Stakeholder relations

David Henderson

Chair

Appointed: April 2016

Chair, Independent Non-Executive Director. Member of Group Finance & Investment Committee, Group Remuneration Committee, Group Nominations Committee.

David Henderson was appointed to the Board in April 2016.

Experience
David began his career specialising in personal tax and UK trusts. He spent ten years as a banker with Morgan Grenfell and, following that, 11 years in financial services executive recruitment with Russell Reynolds Associates. He joined the Board of Kleinwort Benson Group plc as Personnel Director in 1995. He was appointed Chief Executive of Kleinwort Benson Private Bank Ltd (now Kleinwort Benson) in June 1997. He was Chairman of Kleinwort Benson from 2004 to 2008 and a Senior Adviser to the Bank until 2019. He holds several external Non-Executive Directorships.

Mark Hews was appointed Group Chief Executive in May 2013 and was previously Group Chief Financial Officer. He was appointed to the Board in June 2009 and appointed to the Board of MAPFRE RE in December 2013. He also became a Trustee of The Windsor Leadership Trust in November 2017.

Experience

He was formerly a Director of HSBC Life and Chief Executive of M&S Life. Prior to this he was Finance Director at Norwich Union Healthcare. He started his financial career at Deloitte (formerly Bacon and Woodrow) as a consultant and actuary.

Denise Cockrem

Executive Director

Appointed: September 2019

Denise Cockrem was appointed Group Chief Financial Officer on 10 December 2018 and joined the EIO Board on 6 September 2019.

Experience

Denise is a Chartered Accountant with significant industry experience, predominantly in financial services. She spent her early career in corporate finance and banking roles for EY, Barclays, RBS and Direct Line. She then joined RSA as Group Financial Controller, spending 9 years with them in various roles culminating in UK & Western Europe Finance Director. Denise most recently held the position of Chief Financial Officer at Good Energy Group plc, an AIM-listed renewable energy company who provide 100% renewable electricity and carbon neutral gas. Denise was also a Non-Executive Director of the Skipton Building Society from 2015 to 2021. Denise is also a Trustee of MacIntyre Academy Trust, which provides special schools and specialist alternative provision for children and young people.

Member of Group Risk Committee.

Jacinta Whyte was appointed Deputy Group Chief Executive and joined the Board in July 2013 with responsibility for the Group’s General Insurance business globally. She was appointed to the Ansvar Australia Board during 2013.

Experience

Jacinta joined Ecclesiastical in 2003 as the General Manager and Chief Agent of the Group’s Canadian business. Having commenced her career as an underwriter for RSA in Dublin in 1974, she moved with them to Canada in 1988, holding a number of senior executive positions in both Ireland and Canada.

Chair of Group Audit Committee and member of  Group Risk Committee

Chris Moulder was appointed to the Board in September 2017. Chris is also a Director of the Company’s ultimate parent, Benefact Trust Limited, as well as the Insurance Board of Lloyds Banking Group and Tokyo Marine Kiln.

Experience

Chris retired in 2017 after five years at the Bank of England as Director of General Insurance at the Prudential Regulation Authority. Prior to this he had spent 26 years with KPMG as a partner in its Financial Sector practice.

Rita Bajaj

Independent Non-Executive Director

Appointed: July 2021

Independent Non-Executive Director. Member of Group Finance & Investment Committee.

Rita was appointed to the Board in July 2021. She is a Non-Executive Director, Board, and IGC member with over 30 years’ broad investment markets experience.

Experience

Previously, she held senior investment positions at Global and UK Asset Managers, heading investment teams at Royal London & Invesco Perpetual. She was EMEA Chief Administrative Officer at Custodian, State Street and she is also a former FCA regulator.

Currently, Mrs Bajaj is a Board and Investment Panel member for the London Pension Fund Authority (LPFA), Non-Executive Director on Columbia Threadneedle OEIC Boards, an Independent Governance Member for Hargreaves Lansdown’s workplace SIPP Independent Governance Committee.

François-Xavier Boisseau

Independent Non-Executive Director

Appointed: March 2019

Member of Group Finance & Investment Committee, Group Audit Committee and Group Risk Committee.

Francois-Xavier Boisseau was appointed to the Board in March 2019.

Experience

Francois-Xavier Boisseau was appointed to the Board in March 2019. Francois-Xavier has more than 30 years’ experience working in the insurance industry, 25 years in the UK. He was CEO Insurance Ageas (UK) until December 2018. Prior to that Francois-Xavier was CEO of Groupama and CEO of GUK Broking Services as well as being Non-Executive Chairman of Lark, Bollington and Carole Nash. Francois is also Chairman of IQUW Syndicate Managing Agency Ltd.

Sir Stephen Lamport

Independent Non-Executive Director

Appointed: March 2020

Chair of Group Remuneration Committee and member of Group Risk Committee.

Sir Stephen was appointed to the Board in March 2020. He is the Vice Lord-Lieutenant of Surrey and a Senior Adviser at Sanctuary Counsel.

Experience

He is a Board member of Benefact Trust Limited; Vice-President of the Community Foundation for Surrey; a Trustee of Painshill Park; a member of the Court of the St Katharine Foundation; and Chairman of the British Red Cross UK Solidarity Fund Committee. He is the Deputy High Bailiff of Westminster Abbey. Sir Stephen was the Receiver General of Westminster Abbey from 2008 to 2018, and previously a Group Director of the Royal Bank of Scotland for five years. He was Deputy Private Secretary to The Prince of Wales from 1993, and Private Secretary and Treasurer from 1996 to 2002. From 1994 to 2002 he was a member of HM Diplomatic Service, with overseas postings in New York, Tehran and Rome.

Chair of the Group Risk Committee, member of Group Remuneration Committee and Group Audit Committee.

Neil Maidment was appointed to the Board in January 2020. Neil is an Independent Non-Executive Director at Lloyd’s of London and a member of the Council of Christ’s Hospital.

Experience

He has over 35 years’ experience in the insurance market. He was previously a Director of Beazley plc and was Chief Underwriting Officer of the company and Active Underwriter of its Lloyd’s syndicates from 2008 to 2018. He was Chairman of the Lloyd’s Market Association from 2016 to 2018 and served as an elected working member of the Council of Lloyd’s during the same period.

Chair of Group Finance & Investment Committee and member of Group Remuneration Committee and Group Nominations Committee.

Angus Winther was appointed to the Board in March 2019.

Experience

Angus co-founded Lexicon Partners, a London-based investment banking advisory firm, where he specialised in advising clients in the insurance and financial services sectors. He was closely involved in Lexicon Partners’ leadership until it was acquired by Evercore in 2011 and served as a senior Adviser at Evercore until October 2016. He is currently a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the audit committee at Trinity Exploration & Production plc and a Non-Executive Director of Lloyd’s managing agent, Hiscox Syndicates Limited. Angus is also Churchwarden of Holy Trinity Brompton, Deputy Chair of the Church Revitalisation Trust and a trustee of St Mellitus College Trust and St Paul’s Theological Centre.