Board of Directors
John McAdam is the Chairman of ConvaTec Group plc. John is currently an advisor to BlackRock’s Long Term Investment Group. John was the Chair of United Utilities Group plc between 2008 and 2019 and served as Senior Independent Director of Cobham plc. John has previously been a Non-Executive Director of Wilmcote Holdings plc and of a number of FTSE 100 and US companies, including Rolls-Royce Group plc, J Sainsbury plc and The Sara Lee Corporation. He spent more than two decades at Unilever before joining ICI, where he became Chief Executive in 2003 until its takeover by Akzo Nobel in 2008. Previously, John was Chairman of Rentokil Initial plc from 2008; he stepped down from this role earlier in 2019. With 20 years' service as a board director, including as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer in companies undertaking transformation, John has a wealth of experience on which to draw in his role as Chairman and leader of the Board. John has a BSc (Hons) Chemical Physics, a Diploma in Advanced Studies in Science and a PhD.
Karim Bitar is Chief Executive Officer of Convatec Group plc. Previously, Karim was Chief Executive Officer of Genus plc, a leading global agricultural biotechnology company. During his eight-year tenure, he helped transform Genus into a technology pioneer with leading global franchises in dairy, beef and pork genetics. Prior to this, Karim worked for over 15 years with Eli Lilly & Company and was President of Lilly Europe, Canada and Australia before joining Genus. An ex- McKinsey & Company consultant, he worked across Asia and Europe, and also held management roles at Johnson & Johnson and the Dow Chemical Company.
Karim was a Non-Executive Director of Spectris Plc, a leading global analytical instrumentation company, from June 2017 to January 2022, and is a member of the University of Michigan Ross School of Business Advisory Board.
Karim has a Masters (Hons) in Business Administration, University of Michigan, Ross School of Business and a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin.
Jonny Mason joined Convatec Group on 31 January 2022, initially as CFO designate, and then as CFO from 12 March 2022 when he also joined the Board.
An engineer and accountant by training, Jonny is a seasoned CFO with an extensive track record in listed and international businesses and brings diverse strategic enterprise transformation, deep financial acumen and a customer orientation. Prior to joining ConvaTec, Jonny was Chief Financial Officer of Dixons Carphone Plc, now known as Currys Plc, between 2018-2021. At Dixons, he played a central role in the company’s transformation, growth and development of its omnichannel capability.
A talented people-leader, he has made a significant contribution to businesses he has been a part of, particularly those going through transformation, where he has delivered a stronger balance sheet, a sharp focus on cash and cost control as well as in building and contributing to high performing teams. Previous roles include CFO of Halfords Plc from 2015 and he was their interim CEO between September 2017 and January 2018. Jonny has built up a diverse and strong portfolio of experience, including being CFO of Scandi Standard AB, CFO at Odeon and UCI Cinemas and Finance Director of Sainsbury’s Supermarkets. His early career included finance roles with Shell and Hanson Plc.
Mrs Ewing joined the Board in August 2017. She is currently a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of ITV plc and a Non-Executive Director of International Consolidated Airlines Group, S.A., where she is a member of the Audit and Compliance Committee and the Nominations Committee. Mrs Ewing has held Non-Executive Director roles with Standard Chartered plc, Whitbread plc and the Confederation of British Industry and was also the Independent External member of the Audit Committee of the John Lewis Partnership. From 1987-1999, she was a corporate finance partner of Deloitte LLP and returned to the firm in 2007 as a Vice Chairman and latterly as Managing Partner, before retiring in 2012. Mrs Ewing was Group Chief Financial Officer of Trinity Mirror plc from 2000 – 2002 and Chief Financial Officer of BAA PLC from 2002 – 2006.
Constantin joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in September 2020 and is an internationally recognised key opinion leader in the fields of biomedical engineering, image-guided therapy and drug delivery. Constantin holds a BA, MEng, MA and PhD degrees in Engineering from University of Cambridge and was appointed to the first Statutory Chair in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Oxford in 2011. He is currently the Director of the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Oxford, which is focused on the disciplines of non-invasive therapies, drug delivery, regenerative medicine, medical imaging, AI in healthcare, neurotechnology and biomaterials. Constantin is also Professor Fellow of Magdalen College and a Trustee of the Oxford Transplant Foundation.
Beyond his roles in academia, Constantin also has a proven track record of translating research into technology through entrepreneurship, recognised by the 2017 Silver Medal of the Royal Academy of Engineering. He is the founder and has been CTO/CSO of three successful spin-outs, OrganOx Limited, OxSonics Limited, and OrthoSon Limited, and now serves on each of their boards as a Non-Executive Director. Between 2014 and 2020, he direct and led the Oxford Centre for Drug Delivery Devices, a cross-disciplinary centre working across pharmaceutical and medical device companies and the NHS. In 2019, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
Brian joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in March 2020. He served as a Non-Executive Director of United Utilities Group PLC between September 2012 and July 2021. Brian was formerly Chief Financial Officer of Bunzl plc from 2006 to 2019 and, prior to that, he held a number of senior management finance roles with Bunzl, including divisional Finance Director, Group Treasurer and Head of Internal Audit. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG in 1988.
Heather joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in July 2020. She is currently Chair of SCA Pharma, Non-Executive Director of Pendulum Therapeutics, Inc., Immatics US Inc., and Assertio Therapeutics, Inc. where Heather is also a member of the Audit Committee and Compliance Committee. She is Co-Chair of the University of Michigan's College of Engineering Innovation Committee and a member of its Leadership Advisory Board.
Heather spent 27 years with Abbott Laboratories where she held a number of global senior operational and strategic leadership roles, including Senior Vice President of Abbott Diabetes Care and most recently, Executive Vice President of Abbot Nutrition. Prior to joining Abbott, Heather worked for Quaker Oats, FMC Corporation, and Commonwealth Edison. Heather holds a B.S.E. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Michigan and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago.
Kimberly joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in February 2022. Kimberly's previous roles include; President and CEO of Sonida Senior Living Corporation, a US listed company; President of GN Hearing for North America and also served on GN Store Nord's global management team; as President of Chronic Care for the US subsidiary of Coloplast; as Chief Marketing Officer for Gentiva Health Services and as consultant for several private equity firms and portfolio companies. Kimberly currently serves on several industry-related boards and committees and has previously held various other senior leadership roles.
Kimberly is highly skilled at business strategy, growth and transformation, with a strong record of leading companies to consistent outperformance and has extensive experience in healthcare products, services and delivery, including health insurance, durable medical equipment, infusion therapy, nursing and hospice, and medical devices.
Sharon joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in March 2022 and is Convatec’s designated Non-Executive Director for workforce engagement. Sharon has over 40 years of healthcare and executive experience, with focus on driving quality, efficiency and innovation.
From 2011 to 2022, Sharon was President and Chief Operating Officer of U Chicago Medicine, as US nationally ranked medical centre with a network of physicians and clinics with 10,000 employees and operating revenue in excess of $2 billion.
She is a Non-Executive Director of Adtalem Global Education, Apollo Endosurgery and Vocera Communications, a healthcare technology company. She was previously Non-Executive Director of Aviv REIT, a healthcare REIT. Sharon holds an M.S. in Nursing Administration from the Loyola University of Chicago, and a B.S in Nursing from the Northern Illinois University.