Mary Hunter appointed Global Chief People Officer

Copenhagen, 18 October 2019: Mary Hunter is appointed global Chief People Officer with the responsibility to enable business growth by creating a culture and environment that can attract, nurture and retain the best people. Mary Hunter will start in her new role 1 January 2020.

As a global digital advisor and solution provider, our employees are the core to our business success. The knowledge, skills and experience of our people are the most important asset for Columbus. By taking one of our most successful Managing Directors to lead our global people strategy, we empower our business with the right understanding of business and people growth, thus ensuring to attract, develop and retain the best people in our industry.

“Mary Hunter has led the growth of our most successful business unit, growing our UK business from 13 people to a dedicated team of circa 250 people living the strong customer centricity Columbus culture. I am very pleased that Mary Hunter has taken on the responsibility to take our organization to the next level”, says Thomas Honoré, CEO in Columbus.

Mary Hunter has headed the UK since 2002 growing the business to a revenue of app DKK 240m with a track record of consistent annual growth. Today, the UK business has a leading market position due to a customer centric focus and a strong people culture where over 53% of the team have 5+ years of service and 41% of these have more than 10 years of service which is unique in the tech services industry.

“I am so proud to have led the most fantastic team in the UK for the past 17 years. We have achieved so much together it’s been an amazing journey. I’m looking forward to supporting all our global teams on my new venture by empowering and enabling all our people to achieve their maximum potential. Dream it, Plan it, Do it, as we say at Columbus” says Mary Hunter.

Mary Hunter will lead and empower our Employer Value Proposition “HEART”*, with focus on empowering our people by building market leading, career and retention programs, including focus on leadership and mentoring programs, mental health/well being initiatives, enhanced cross border communities, and a diverse and inclusive culture as well as recruitment programs to attract the best new people.

Chris Mean, COO in Columbus UK, will take on the leadership of the UK business, effective 1 January 2020. Mary Hunter will be working out of the UK with a 6-month hand-over period. Chris Mean has been part of the core management team for 15 years and has a strong background in digital transformation technologies, customer solutions, customer success and has proven a strong leader throughout many years.

“Establishing this role on the Group level is an important step to further accelerate our global growth vision. Digital Innovation is more rapid today than ever before and we must ensure we have the right mix of skills, types of roles, ways of working and culture to remain relevant and innovative for our people and our customers,” says Thomas Honoré.

The HEART symbolizes that Our People are at the heart of Columbus.