The British Council has appointed CEO of leading UK charity Macmillan Cancer Support, Ciarán Devane, as its new Chief Executive, who will take over from current CEO Sir Martin Davidson by January 2015.
Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, thanked Davidson for his “tremendous contribution” over the years and added that “Ciarán has the experience to help the British Council do even more for Britain”.
Sir Vernon Ellis, Chair of the British Council, said his knowledge of building partnerships between the private, public and charity sectors will be valuable to the organisation.
“He brings with him a passion for the charitable sector and for public service and combines this with a broad range of international experience of leading change and growth.”
“He brings with him a passion for the charitable sector and for public service and combines this with a broad range of international experience of leading change and growth”
Devane started his career as an engineer before becoming a manager for ICI working across Europe, Latin America and East Asia. He then moved into management consultancy and led multi-country change programmes for companies such as AstraZeneca and Rolls Royce. He has been at Macmillian since 2007.
In his new role he will reportedly earn £185,000 and said it is a “huge honour” to join the organisation.
“From a personal point of view, I have a long-held interest in international affairs, cultural relations and soft power, so it is all the more a privilege to join an organisation with such a record of achievement.”
Ciarán Devane will take up his post as CEO by January 2015
Meanwhile after 30 years at the British Council and seven years as CEO, Davidson is due to stand down in December this year.
Ellis acknowledged that Davidson has made an “immense contribution” to the British Council and leaves a “firm foundation for Ciarán Devane to build on and an organisation that is confident and ambitious for the future”.
The British Council has a turnover of £800m and employs 7,000 staff in over 100 countries across the world.
A recent Triennal Review of the organisation by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office called for more transparency and an overhaul of its operational model to separate commercial interests from public services.
