Faculty of Business and Law Advisory Board Chair

The Role:

UWE Bristol Business School

The Client:

Located in the heart of the Frenchay Campus, the Bristol Business School building was opened in 2017 and offers an innovative way of studying and working. It was a £55 million investment, with a 17,200m2 space serving 5,500 students and containing 148 offices over seven floors.

The state-of-the art facilities include two showcase law courts, a city trading room, a 300 seat lecture theatre, two Harvard lecture theatres, a number of smaller teaching spaces, IT suites, flexible social learning spaces, an external business engagement space and a central social space and café.

The Faculty of Business and Law Faculty Advisory Board was assembled to look at how this Faculty can best serve the needs of the region and its economy. Business and community leaders from the region's financial, commercial, legal, public and health sectors are represented on the panel.

The Challenge

The Interim Pro Vice-Chancellor and Executive Dean Ray McDowell came to Moon Executive Search as they were seeking a new Chair of the Faculty of Business and Law Advisory Board. The Chair role is fundamentally important to the ability of an independent group like the Advisory Board to engage meaningfully with the Faculty Executive in all the activities of the Faculty and provide constructive challenge. The Faculty were looking for a strong successor to Lord Bichard who had undertaken the Chair role for the previous 3 years.

A key criteria for this search was to not only seek someone who has this region at their heart, but also someone who aligns well with the University’s 2030 strategy, the goals of which are set out below:

  • Empower and engage an inclusive and values-led staff and student community

  • Power the local economy through our wide-ranging economic impacts, our graduate-talent pipeline and support for innovation and enterprise

  • Create opportunities for all, through our recruitment from communities with traditionally low participation in higher education, support for students in need and close collaboration with schools, academies and further education colleges

  • Deliver an innovative, inclusive and engaging learning experience where students can thrive and flourish

  • Invest in space and facilities across all our campuses, opening up new opportunities for collaboration and public and community engagement

  • Work closely with a wide range of local partners across the city-region, including the four local councils and the combined authority, the Local Enterprise Partnership, the NHS, businesses, and the dense network of partnerships and community organisation.

Our Approach

Vanessa Moon, Founding Director of Moon Executive Search, worked with Ray and the team to provide a long list of candidates from a range of sectors showcasing strong commercial and academic backgrounds, as well as clear demonstrable success in their Executive and Non-Executive career to date. Candidates were asked a series of questions including:

  • interest in the role

  • experience of leading and chairing an organisation

  • understanding of the time commitment

  • appreciation of the commercial and fiduciary aspects of the role (such as governance and compliance)

Our Solution

We are delighted to announce the appointment of Sam Budd as the new Faculty Chair.

For 10 years, Sam was the Chief Executive of The University of Bristol Students’ Union, Bristol SU, and is now an independent inclusion and cultural transformation consultant with a particular focus on racial equity in the workplace. She supports senior leaders and boards to develop competence in racial literacy in order to confidently lead a strategic response to tackling institutional racism. Sam has recently had a conversation with Sandy Hinks, Head of Charity Practice at Moon Exec Search, about the work that she does.

She has worked at board level for a wide range of organisations and is a board advisor for the Black Professional Network and the Inclusive Companies network. She is an Associate Non-Executive Director of Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership, NHS Trust and a member of the Seacole Group, the national network for Black and Minority Ethnic NHS Non- Executive Directors. She is currently supporting the National Union of Students as the interim Director of NUS UK.

Ray McDowell says:

‘We are very pleased to welcome Sam Budd as our new Faculty Chair. Vanessa and her team did an outstanding job in identifying a great shortlist of Chair and Non-Executive candidates for us. Sam will lead our Advisory Board and take the helm in driving forward our new strategy to make sure our provision continues to fully meet the needs of employers and students alike and ensure that we continue to forge an international reputation for business and law at UWE Bristol.’

Vanessa Moon comments:

‘We have known Sam for a long time, and I knew she would make an outstanding Chair for the Faculty. This was a far-reaching search where we had to consider the future plans of the University as well as adhering to their mission and values. Sam will make a great Chair!’    

Moon Executive Search provide bespoke solutions for clients, using our extensive expertise and knowledge gained from twenty years of recruiting to find your perfect candidate. If you are looking to appoint a senior leader to your Board, visit Build Your Board to get started, or call us on 01275 371200.

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