Anne Poulson appointed as new Chief Operating Officer

Anne is currently COO at the University of Greenwich, where she is responsible for the directorates of Estates and Facilities, Human Resources, Information and Library Services, Planning and Statistics, Student and Academic Services, and Communications and Recruitment.

Since joining in July 2014, Anne has led on the University’s new £200m strategy and capital investment plan, and is the corporate sponsor of the People, Digital and Sports, Health and Wellbeing strategies.

Anne has had a highly successful 23-year career in higher education, with former roles including Director of Students and Education at King’s College London and Executive Director at Research Libraries UK, and she is currently chair of the University Alliance Chief Operating Officers Network.

Professor GQ Max Lu, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Surrey, said: “Following a highly competitive recruitment process I’m delighted to announce that Anne Poulson will be joining us here at the University of Surrey as our new Chief Operating Officer.

“Anne brings a wealth of experience to role, having spent more than 20 years working and managing extensive teams in higher education. I’m confident that she will be a great asset to the Executive Board and I’m very pleased she has chosen to take the next step in her career here with us at Surrey.”

Anne said: “I am absolutely delighted to be joining the University of Surrey in this exciting and ambitious role and am looking forward immensely to working with my new colleagues.” 

Anne takes over from David Sharkey, who has been at the University in senior roles for more than 11 years. Anne will start on 2 January and will have a handover period with David to ensure a smooth transition into the role.