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Alison Johns confirmed as the new chief executive of the Leadership Foundation

7 November 2014

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Alison Johns confirmed as the new chief executive of the Leadership Foundation

Sir Andrew Cubie, the chair of the board of the Leadership Foundation, has announced that Alison Johns is to be the new chief executive of the Leadership Foundation.

He said: “Alison has led the organisation with great skill since she took over as interim chief executive in July. She will be an excellent ambassador for the Leadership Foundation as she is widely respected throughout higher education. On behalf of the board, I am delighted that we shall be working with her and our committed team as we implement the plans for the next period of the Leadership Foundation.“

Alison will take up the role with immediate effect. Prior to joining the Leadership Foundation on secondment, she was the head of leadership, governance and management at the Higher Education Funding Council for England (Hefce) and is well known throughout the sector in the UK and internationally.

Alison Johns said: “I am looking forward to leading the Leadership Foundation and I shall continue as I have started, ensuring that the Leadership Foundation listens and responds to the needs of the sector, as this will remain a critical part of the basis for all our work.”

About Alison Johns

Alison has worked in leadership, governance and management development in higher education for over 20 years and at Hefce since 2003. Before that she was a career civil servant and management consultant. She has an MA in Management Learning and has held a number of senior positions in the sector. She has regularly advised on higher education leadership, governance and management policy and strategy internationally and nationally. She is the immediate past president of the Association of University Administrators.

About the Leadership Foundation

The Leadership Foundation provides a dedicated resource of leadership, governance and management advice to higher education throughout the UK and has a membership of around 90% of publicly funded higher education institutions. It is a limited company and charity owned and established by Universities UK and GuildHE and through funding support, has accountability to the four higher education funding councils of the UK.

Earlier this year the Leadership Foundation celebrated its 10th anniversary with a range of activities that included participation from universities and higher education colleges throughout the UK.

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