national partner-level employment team, he will be a valuable asset to supporting our business growth across London and the South East.”

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