John Lewis Partnership hires first independent directors
The John Lewis Partnership has appointed Dame Clare Tickell and Michael Herlihy as its first independent directors.
With both roles being full-time, Tickell will join the Partnership on 14 October while Herlihy will take up his role on 3 February. In a statement, the John Lewis Partnership said the roles have been created to “provide insight and challenge”.
Tickell and Herlihy with both report to the Partnership’s chairman, Sir Charlie Mayfield, and will sit alongside three non-executive directors on the board.
Mayfield said: “The independent directors are new roles formed as part of our review of the Partnership’s governance structure. They are designed to provide a source of insight and challenge on the extent to which they are upholding the principles of the constitution. Free from operational responsibilities, the independent directors work on behalf of the chairman and trustees of the constitution and will play a critical role in ensuring the integrity of the Partnership.”
Tickell is currently a non-executive director at the National Audit Office, chair of the board at the Early Intervention Foundation and a Fellow of the RSA. Previous roles include chief executive of Hanover Housing Association, Action for Children and the Stonham Housing Association.
Meanwhile, Herlihy was appointed as the John Lewis Partnership secretary and a member of its executive team in April 2018. He previously worked at Smiths Group where he was general counsel for almost 10 years. Prior to that, he spent 26 years at Imperial Chemical Industries.
