IIED appoints new chief operating officer

Deborah Harris is "excited to combine my commercial experience with my passion for sustainable development” after being appointed as IIED's new chief operating officer.
Press release, 23 May 2016

IIED today announced the appointment of Deborah Harris to the post of chief operating officer (COO), replacing interim COO Graham Webb.  

Prior to joining IIED, Harris was implementation director at St Christopher's Fellowship. With a track record of working in the international charity sector, namely Save the Children International and the Refugee Council, Harris is no stranger to achieving operational and financial excellence in ambitious organisations.

IIED director Andrew Norton said: "We are delighted that Deborah is joining us at an important time for IIED. Our continued influence in shaping global debates around environmental, humanitarian, urban, sustainable development and social justice issues means we need to continuously improve our transparency, governance and operational performance.

"I and my colleagues at IIED are confident Deborah will enjoy her new role with us and we look forward to welcoming her into the IIED family."

Harris added: "I am particularly excited to be joining IIED. The role offers me the opportunity to combine my commercial and not-for-profit experience with my passion for sustainable development.

"I'm really looking forward to learning much more about IIED (and our partners') global impact, and helping to develop the right systems and processes in the right place to support this."

Harris holds a BA Hons and MBA. She is also a member of the Chartered Management Institute and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Previous positions held include a range of HR, finance and operations roles across the commercial and charity sectors in national and international organisations. 

Resources

Notes to editors

IIED is an independent, non-profit research institute. Set up in 1971 and based in London, IIED provides expertise and leadership in researching and achieving sustainable development. Income in 2014-15 totalled GBP £18 million. IIED employs more than 100 staff speaking over 32 languages working on research projects across the globe.

For more information or to request an interview, contact Jon Sharman: 
+44 7503 643332 or jon.sharman@iied.org