John Lewis appoints new chief people officer

The John Lewis Partnership has announced the appointment of Helen Webb OBE as its new chief people officer, joining the partnership on 24 November.

Webb was most recently chief people officer at WHSmith, supporting the business through large scale employee changes, and prior to that was chief people and services officer for the Co-op. Earlier in her career, Webb worked for Sainsbury’s, latterly as central retail director; Marks and Spencer and Aviva.

Jason Tarry, chairman of the partnership, said: “I’m delighted to appoint Helen to the executive team as our new chief people officer. She will be instrumental in shaping the Partnership’s people strategy, fostering our strong partner ethos and driving talent development. Helen will play a crucial role in nurturing our unique Partner culture and ensuring the partnership remains a fantastic place to work.

“This is also a moment for me to express my huge gratitude to Jo Rackham, who has led brilliantly as interim chief people officer for the past 18 months. During this period, Jo has forged ahead with the People agenda and progressed important changes that are foundational to our work in the years ahead.”

Webb added: “It’s an incredible privilege to join the John Lewis Partnership, a business renowned for its unique ownership model and commitment to its partners. I’m passionate about creating an environment where people can thrive and feel a true sense of belonging and I’m looking forward to working with the team to build on the partnership’s strong foundations in the people space.”

John Lewis operates 34 shops across the UK while Waitrose has more than 300 shops in England, Scotland, Wales and the Channel Islands.