Ian Meakins
Chair of the Board
Dominic Blakemore
Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Petros Parras
Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
Nationality: Greek
Appointed: December 2023. Joined the Group in January 2020.
Committee membership: Corporate Responsibility, Disclosure, Executive, General Business and Treasury Management.
Key skills and competencies: Extensive financial, operational and portfolio transformation experience in large multinational businesses. He holds a BSc in Physics from Ioannina University and a PhD in Chemistry from Reading University.
Other appointments: None.
Past appointments: Served as regional finance director for Europe and the Middle East from January 2020 to November 2023. Prior to that worked in fast-moving consumer goods businesses (FMCG) including Procter & Gamble, Reckitt Benckiser and Coty in Europe and North America in senior finance, operational and strategic roles.
Palmer Brown
Group Chief Operating Officer (COO), North America
Nationality: USA
Appointed: October 2021. Joined the Group in 2001. Appointed Group COO, North America in December 2023.
Committee Membership: Corporate Responsibility, Executive, General Business.
Key skills and competencies: Held a variety of senior finance, strategy and legal positions and played a central role as a member of the executive team in North America. Has also coordinated many of the acquisitions and disposals for the Group. Holds degrees in business and law and is a certified public accountant.
Current external appointments: None.
Past appointments: Served as Group CFO from November 2021 to November 2023. Prior to that was the former group commercial director, and chief strategy officer for Compass Group North America. Also held the roles of general counsel and executive vice president of corporate & legal affairs for the Group’s US business.
Anne-Francoise Nesmes
Senior Independent Director (SID)
Liat Ben-Zur
Designated Non-Executive Director for Workforce Engagement (DNED)
Nationality: USA
Appointed: July 2024. Appointed Designated Non-Executive Director for Workforce Engagement in October 2024.
Committee membership: Audit, Corporate Responsibility, Nomination and Remuneration.
Key skills and competencies: Transformative technology executive who brings over 27 years of experience in driving digital transformation and product innovation. Known for her strategic insights in disruptive technologies and product-led growth.
Other appointments: Independent director of Talkspace, Inc. and Splashtop Inc. Also advises start-ups through her own consultancy firm, LBZ Advisory.
Past appointments: Served as an independent member of the supervisory board of Umicore, a listed Belgian company. During her career she has also held senior roles in Microsoft, Philips and Qualcomm.
Stefan Bomhard
Non-Executive Director
Nationality: Germany
Appointed: May 2016.
Committee membership: Audit, Corporate Responsibility, Nomination and Remuneration.
Key skills and competencies: Extensive experience of working in international environments, particularly in the operation, sales and marketing of well-known consumer food and drink brands.
Other appointments: CEO of Imperial Brands PLC.
Past appointments: Served as CEO of Inchcape plc. Prior to that, was president of Bacardi Limited’s European region. During his career, he has also held a number of worldwide senior positions at Cadbury Plc, Unilever PLC, Diageo plc, Burger King and Procter & Gamble.
John Bryant
Non-Executive Director
Juliana Chugg
Non-Executive Director
Arlene Isaacs-Lowe
Non-Executive Director
Nationality: Jamaica / USA
Appointed: November 2021. Will succeed Nelson Silva as Chair of the Corporate Responsibility Committee at the conclusion of the 2025 AGM.
Committee membership: Audit, Corporate Responsibility, Nomination and Remuneration.
Key skills and competencies: Over 20 years’ executive experience in corporate social responsibility (CSR), finance, strategy and sales across the US, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Other appointments: Non-executive director of Equitable Holdings, Inc. and Xenia Hotels & Resorts, Inc. Financial secretary of The Links Foundation, Incorporated and a member of the advisory board of Howard University School of Business.
Past appointments: Served as global head of CSR at Moody’s Corporation, where she developed and implemented their global CSR strategy. Joined Moody’s Corporation in 1998, where she held various senior leadership, analytical, commercial and relationship management roles. Prior to joining Moody’s, served as CFO of Equinox Realty Advisors LLC, and before that was a portfolio manager with MetLife Realty Group, Inc. A former member of the advisory board of Agbanga Karite LLC.
Sundar Raman
Non-Executive Director
Nationality: USA
Appointed: January 2022.
Committee membership: Audit, Corporate Responsibility, Nomination and Remuneration.
