Winners 2022

Anderson helped set up Vertu in 2006 and now the dealer group is the fifth largest in the UK and ninth largest in Europe with 149 outlets, according to data from dealer analyst firm ICDP. It’s also fresh from reporting its highest ever profits for the financial year to the end of February 2022. Anderson is CFO at Vertu and handles all aspects of the Group’s financial dealings. Prior to Vertu, Anderson was group financial controller for Reg Vardy, which she joined in 2000 after seven years working for consultancy firm Arthur Andersen.

Jordan Brompton is the co-founder and CMO of myenergi, a global leader in eco-smart home management solutions best known for developing zappi – the world’s first EV charger capable of harnessing 100% renewable electricity from solar and wind generation. Since founding the business in 2016, Jordan has helped to build myenergi from a team of two to a workforce in excess of 350, shipping more than 350,000 products around the world and opening subsidiaries in Germany, Ireland, Australia and the Netherlands along the way. Key responsibilities include driving all sales and marketing activity both nationally and internationally.

Julie David joined Stellantis in 2021 to take over the prime role overseeing the strategic and operational activities of Peugeot brand in the UK, reporting to UK Stellantis head Alison Jones and now Paul Willcox. She joined from Jaguar Land Rover, where she spent six years and held the positions of Global Franchising & Retail Strategy Director and Global Experiential Marketing Director. Prior to that she spent thirteen years working within the VW Group, four years running her own exec coaching & consultancy business & four years at Ford Motor Company.

Kate Ferry joined McLaren Group as CFO in April 2021 after moving from communications company TalkTalk, where she was Group CFO. Prior to that she worked at Dixons Carphone as group corporate affairs director, which she joined in 2010 from the bank Merrill Lynch.

Fiona runs Octopus Electric Vehicles, the EV specialist leasing business within the entech unicorn, the Octopus Energy Group. With a team of impartial experts, Octopus EV can help you choose your new electric car and give you everything you need to go with it. To help accelerate the transition, Octopus focus on helping businesses offer EV Salary Sacrifice to their employees, as it makes driving electric cheaper than petrol, even before the fuel savings.As our roads are transformed by electric vehicles, our electricity sector must transform too - and Fiona has helped forge the path for dynamic energy tariffs and smart EV charging - including overseeing one of the world's largest demonstrations of Vehicle-to-Grid: Powerloop.After an early stint with BMW developing hydrogen powered cars, Fiona spent time at Bain & Company and Government (now BIES), before focusing on taking smart products to market - most notably with Hive by British Gas, which is now in nearly 2 million homes.

Cathy O’Callaghan holds one of the most senior finance roles within Ford, reporting directly to the chief finance officer John Lawler. She was promoted in 2018 from chief finance officer for Ford in South America. She started at Ford back in 1990 and has held an number of key roles for the company in the UK and Europe, including finance director of Ford of Britain. She has a degree in economics from the University of Reading.

Pocock leads the UK arm of the global company that specializes in the remarketing and recycling of used and salvage vehicles for a variety of customers, including insurance total losses. Pocock oversees a staff of 1,200 across 19 locations in the second most established market in Copart’s global business and she reports to Jeff Liaw, President of Copart Inc. Pocock joined the company from online LCV leasing firm Vans Direct, where she led significant growth over a ten-year period before selling to Vertu Motors Plc. Prior to that she spent 17 years with the AA.

Isobel Sheldon the first employee of Britishvolt in 2020 after joining from the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre, where she was director of business development and responsible for providing the right backdrop for the construction of factories exactly like the one Britishvolt is planning in North East England. Prior to that Isobel worked for Cummins Electrified Power where she was director of technical market development, moving over when Cummins acquired Johnson Matthey Battery System. Awarded an OBE in the New Years honours list 2020, she has a long career in the EV batteries, spanning 20 years, and was responsible for a number of innovations that has resulted in the EVs we see on the road today, she is also member of the UK’s Critical Minerals Expert Committee along with other advisory positions including the Faraday Institution, providing independent advice to the government on the scope and content of minerals strategy for the country along with battery technology expertise

Sarah Simpson was promoted to this prime automotive role in September 2021 after moving from Bentley. There she was regional director for the UK, Bentley’s second largest market, and the region comprising the Middle East, Africa and India. In that role she oversaw franchising, sales, aftersales and marketing activities for 14 countries. Prior to this 2020 move, Simpson was responsible for overseeing sales in the UK and Bentley’s key Asia-Pacific region. She joined Bentley in 2012, rising to head of UK sales in 2014. She has worked for Porsche and Bentley’s parent company, the VW Group, in the UK since 1999.