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James Saunders

Investor

Chief People Officer at Wates Family Holdings

London, England, United Kingdom

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About

James Saunders is Chief People Officer at Wates, joining in May 2025. He began his HR career at Nationwide, later holding senior HR roles at Vodafone from 2011, and served as Chief People Officer at Intu and then at Highbourne Group, a private equity-backed carve-out of building supply businesses from Travis Perkins.

Experience

  1. Wates GroupChief People Officercurrent2025 — present
  2. Highbourne GroupChief People & Culture Officer2021 — 2024
  3. intuChief People Officer2020 — 2021London, England, United Kingdom
  4. VodafoneHead of HR - Vodafone Business Global Commercial & Operations2018 — 2020Newbury/Paddington
  5. VodafoneHead of HR - Technology2013 — 2018Newbury
  6. VodafoneSenior HR Business Partner - Technology2011 — 2013Newbury
  7. Nationwide Building SocietyHead of HR - HR Strategy, Transformation & Platforms2008 — 2011
  8. Nationwide Building SocietySenior HR Manager - Strategy, Performance & Risk2006 — 2008
  9. Nationwide Building SocietyProgramme Manager - Merger People Workstream2005 — 2006
  10. Nationwide Building SocietyLearning & Development Manager2004 — 2005
  11. Nationwide Building SocietyProject Manager - Corporate Projects2000 — 2004
  12. Nationwide Building SocietyAnalyst - Business Strategy & Planning1998 — 2000

Skills & more

RemCoPeople StrategyExCo LeadershipHuman Capital ManagementHR Transformation15HR Strategy1Change Management30HRIS3Program Management6Human Resources20Employee Engagement8Talent Management5
+11 morePerformance ManagementHR ConsultingTUPEStrategic HRProcess ImprovementPersonnel ManagementBusiness TransformationStrategyManagementStakeholder ManagementBusiness Process Improvement
  • Hogan Accreditation — Indigogold
  • Chartered MCIPD — CIPD

From James's professional profile.

Colleagues at Wates Family Holdings

Andy Wates
WFET Chair at Wates Family Holdings
Anna Mann
Group Communications and Marketing Director, Wates Group at Wates Family Holdings
Brian Long
Group Health, Safety & Wellbeing Director at Wates Family Holdings
Charles Wates
Director at Wates Family Holdings
Chelsea Walters
Group Legal Director at Wates Family Holdings
Chris Cornall
Group Technology and Data Director at Wates Family Holdings
Cressida Curtis
Group Sustainability Director at Wates Family Holdings
David Morgan
Executive Managing Director, WPS at Wates Family Holdings

Frequently asked questions

Who is James Saunders?
James Saunders is Chief People Officer at Wates, joining in May 2025. He began his HR career at Nationwide, later holding senior HR roles at Vodafone from 2011, and served as Chief People Officer at Intu and then at Highbourne Group, a private equity-backed carve-out of building supply businesses from Travis Perkins.
Where does James Saunders work?
James Saunders is Chief People Officer at Wates Family Holdings.
Where did James Saunders go to school?
James Saunders studied at Loughborough University (BEng Hons, Mechanical Engineering with Diploma in Industrial Studies); University of the West of England (MA, Human Resource Management).

Same school

Shared employers