The Digital Board Team

Bryan MacDonald has dedicated over 18 years to understanding the role and leadership characteristics of successful technology executives. His activities span Executive recruiting, leadership assessment, coaching as well as board advisory work. Formerly a Regional Managing Partner at Heidrick & Struggles Information Officer practice, he has partnered with a number of the leading Fortune 500 companies, spanning almost every industry vertical from Banking through Consumer Goods, Energy Oil & Gas, Retail and Heathcare. Prior to Heidrick & Struggles, Bryan worked for BP helping to define a culture of leadership within their Global Information Technology function. This involved the working with some of the world`s most respected academic institutions, including Harvard, MIT and Kellogg. Bryan is also a recognised author of leadership articles and has been published in Harvard Business Review.

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Mary Lou joined The Digital Board in 2014 and specialises in executive assessment for corporates. Her work focuses on the evaluation of senior level individuals and executive teams. Within this capacity she has a special interest in Board dynamics and composition. She also works with entrepreneurs in a consulting capacity and is involved in sourcing funding for start-up companies. Before turning to consulting in 2008, Mary Lou honed her assessment skills while carrying out senior level searches on behalf of Private Banks around the world. She has worked extensively on retained mandates in the Far East, India, Italy, the Middle East, and the US. Prior to working in Executive Search, Mary Lou worked in Investment Banking with roles in both institutional equity sales and equity research. She began her career in an editorial role within a large Legal & Tax Publisher. Mary Lou holds a degree in Biology from Queen’s University in Canada and a Master’s degree in Organisational Change from HEC, Paris. She is registered with the British Psychological Society in psychometric testing Level A and Level B, and speaks French and Italian.

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Ross Stacey is the latest member of The Digital Board. He comes with over 10 years’ executive search experience, most of which involved assessing and identifying senior IT leaders as well as next generation CIOs. His experience cuts across multiple sectors and specifically within some of the world’s most recognised brands spanning: biotechnology, financial services, construction, retail, public and charity sectors to name a few. Ross has been published in various CIO related magazines as well as Executive Grapevine. A business graduate, Ross has also run two of his own businesses outside of executive search and is a qualified personal trainer.

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Anita Acavalos started her career as a Researcher at Harvey Nash Executive Search in London working on a variety of roles ranging from the CEO of a global research institute to the Chair of the Audit Committee for one of the world’s largest retailers. She holds a Masters degree in Economics from the University of Rey Juan Carlos in Madrid where her thesis focused on the function of the entrepreneur in scientific research and innovation. Anita was also awarded an academic fellowship to research entrepreneurship in the US and is bilingual in Greek and English.

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After obtaining a BA Honours in Criminoloy and Sociology at Middlesex University, she has carved out her career working with well known organisations such as Hedrick & Struggles, Deloitte and the United Nations. Yetunde brings a wealth of skills and experience to her role in providing assistance on all admin matters at The Digital Board and she also speaks fluent French.

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Oliver is new to The Digital Board, having joined in March 2015. He graduated from the University of York with a BA in Philosophy in 2014, and has since worked in events organisation for a high-profile children’s charity and at an Australian based marketing consultancy firm, as well as embarking on a number of freelance sports writing projects. He hopes that his strong analytic skills, which he has developed through these experiences, will allow him to add real value to the Digital Board team.

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