IVC Evidensia announces new Group COO and new Regional CEO, UK & Ireland
We are pleased to announce two changes to our senior leadership team to help support the next stage of the Group’s journey, namely:
- Duncan Phillips, current Regional CEO, UK & Ireland, is promoted to Group Chief Operating Officer (COO).
- George Dymond joins as Regional CEO, UK & Ireland.
These changes pave the way for further enhancing our support of our practices and colleagues in the delivery of our purpose of Healthy Animals, Happy Owners in the UK & Ireland, and across our whole global network.
Duncan Phillips promoted to Group COO
Taking up the Group COO role with immediate effect, Duncan will build on the successful change and improvement he has delivered as Regional CEO, UK & Ireland. This includes strengthening operating structures and effectiveness, improving colleague benefits and engagement, and successfully launching our integrated More Complete Care clinical strategy.
Continuing to report directly to Group CEO Simon Smith, Duncan will help our operating regions improve their operational effectiveness through positive, proven change, focused on further improving levels of clinical excellence, colleague experience, and customer satisfaction across all countries in our network.
As Group COO, Duncan continues his support for the Netherlands, with our UK and Ireland operations continuing to report to him until George has fully settled into his role in our largest market.
Johanna Rastad, Regional CEO, Northern Europe, notified us recently of her intention to step back from full-time work due to personal reasons, and leaves with our full support, thanks for her efforts, and best wishes for the future. To help ensure stability and continuity, Duncan will also cover the Northern Europe CEO role on an interim basis, working closely with our MDs in Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Estonia, Poland, Czech Republic and Latvia to support the region.
George Dymond joins as Regional CEO, UK & Ireland
George brings over 20 years of senior leadership experience across health and retail, with a strong track record in improving operational effectiveness, business performance, staff engagement and culture.
He joins us from his role as Executive Vice President of kitchen company Nobia, following time as Supply Chain Director for their UK brands Magnet and Gower, and in CEO, MD and senior operations roles at Planet Organic, Holland & Barrett, Tesco, and Coles in Australia. His strategic vision and operational know-how, collaborative and values-driven approach, will help the UK team build on the positive momentum in the region. George joins us during Winter 2025, will sit on Simon’s Ex Co team, and report to Duncan.
Simon Smith, Group CEO of IVC Evidensia, said:
“These appointments mark an exciting next step in our journey. Duncan has shown outstanding leadership in transforming our UK & Ireland business, and will bring the same drive and clarity to the Group COO role. George’s track record in health and retail, combined with his customer focus, operational experience, and collaborative style, make him ideally placed to build on the strong foundations in the UK & Ireland. Together, these changes will further strengthen our ability to support our people and practices in sustainably delivering our purpose of Healthy Animals, Happy Owners”