Our board

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Peter Cheese, Chartered FCIPD

Alongside his role as CIPD Chief Executive, Peter sits on many forums linked to wellbeing, diversity and inclusion, routes in to work and skills, flexible working, and corporate governance. He is Chair of Engage for Success and the What Works Centre for Wellbeing, and sits on the Board of the College of Policing.

Peter writes and speaks widely on the development of HR, the future of work, and the key issues of leadership, culture and organisation, people and skills.

Before joining the CIPD in 2012, Peter was Chair of the Institute of Leadership and Management, an Executive Fellow at London Business School, and held a number of board-level roles. He had a long career in consulting at Accenture working with organisations around the world and, in his last seven years there, was Global Managing Director for the firm’s human capital and organisation consulting practice.

He is a Fellow of the CIPD, AHRI (the Australian HR Institute), the Royal Society of Arts, and the Academy of Social Sciences. He’s also a Companion of the Institute of Leadership and Management, the Chartered Management Institute and the British Academy of Management. He holds honorary doctorates from Bath University, Kingston University and Birmingham City University, and is a Visiting Professor at Aston University and Unitar University, Malaysia.

Professor Nelarine Cornelius, Chartered CCIPD

Date appointed: December 2018 

Board roles:  Vice-President Membership and Professional Development

Nelarine is Professor of Organisation Studies and Associate Dean, People, Culture and Inclusion at the School of Business and Management, Queen Mary University of London. Her work as an academic is widely recognised, and she holds several fellowships, including Fellowship of the Academy of Social Sciences. 

She has made many contributions to the CIPD in her capacity as an academic and has taught on numerous CIPD accredited courses. She has served as a trustee and director on the boards of a range of organisations including a housing association, international societies, social enterprise, a development trusts, regeneration committees and several national charities. She is currently a trustee and Audit and Risk Committee member for the National Life Stories charity. Nelarine has advised various government departments, including the Cabinet Office, and is an expert within the External Advisory Group, Anti-Racism Strategy, Government of Wales. 

As Vice-President Membership and Professional Development, Nelarine provides thought leadership, academic insight and a membership perspective to the development of the profession and its standards. 

Jonathan Ferrar, Chartered FCIPD

Date appointed: April 2018* 

Board roles: Vice-Chair / Senior Independent Director; Audit and Risk Committee

Jonathan is a globally respected consultant, speaker, author and business advisor in HR strategy, people analytics and digital HR. He is co-founder and CEO of Insight222 Limited, where he advises clients on improving business performance through becoming more data-driven and evidence-based, using people analytics as a strategic advantage.  

Jonathan has worked in corporate business for almost 20 years, with extensive executive leadership and Board advisory at companies like Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) and IBM. He is co-author of Excellence in People Analytics and The Power of People and holds a postgraduate diploma in Human Resources Management.

_{*September 2022 as Vice-Chair/Senior Independent Director}

Caroline Nugent, Chartered FCIPD

Date appointed: April 2019 

Board roles: Audit and Risk Committee; Investment Committee; chair of the CIPD Trust steering group

Caroline was HR Director on the Executive team at the Financial Ombudsman until June 2022. Before that she was Director of HR, OD & Business Development at oneSource (London Boroughs of Havering and Newham) and Company Director at both VineHR and the Public Services People Managers’ Association (PPMA).  

Caroline has a significant history of improving performance in organisations through effective leadership of transformation and change programmes. She was named as one of the World’s Flying High Women Leaders of 2022 and was awarded national Most Influential Practitioner Awards in 2017, 2018 and 2021. 

Caroline has presented at numerous conferences, written articles and featured in national press, including the Municipal Journal, People Management, Personnel Today, HR Excellence and Local Government Chronicle. She is also a former president of the London Public Services People Managers’ Association. 

Siobhán Sheridan CBE, Chartered CCIPD

Date appointed: April 2021 

Board roles: Chair of the People, Culture and Remuneration Committee 

Siobhán joined the field of HR 30 years ago as an L&D Specialist at NatWest Bank. Since then, she has worked across private, public and third sectors, at Capital One, DEFRA, DWP, NSPCC and the Ministry of Defence. Siobhán is an advocate for volunteering and has been a volunteer with Crisis at Christmas and a Trustee for several charities for many years.  

Following her role as Civilian HR Director at the Ministry of Defence, where her team achieved CIPD People Development Partner Status, Siobhán joined the Financial Conduct Authority as Chief People Officer. She holds Master’s degrees in coaching and mentoring and organisational change, with her dissertation covering the subject of ‘Humanising HR’.  

Noel Tagoe, PHD, FCMA, CGMA

Date appointed: April 2023

Board roles: Chair of the Investment Committee; People, Culture and Remuneration Committee; Board champion for Asia; Equality, Diversity and Inclusion champion 

Noel is Chief Executive of Sandhills Advisory Services which provides advisory, research and training services in finance, education, strategy and technology. He was previously Professor of Accounting Practice at Nottingham University Business School and Executive Vice President, Research and Curricula at AICPA-CIMA, where he worked with partners across the world. 

Noel has advised leading global companies on finance transformation, finance talent strategy, digital strategy and managing disruption. He held accounting and strategy positions at BP and Elf Aquitaine (now Total Oil), led the financial advisory services unit of KPMG Ghana and taught at leading business schools, such as the Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business, Manchester Business School and Said Business School. He holds a PhD degree in accounting and is a fellow of CIMA. 

Nicholas Williams, Chartered FCIPD

Date appointed: June 2020 

Board roles: Audit and Risk Committee; Board champion for Middle East and North Africa 

Nicholas brings commercial experience of working with clients globally to support strategy development and the execution of M&A transactions and large transformations, through the lens of people, the HR function and organisational change management. 
 
He began his career in frontline policing, where he delivered large programmes related to the development of people strategies, equality, diversity and inclusion and workforce plans. He transitioned to the UK Civil Service, before moving into management consulting at professional services firm EY, where he has worked across multiple industries and sectors as a trusted advisor in the UK and the Middle East. Nicholas has also spent time as an associate lecturer, delivering HR modules to MA students in London, and is the voice for students on our board.