Who's who at Merlin

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Who's who at Merlin

Lord Jay of Ewelme, Chair

Carolyn Miller, Chief Executive

Imogen Ward, Director of Marketing and Communications

Linda Doull, Director of Health and Policy

Bryony Glenn, Director of Human Resources and Development

Vicky Annis, Director of Finance

Ben Mascall, Country Director, Afghanistan

Gilbert Hascoet, Country Director, DR Congo

Eric Gerard, Country Director, Ivory Coast

Lawrence Oduma, Country Director, Liberia

Paul Sender, Country Director, Myanmar

Maxime Piasecki, Country Director, Nepal

Dalal Najjar, Country Director, Palestinian Territories

Clemens von Heimendahl, Country Director, Zimbabwe

Lord Jay of Ewelme, Chair
Merlin’s Chair is Lord Michael Jay, an Independent Member of the House of Lords, Chair of the House of Lords Appointments Commission, and a non-executive director of British and French companies. His public sector career began in the Ministry of Overseas Development and concluded as Ambassador to Paris and Permanent Under Secretary of the Foreign Office. He was Tony Blair's personal representative to the G8 Summits in 2005 and 2006, chairing the negotiations leading up to the pivotal Gleneagles Summit.

Click here to read an interview with Lord Jay

Carolyn Miller, Chief Executive
Carolyn Miller started as Chief Executive of Merlin in January 2005, just days after the Asian tsunami prompted the organisation’s largest ever emergency response. Since then, she has built on Merlin’s longer-term programmes and policy work, as well as overseeing other emergency responses, including Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar. Carolyn has more than 20 years experience in international development and humanitarian work. She previously worked as a Director (Europe, Middle East and Americas) at the UK Department for International Development and as Director of Programmes at Save the Children. She has lived and worked in countries affected by conflict, including Nicaragua and Mozambique, and has managed a variety of large international programmes. Carolyn has also worked in various positions within local government.

Imogen Ward, Director of Marketing and Communications
Prior to joining Merlin in 2003, Imogen was the MD of the Environmental Investigation Agency, a conservation charity with offices in London and Washington DC. At Merlin, Imogen leads all private fundraising and communication activities. She is also directing the Hands Up for Health Workers campaign and is developing the fundraising activities for Merlin USA.

Imogen has steered growth in voluntary income from £500,000 to over £4 million and in 2010 is leading a four-year programme to increase income from this source to £10 million. With nearly 15 years sector experience, Imogen is a leading figure in fundraising, speaks regularly on the international circuit and is on the Policy Board for the UK’s Institute of Fundraising.

Linda Doull, Director of Health and Policy
Originally trained as a nurse at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and with a Masters in Public Health from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Linda has over 20 years experience in the international health sector. She worked in the UK NHS until 1985, followed by several years working in the Middle East until entering the humanitarian sector, working for Medecins Sans Frontieres to manage programmes in nine conflict-affected countries. Linda has been a Director at Merlin for over 10 years and has overall responsibility for strategic and technical leadership of Merlin’s health programmes, as well as advising the WHO, UK government and other NGOs on health policy from Merlin’s perspective. Linda is also a member of the WHO-led Global Health Cluster and of the BBC Charity Appeals Advisory Committee.

Bryony Glenn, Director of Human Resources and Development
Bryony has over 16 years experience of HR Management and joined Merlin in July 2007 having previously been Head of Human Resources for the Big Lottery Fund and worked in Personnel Management with Marks and Spencer for a number of years. She has also worked and travelled extensively throughout Africa, Asia, South, Central and North America. Bryony leads Merlin's HR and Learning & Development department of 11 staff, supporting the recruitment, development and progression of around 2,700 staff in country programmes worldwide as well at Merlin's Head Office. Bryony is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (FCIPD) and in 2009 led Merlin's achievement of the first People in Aid quality mark "Committed to the People in Aid Code."

Vicky Annis, Director of Finance
Vicky joined Merlin in April 2008, building on over 20 years experience in various not-for-profit organisations including the NHS, local and central government and most recently six years as Director of Finance at Trinity College London. A Fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants (FCCA) and a graduate of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA), Vicky is now leading our finance department, and is responsible for the overall financial position of Merlin including consolidating the financial activities of our offices around the world.

Belinda Coote, Interim International Director
Belinda spent 18 years working for Oxfam first as a researcher and policy advisor and then in management roles both overseas (Nepal, Bangladesh and South Africa) and in the UK. In 2002 she became Chief Executive of Medical Aid for Palestinians, then went on to become CEO of Lattitude Global Volunteering. In 2009 she left Lattitude to pursue a career in consultancies and management. Prior to taking on the role of Interim International Director Belinda spent a period of time as interim Country Director for Kenya and Somalia, for Merlin in Nairobi. Belinda is the author of a number of books on international trade and the global commodity markets.

Ben Mascall, Country Director, Afghanistan

Gilbert Hascoet, Country Director, DR Congo

James McQueen-Patterson, Country Director, Ethiopia

Louise Paterson, Country Director, Kenya and Somalia