Oxera today announces the appointment of two Chief Operating Officers, Deborah Stump and Andrew Judt.
Andrew Judt and Deborah Stump’s new roles and partnership are set to enable significant growth for the economics consultancy. They will be working together as a COO team, bringing their complementary skills and experience to support Oxera’s exciting growth plans in Europe and beyond.
Jointly, Deborah and Andrew bring a combination of skills and experience that is rarely found in a single person. Their cross-functional knowledge and impressive experience will enable transformational change for the firm, helping to enhance the experience of colleagues, Partners and clients alike.
Deborah joined Oxera in 2012 as a leading HR professional. Since then, she has driven Oxera’s people strategy to create the intelligent and dynamic workforce that Oxera has today. Deborah has also been instrumental in the development of Oxera internationally, heading up the expansion of Oxera’s office portfolio and creating the right infrastructure to support Oxera’s ever-expanding client base. Before joining Oxera, she held senior HR positions with the law firm DAC Beachcroft and the multi-disciplinary firm Grant Thornton. Deborah is a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, having qualified in 2000, and a member of the British Psychological Society.
Commenting on her appointment, Deborah said: ‘I’m thrilled to be taking on this new challenge at Oxera alongside Andrew. Our complementary skills and experience echo the cross-sectoral depth that Oxera teams are known for, and the strong partnership we have formed in recent years is a great example of the collaboration that underpins our work and our client relationships.’
Andrew joined Oxera in 2017 as Chief Financial Officer, with experience across the consultancy, technology, media, and financial services sectors. His significant business transformation experience has enabled him to lead on the development of Oxera’s finance, risk, and technology platforms. Andrew was audit manager at Mazars, after which he moved into senior finance positions at RBS, Towry PLC, Teletrax, Medialink, and most recently CEB Inc (now Gartner).
Looking forward to his new role, Andrew commented: ‘I’m very excited to take on this role in partnership with Deborah, applying our collective strengths to execute our plans for sustainable growth while meeting the needs of our clients and talent’.
Dr Helen Jenkins, Oxera’s Managing Partner, is pleased to be working closely with Deborah and Andrew in their new roles. Helen says they will be ‘instrumental in driving and nurturing collaboration and growth’, and that ‘their complementary skills, experience and knowledge will help to take Oxera into a new and exciting chapter, driven by our passion to make a difference’.
This announcement comes with the news that Paul Breakwell—Oxera’s long-standing COO of 14 years—is taking on a new appointment as a part-time strategic adviser to the Board. Since joining Oxera, Paul has helped transform Oxera into an international business, and led on its conversion to an LLP in 2014. Paul has enabled an impressive programme of change and growth over the years, and one that has always been aligned to the values of the firm.
Commenting on the changes, Helen said that she and the Partnership would like to ‘thank Paul for his dedication to the firm’ and that ‘they are grateful for how he has enabled the firm to help its clients achieve their goals over the years’. She is delighted that Paul will continue to support the Board, while also developing in particular his charitable commitments.
Anthony Julius, Oxera’s Chairman, added: ‘I am thrilled with the appointment of our two new COOs, both of whom will bring a tremendous amount to the table. These changes come at a time where there is enormous opportunity for businesses and policy-makers to take advantage of sound economic and financial advice to bolster decision-making around the world. Oxera’s long history—coming as it does from the greatest centres of academic excellence—the passion for what they do, and their vast global experience, places the firm in a unique position to inspire better decisions as the world recovers from what has been a momentous 18 months.’ He went on to say that ‘Paul’s transformational impact on Oxera and outstanding leadership has created a solid base for the next ambitious stage in Oxera’s journey’ and that he ‘looks forward to Paul continuing to share his valued insights and experience through his Board position’.