Board of Directors

Date of appointment 
May 2019; Chairman 29 April 2020

Career & background
Previously Chief Executive of Cazenove Capital Management which was acquired by Schroders in 2013. Prior to this, Chief Executive of HSBC Asset Management (Europe)  Limited and Managing Director of James Capel Investment Management.

Skills & expertise
Andrew has substantial experience both as a fund manager himself and in senior leadership roles as CEO and Chairman in investment management and wealth management businesses. He has overseen three different multi-manager businesses and under his tenure the businesses he led significantly grew and prospered.

External appointments
Andrew Ross is Vice Chairman of Wealth Management at Schroders and a non-executive director of Polar Capital Holdings plc.

Board committees

• Remuneration and Nominations Committee
• Director of Witan Investment Services Limited

Date of appointment
February 2010

Career & background
Previously Head of Research at Rensburg Sheppards and an equity strategist and Co-Head of the Investment Trusts team at BZW and CSFB. Prior to the City, he worked for Shell in Oman leaving to take a Sloan Fellowship at the London Business School.

Skills & expertise
Andrew’s roles prior to joining Witan have given him valuable experience of economic and geopolitical events and how they influence equity markets, along with considerable knowledge and experience of the investment trust sector.

External appointments
Non-executive Director of The Diverse Income Trust plc.

Board committee

• Director of Witan Investment Services Limited

Date of appointment

August 2019

Career & background 

Senior Fund Manager and Head of Research at Troy Asset Management since 2011. She is the Senior Fund Manager for the Trojan Global Equity Fund and the Electric & General Investment Fund.

Skills & expertise
Gabrielle has over 30 years’ experience in fund management and has managed global equity portfolios since 2001 and European portfolios since 1998. With this background she brings knowledge of investing through market cycles and understanding of the skills required of fund managers.

External appointments

Senior Fund Manager and Head of Research at Troy Asset Management.

Date of appointment 
July 2020

Career & background
Previously a managing director and co-head of pan-European banks equity research and sales at Deutsche Bank following roles in equity research and sales. Since 2003 she has worked as a non-executive director in the investment company, asset management, charity and social housing sectors.

Skills & expertise
Rachel has extensive knowledge and understanding of the equity markets from her experience in research and sales. She is an experienced non-executive director of investment trusts and was the Chairman of the Association of Investment Companies until between January 2018 - 2021.

External appointments
Board member of the Association of Investment Companies, non-executive director of Gresham House plc and The Mercantile Investment Trust plc.

Board committee

• Director of Witan Investment Services Limited.

Date of appointment
April 2012

Career & background
Previously Global Head of Distribution at JO Hambro Capital Management. Prior to that, Managing Director of Equity Markets at Merrill Lynch Securities in London following roles in equity research and sales. She is a qualified barrister.

Skills & expertise
Suzy’s experience across 14 years on the sell-side in equity research and sales at Merrill Lynch and then 14 years on the buy-side in her role at J O Hambro have given her a thorough understanding of capital markets. In her role at J O Hambro she led a distribution team across geographies with investors in both the institutional and wholesale client channels.

Board committees

• Director of Witan Investment Services Limited
• Remuneration and Nomination

Date of appointment
January 2017

Career & background
Previously Chief Executive of Scottish Enterprise and a former Managing Partner and Regional Industry Leader of Ernst & Young LLP. Served on the Boards of FTSE 250 and other public and private companies and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland.

Skills & expertise
Jack is Chairman of two other listed investment companies and has developed an understanding of the needs of all stakeholders. His experience as a senior audit partner and subsequently in service on numerous audit committees has enabled him to be an effective Audit Committee Chairman.

External appointments
Chairman of European Assets Trust PLC and ICG-Longbow Senior Secured UK Property Debt Investments Limited.

Board committees

• Chairman of the Audit Committee
• Director of Witan Investment Services Limited

Date of appointment
October 2016

Career & background
Lead manager of Polar Capital Technology Trust plc since 2006 and a fund manager of Polar Capital Global Technology Fund and Polar Capital Automation and Artificial Intelligence Fund. He has been a technology specialist for 23 years.

Skills & expertise
As a highly experienced listed equities fund manager, Ben has deep understanding of the analysis process required for investing in public companies. His knowledge of the technology sector particularly enables him to identify the risks from disruption not just to the sector but in general. Ben applies this knowledge to his questioning and monitoring of Witan’s external managers.

External appointments
Director, Technology at Polar Capital.

Date of appointment
February 2006; Senior Independent Director February 2008.

Career & background
Executive career in the investment management industry, most recently as Chief Executive of Hermes Fund Managers Limited.

Skills & expertise
Tony’s previous roles as Chief Investment Officer and Chief Executive Officer of large asset managers including Hermes give him valuable insight into strategy and asset allocation. He is also an experienced non-executive director having served on the boards of some of the UK’s largest companies including Vodafone and Lloyds.

Board committees

• Audit
• Director of Witan Investment Services Limited

Date of appointment
May 2018

Career & background
Previously CEO of UBS Global Asset Management (UK) Limited and held a number of global roles at UBS prior to retiring in 2007.

Skills & expertise
Paul‘s prior roles give him wide experience of the fund management business including equity management, marketing, people and business management. Paul also offers investment trust experience having sat on four other trust boards.

External appointments

Chairman of the Advisory Board of 33 St James’s Limited, non-executive Director of Capital Gearing Trust PLC, Fidelity European Values PLC, and The Merchants Trust PLC.

Board committees

• Audit
• Chairman of the Remuneration and Nominations Committee
• Director of Witan Investment Services Limited