Key skills and competencies: Over 20 years’ experience as an executive in the US, operating in highly competitive markets and successfully growing global consumer brands.
Other appointments: Global CEO of Procter & Gamble’s Fabric and Home Care business.
Past appointments: President, Home Care and P&G Professional with Procter & Gamble (P&G). Since starting his career with P&G in 1998 as a market analyst, he has held a number of senior leadership roles in business intelligence, marketing and innovation across a variety of product lines and market segments. Also served as chair of the American Cleaning Institute, and as a member of the board of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.
Nelson Silva
Non-Executive Director
Nationality: Brazil / Portugal
Appointed: July 2015. Appointed Chair of the Corporate Responsibility Committee in February 2017. Will retire from the Board at the conclusion of the 2025 AGM.
Committee membership: Corporate Responsibility (Chair), Audit, Nomination and Remuneration.
Key skills and competencies: Possesses considerable executive management experience in a variety of senior leadership roles within major international companies, with a particular focus on Brazil.
Other appointments: Non-executive director of Nutrien Ltd, and Altera Infrastructure L.P., and an adviser to Appian Capital Advisory LLP and HSB Solomon Associates LLC.
Past appointments: Served as an executive director of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A., CEO of BG Group in South America, non-executive director of Cosan Limited, managing director of Embraer for Europe and Africa, CEO of All Logistica in Argentina and president of BHP Billiton’s Aluminium business unit. Prior to joining BHP Billiton, he held a number of senior positions at Vale S.A., including sales and marketing director.
Ireena Vittal
Non-Executive Director
Nationality: India
Appointed: July 2015. Appointed Designated Non-Executive Director (DNED) for Workforce Engagement in October 2019. Stepped down from this role in October 2024. Will retire from the Board at the conclusion of the 2025 AGM.
Committee membership: Audit, Corporate Responsibility, Nomination and Remuneration.
Key skills and competencies: Has strong advisory, business and operational experience across a variety of retail businesses, with a particular focus on India.
Other appointments: Independent director of Asian Paints Limited, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, and UrbanClap Technologies India Private Limited. Non-executive director of Diageo plc, and a member of the advisory board of Russell Reynolds Associates.
Past appointments: Served as a non-executive director of Godrej Consumer Products Limited, WIPRO Limited, Housing Development Finance Corporation Limited, Titan Company Ltd, The Indian Hotels Company Limited, Cipla Limited, Tata Global Beverages Limited, Tata Industries, Zomato Media Private Limited, GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, and Axis Bank Limited; and also as head of marketing and sales at Hutchinson Max Telecom, and a partner at McKinsey & Company.
Leanne Wood
Non-Executive Director
Nationality: UK
Appointed: May 2023.
Committee membership: Audit, Corporate Responsibility, Nomination and Remuneration.
Key skills and competencies: Has a wealth of experience in people and organisational strategy and also has wider strategic and operational experience in global organisations, including in the food and beverage, retail and technology sectors.
Other appointments: Chief Human Resources Officer of Vodafone Group Plc and lead Vodafone non-executive director for Vodacom Group Limited.
Past appointments: Served as non-executive director and chair of the Remuneration Committee of The Go-Ahead Group Plc. Prior to joining Vodafone, served as the chief people, strategy and corporate affairs officer for Burberry Plc, and worked for Diageo plc for 15 years in a variety of roles, latterly as its group HR director. During her career she has also worked in strategy and finance roles for Allied Domecq Plc, LEK Consulting and United Distillers.
Alison Yapp
Group General Counsel and Company Secretary
Nationality: UK
Appointed: October 2018.
Committee membership: Audit (Secretary), Corporate Responsibility (Secretary), Disclosure, Executive, General Business (Secretary), Nomination (Secretary) and Remuneration (Secretary).
Key skills and competencies: A solicitor with more than 30 years’ international experience in FTSE and NYSE listed companies across the services, industrial and engineering sectors, with significant experience in strategic M&A, crisis and change management.
Other appointments: None.
Past appointments: Served as chief general counsel and company secretary of Amec Foster Wheeler plc, company secretary and general legal counsel of Hays plc and company secretary and group legal adviser of Charter plc. Prior to joining Charter, she held a number of senior legal roles at Johnson Matthey plc and was a corporate and commercial lawyer at Turner Kenneth Brown.
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