Richard has had a long and distinguished career in the automotive industry. He spent over 30 years in senior executive positions at Ford Motor Company, including Group Vice President of Global Product Development and served as its Chief Technical Officer for 10 years.
Richard's non-executive career has included positions working with the Government, such as in the role of Co-Chair of the UK Automotive Council, and in infrastructure sectors, such as the roles of Chairman of Network Rail, Kelda Group Holdings and Yorkshire Water. He also served for 10 years as a non-executive director of GKN Plc, a global leader in automotive and aerospace systems, including the role of senior independent director for much of that period.
Richard's other current roles include Visiting Professor at Loughborough University and Chairman of the Faraday Challenge Advisory Board.
Peter Johnson will retire from the Board on 31 December 2018 with Richard formally joining the Board on 1 January 2019.
Update on Chief Financial Officer appointment
As previously announced, Richard Blumberger has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer of the Company. The Company is now able to confirm that Richard will be taking up his new position on 2 January 2019 and Mark Raban will be stepping down on that date. Mark will be available to assist the Company during a transition period as required.
Alan Ferguson, Senior Independent Director, said:
“I am delighted that Richard will be joining the Company as its new Chairman. He brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience of the automotive industry and his insight and guidance will be invaluable to the development of the Company over the coming years. I would again like to thank Peter Johnson for his leadership of the Company over the past four years.”
Richard Parry-Jones said:
“I am very pleased to be joining MMH as its new Chairman at this time in its development. The global automotive industry is undergoing unprecedented change, driven in large part by exciting new technologies, some of which I have been heavily involved with during my career. MMH's strategy of close partnership with major global automotive brands has served it well over recent years, enabling it to grow significantly and become a leading UK automotive retailer. This strategy has positioned MMH well to continue its recent success and I am very much looking forward to being part of the MMH leadership team to help deliver its future potential.”