Image via Pulse2 — funding news
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Baker McKenzie: Leadership Change
Jo Hewitt appointed as Managing Partner of London office, first female to lead the office, starting October 1, 2026
Source: Pulse2 — funding news
The leadership read
Baker McKenzie's London office has operated for decades as one of the firm's most commercially significant hubs, a gateway into European capital markets, M&A, and regulatory work. Appointing the office's first female managing partner in its history is not merely a governance milestone; it commits the firm publicly to a succession logic that had been absent from this seat, and sets a visible internal precedent that will be read carefully by partners and senior associates across the wider network. The three-year term structure also creates a defined accountability window during a period of meaningful pressure on Magic Circle and global firm positioning in London post-Brexit. This is one of twelve leadership-change signals we have tracked across sectors in the last 90 days. The cluster is broad, spanning fusion energy (TAE Technologies), automotive technology (Visteon), consumer (Allbirds), and professional services, but a recurring pattern holds: organisations are using planned succession moments to reposition institutional identity, not simply to fill vacancies. Carrier Global's regional climate leadership change and Asurion's combined president-CRO appointment reflect the same logic: leadership transitions as deliberate commercial signals rather than routine rotations. Within professional services and advisory firms reaching this stage of market repositioning, demand is concentrating around leaders with cross-border client origination experience, the ability to integrate practice-area teams under commercial rather than purely reputational frameworks, and operational credibility within partnership governance structures, where influence is earned laterally, not exercised hierarchically.
Market context: Against a Talent Market Index of 100.2 (Neutral) (down 1.1 month-on-month), EMEA is at steady (0pts) on signal share.
Baker McKenzie: 2 signals in the last 90 days; 2 tracked across 8 days.
Also at Baker McKenzie →
More signals across EMEA
Leadership Change · EMEA
Tandem Bank →Tandem Bank announced multiple senior leadership appointments: Simon Bowen as Chief Risk Officer, Natalie Trist as Director of Credit Risk Strategy, Kevin Purcell as Chief People Officer, and Darvish Heshejin as Managing Director of Home Improvement Lending. Tom Ellmers expanded role as MD of Deposits and Digital Experience. Julian Nutley transitioned to Senior Adviser role.
Leadership Change · EMEA
Allwyn UK →Andria Vidler stepped down as CEO of Allwyn UK (UK operator of National Lottery) and was replaced by Phil Walker as Interim CEO. Walker is a former COO of Gibraltar Stock Exchange, Senior Executive at William Hill, and Chief Commercial Officer at 888 Holdings (2023-2024).
Leadership Change · EMEA
Colt Data Centre Services →Quy Nguyen appointed as permanent Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately, following transition from Acting CEO role since April 2026. Previous CEO Niclas Sanfridsson retired.
Leadership Change · EMEA
Glow →Glow appointed Patti Degnan as Chief Information Security Officer to build out security, privacy, and customer trust functions as the cybersecurity company emerges from stealth.
Leadership Change · EMEA
Bentley Systems →Andy Rahden promoted to Chief Revenue Officer from Senior Vice President of Solution Engineering and Services, succeeding Brock Ballard. Leadership change positioned to drive AI adoption and revenue expansion in infrastructure engineering software.
Leadership Change · EMEA
Aviva →Amanda Blanc took over as CEO of Aviva in July 2020 following Maurice Tulloch's departure for health reasons. Blanc has executed a successful turnaround by exiting underperforming European markets, raising £8bn from disposals, and refocusing on UK, Ireland, and Canada where Aviva is a market leader. She has restored growth and shareholder confidence after four successive failed CEOs.
Where this lands in our work
- Board Search & Advisory →
Incoming executives reshape governance needs within two quarters.
- Executive Search — EMEA →
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