Executive Recruitment Team

James Hunt | Managing Director, Penna Executive Recruitment and Interim

James started at Penna in July 2003, with the initial brief of expanding our Public Sector practice within the Interim Division, specialising within Central Government and the Health sector. He then became Managing Director of the Interim division in 2006, and three years later took over as Managing Director of a newly-formed combined team covering Executive Recruitment and Interim.

Prior to working at Penna, James spent six years in the army before joining Harvey Nash in 1993. Here he spent nine years in the IT Contracts Division, managing a team of consultants and winning major Preferred Supplier Relationships with clients such as Computacenter, Railtrack, MCI Worldcom, Ericsson and Motorola. In 2002 he joined Drax Group to set up a Public Sector practice within their Executive Search and Interim Division. He developed relationships with a range of clients, particularly the NHS, and conducted a variety of Search and Interim assignments across a host of key senior positions.

Andrew Drazin | Principal Consultant

Andrew joined Penna in 2010. His focus is to recruit exceptional talent for his clients and to advise them on their talent management needs at the leadership level, in areas such as executive coaching and building high performing teams. He is committed to developing lasting client and candidate relationships based on delivering outstanding service. He has worked in executive search since 1997 for established search firms such as Whitehead Mann and AT Kearney. More recently, he worked ‘in house’ at The Royal Bank of Scotland with responsibility for recruiting the bank’s senior executives. His areas of functional expertise include the IT, operations, marketing and HR disciplines. Before working in executive search, Andrew held senior marketing roles in brand marketing and product management in the FMCG and telecoms sectors, having worked for Allied Domecq, Del Monte and Cable & Wireless.

David Hunter | Head of Public Sector Recruitment

David has been leading our public and voluntary sector recruitment activities since 2006, and he’s been successfully delivering executive search and selection solutions to the public and private sectors for 14 years. He has particular expertise in reaching out beyond the list of “usual suspects” to deliver fresh talent and leadership solutions for local and central government. His early career includes eight years in the Army and five years’ senior corporate recruitment with PwC’s executive search practice. He also spend two years with a not-for-profit boutique, delivering Chief Executives and Senior Management Teams for leading charities and professional bodies. An active figure in our work with key clients including DfT, HMRC, Sheffield City Council and Nottingham University NHS Trust, he’s currently leading our work with Stoke-on-Trent City Council to bring their Children & Young People’s Directorate out of intervention. David is qualified Level A and B in psychometric assessment with the British Psychological Society.

Eva Borgert Palm | Country Manager, Nordics

Eva joined Penna in November 2004, prior to which she held positions within finance and marketing for companies such as GMAC, Krupp Widia and Munters. She has worked in HR consulting, change management and coaching since 1991. In her former company she managed the change management consultancy team of seven and was responsible for all activities and development within Sweden as well as being a part of the Nordic Management Team. Eva holds a degree in International Economics.

Fiona Makowski | Sector Head, Financial Services

Fiona joined Penna in 2010. Her purpose is to support clients in finding exceptional talent for their teams. Fiona’s passion is the development of long lasting client and candidate relationships and friendships which combine excellence in executive search with deep knowledge of the hiring organisation’s business. Starting her executive search career in 1997, Fiona was a partner in the Financial Services Practice at Whitehead Mann, an MD of a business unit at Korn/Ferry UK and prior to joining Penna in 2010, was a Director of a leading boutique search firm. Her areas of functional expertise include the HR, operations, technology and sales & marketing disciplines. Fiona’s early career was in human resources where she gained 17 years generalist and specialist experience in a number of blue chip organisations such as the Prudential, Churchill Insurance, Meridian TV, MAI plc and ABN AMRO. It was during this period that Fiona worked on a number of start-up projects such as Churchill and discovered an overwhelming interest and love of recruitment.

Helene Bennet | Consultant, Executive Recruitment

Helene began her recruitment career in Stockholm where she worked as a Project Manager and Researcher for complex, large-scale recruitment projects for both public and private sector clients. She moved from Stockholm in 2009 and is now a part of the Public Sector Practice. Since joining Penna, Helene has been part of the delivery of large and complex recruitment projects across central and local government for the likes of the Training & Development Agency for Schools and Stoke-on-Trent City Council. Helene graduated from Lund University in Sweden and holds a Bachelor in Human Resource Management with a major in Work Psychology. She has also lived abroad for extensive periods of time studying Spanish and French.

Nicholas Dabinett | Consultant

Nicholas recently joined Penna to help build up the Technology, Media and Telecoms search practice. He brings six years of executive resourcing experience in the TMT , Professional Services and energy space both in-house as well as agency. Prior to joining Penna, Nicholas worked in a global search and board consulting boutique covering the energy markets. Here he advised FTSE100 and private-equity backed natural resources firms at divisional director, regional director and board levels. Previously Nicholas spent a year working in Deloitte’s HR Consulting practice mainly advising public and private organisations on their resourcing and change strategies. Prior to this he was part of a start up executive search firm servicing the Technology and Telecoms space. He had a particular focus on VC backed US companies building out their leadership teams in EMEA.

Tim Lewis | Sector Head Telecommunications, Media and Technology

Tim manages both International and UK searches throughout Telecoms, Media and Technology. Tim has over 15 years of experience in Executive Search. Following a Masters Degree he started his career with boutique agency, Right International, for 7 years and has subsequently run his own search business and then lead a TMT Practice for the IHR Group (owners of Ellis Fairbank and other brands). Whilst Tim has managed a wide range of searches across disciplines in TMT he also has deep Retail Financial Services experience (incorporating m-Commerce). He has worked with clients including Vodafone, Spin Vox, Q-Tel, France Telecom, Santander, C&W, Royal Bank of Scotland Group and Bank of Ireland.

Aaron Webster | Principal Consultant, Executive Recruitment

Aaron joined our Public Sector recruitment practice in May 2007. He has six years’ experience in appointing high-profile and challenging positions across a broad portfolio of clients. He enjoys the diversity of working across the public sector, but is particularly passionate about our recruitment work in the environment and sustainable development fields. His experience ranges from public appointments at Chair and Board level through to appointing senior civil servants at Director and Director General level. He has an excellent track record in delivering complex multiple-Director projects to the boards of Agencies and NDPBs including the Infrastructure Planning Commission, Directgov and Pension, Disability & Carers Service. He has played a pivotal role in our major restructuring work with Stoke-on-Trent City Council, and also recently recruited the new HM Chief Inspector of Prisons for Ministry of Justice. Aaron is presently studying towards an MSc in Environmental Decision Making. This will compliment the work he’s led for Defra and the Sustainable Development Commission. He holds the British Psychological Society’s Level A & B certificates of competence in psychometric assessment.

Agneta Akerhielm | Consultant, Consumer, Nordics

Agneta has more than ten years’ experience in the Executive Search industry. Her core sector expertise lies in Banking/Finance, IT and Energy. She has also developed two sales organisations and has wide experience of performance management. Before joining Penna in 2006 she held a position as a Key Account Manager in a staffing and recruiting organisation. Agneta holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Uppsala.