Alison Thorne is a Chair and Non-Executive Director.

Currently she is Chair of the National Dance Company Wales and Chair of Barcud Housing Association plus Senior Independent Non Executive director for the Welsh Rugby Union. Alison builds on her equality work as the Wales Lead for Women on Boards and as an Independent Panel Member for Public Appointments for the Welsh
Government.

Previously a board member for Sport Wales where she Chaired the Facilities Review, a Governor for Cardiff Metropolitan University, a trustee and then Chair at Chwarae Teg (Wales leading equality charity), Non-Executive Director for Thought Provoking Consulting, and a trustee at Tropical Forest Trust (sustainable forest
management).

She has had a corporate global career in retail, holding executive board roles at Mothercare, George at Asda and Otto UK with executive leadership roles at Kingfisher and Storehouse specialising in Operations, Buying, Merchandising and Sourcing.

Her career then developed into Executive search as a partner in a boutique search firm, prior to setting up ‘atconnect’ a business that supports companies to deliver successful teams through executive search and mentoring working across Media, Retail, Housing and Health Care sectors.

Dawn Gunter, Chief Operating Officer, Monmouthshire Building Society

Dawn has enjoyed a successful career in financial services, undertaking various senior leadership roles across the banking, insurance and building society sectors. She has a wide breadth of knowledge across all key functional areas of Distribution, Product Development, Operations, Brand and Communications, IT and Change Delivery with successes delivering results through high performing teams and creating customer-centric cultures.

Dawn’s career started in Bank of Wales (subsidiary of Bank of Scotland) at the age of eighteen, when banking felt like a safe and secure industry for someone who knew that University was not a route they desired. She was fortunate to work for an inspirational female leader who had what it took to compete in what, at the time, was a highly male dominated industry. Having a role model early in her career ensured that Dawn maximised opportunities and created challenging personal goals resulting in her leading the offshore operation for Bank of Scotland in Jersey, before heading back to Cardiff to lead the banking operations function there.

Before joining the Monmouthshire Building Society, where she successfully attained her first Board appointment in February 2018, Dawn led the design and launch of an outsourced mortgage business for Sainsbury’s bank in Edinburgh, spent 11 years with the Principality Building Society with successes in various roles and prior to that in Legal & General.

Dawn also chairs the UK Finance Wales Policy Committee where she ensures UK and Welsh government officials consider the views from industry experts within the banking and housing sectors when formulated new policy. She also acts as a trustee on the MBS Charitable Foundation that support local community initiatives, charities and good causes across South Wales.

Melanie Proffit, Chief Financial Officer at Francombe Estate and Vice President of ACCA, Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.

Melanie Proffitt is the CFO for Farncombe Estate, a private Estate in the Cotswolds which is home to three luxury hotels.  Her role extends beyond financial stewardship, being responsible for all aspects of financial management, statutory reporting, taxation, legal, IT, Sales & Marketing and company secretarial duties.

Professional, Melanie has built on her ACCA qualification with an MBA from Warwick Business School and a postgraduate diploma in Sales & Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing. She has gained valuable business experience that encompasses General, Commercial and Finance Management, across a range of market sectors, including Hospitability, Healthcare, Print and Packaging, Automotive and Heavy Engineering.

In a governance capacity, Melanie has been an Independent Governor at North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College (NWSLC) and was Chair of their Finance Committee.  During her time at NWSLC the college went through a merger where she was activity involved in ensuring that good governance was upheld throughout the process, whilst also streamlining and reviewing the effectiveness of the governance structure.  Post-merger and review she went on to Chair their Audit Committee

Melanie is currently Vice President of ACCA Global Council, sitting on the Council Board, and has served on several of the committees, most recently as Chair of the Remuneration Committee. She considers herself a volunteer custodian, safeguarding ACCA’s reputation, image and brand and protecting them for the benefit of the members, future members, and the wider business community.

As a strong advocate of ACCA, Melanie is extremely proud of the diversity of ACCA’s membership, the high ethical standards and the opportunities that are created for all of its members. 

Caroline Keetch, Halsey Keetch, Founding Director & Chief Operating Officer

Caroline’s career in executive search began in 2003 when she joined the family business, Halsey Consulting. She worked alongside her late father and his team for 12 years learning about every aspect of the financial services industry, with a specialist focus on the governance, regulatory and controls functions.

Under Caroline’s leadership, the company was rebranded to become Halsey Keetch in 2015. She now runs the business with her husband and a highly experienced team, overseeing all company operations. She brings a powerhouse of experience to the table, covering all aspects of the business across both the executive search and board search practice areas.

Caroline holds a degree in politics & sociology and has always been interested in discovering what makes businesses and people tick. She co-leads the Ambassador Group for the Diversity Project, and is passionate about inclusion and diversity, writing on the topic and speaking regularly at industry events. Caroline is also a trained professional coach and specialises in coaching women through periods of challenge and change at work.