Marks & Spencer has raided WPP to appoint a successor to chief digital and technology officer Jeremy Pee, who left in August after six years leading the retailer’s digital and data transformation strategy.
Rachel Higham has spent the past 20 years in technology leadership roles and has been chief information officer at WPP since December 2020, leading the agency group’s cybersecurity, IT strategy, and business transformation. She will join the retailer later this year.
The move marks her return to the business, having first worked at M&S Bank as lead change programme manager from 2003 to 2007.
Over past two decades, Higham has led technology teams at a number of major financial services, insurance and telecoms brands, including BT, HSBC, Vodafone, Chubb, ABN Amro and ACE Group, working across Europe, Asia, and North and Latin America.
Her appointment coincides with the promotion of clothing, home supply chain and logistics director Mark Lemming to the role of international managing director.
Both will sit on the M&S executive committee, a move which the company insists reflects the importance of digital and technology and capital-light international growth to the next phase of its transformation.
M&S chief executive Stuart Machin said: “We have more to do in both of these areas and so much opportunity. Rachel and Mark are fantastic additions to our executive team and I am confident that, with their leadership, we will accelerate the pace of change in the business as we reshape M&S for growth.”
“As I set out at our recent capital markets day, we have more to do in both of these areas, and so much opportunity.”
On LinkedIn, Higham said: “I’m absolutely delighted to be joining Stuart Machin and the executive team at M&S at such an exciting time on their journey to reshape M&S for growth. Congratulations Mark Lemming on your appointment too, I look forward to working with you soon.”
During Pee’s time at the company, M&S revamped the Sparks loyalty programme, ditching the physical cards and relaunching it as a digital-only scheme, hosted through an updated M&S App.
It also beefed up its Data Academy, run with Decoded. In addition, M&S trialled a paid-for ‘VIP’ Sparks Plus loyalty club and a virtual clothing try-on service. It also moved to boost personalisation efforts by snapping up the intellectual property of defunct fashion marketplace Thread. Pee recently took up an advisory role at Matalan.
Last week, the retailer revealed plans to invest in a new round of price cuts involving around 65 products, with an average reduction of 6%.
The initiative will see price reductions in its Remarksable Value favourite baked beans, Fairtrade rich roast instant coffee, and Easy Cook long-grain rice, among others.
M&S also launched a new social media campaign, fronted by 1970s “data rockers” Status Quo, much to the delight of some M&S shoppers, although others were not quite so enthused.
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