LEP hands top job to academic heavyweight

Professor Neal Juster

The Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership has named a prominent academic as its new chair.

Professor Neal Juster, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lincoln, will replace Pat Doody, who steps down after three years in the role.

Juster will be joined on the LEP Board by four new non-executive directors drawn from the private and third sectors: Liam Scully, CEO of Lincoln City FC; Shaun Povey, head of strategic planning & projects at Siemens; Nikki Cooke, CEO of LIVES and Mark Webb, CEO of Grimsby-based business support group E-Factor.

Professor Juster became Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lincoln in October 2021. He holds a PhD in Computer-Aided Design and has extensive experience of management in higher education, having previously held roles as Senior Vice-Principal and Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Glasgow and Pro Vice-Principal and Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Strathclyde.

He said: “I am honoured to have been asked take on the role of chair of the Greater Lincolnshire LEP following from the two, very inspirational, previous chairs. They, together with Ruth Carver as CEO and the wider team, have given the Board a clear strategy to help the county achieve economic growth.

“I would like to thank Pat Doody for his last three years as chair and eight years as a member of the Board. It is an incredibly exciting time for Lincolnshire as we discuss devolution, attract and create new businesses, create jobs and develop critical infrastructure. This cannot be done by any one institution and I look forward to working with partners across the region to achieve collective success.”

Doody, Dean Fathers and Professor Andrew Hunter will all step down from the LEP Board this year.

Chief executive Ruth Carver said: “Bringing in Neal Juster to lead our Board of capable directors is a tremendous opportunity for the LEP. Following in the footsteps of Ursula Lidbetter and Pat Doody will be tough, but we know that Neal has a wealth of experience, knowledge and business acumen as well as the high profile and excellent far-reaching contacts that this role requires.”

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