Clinical academic appointments in medicine, health, and social care act as critical positions of influence across higher education and healthcare institutions. In seeking to tackle major health challenges at a local, national and global level, clinical academics must work at the nexus of research, clinical engagement and impact.
Perrett Laver is one of leading firms advising worldwide upon senior appointments within academic medicine.
We have one of most extensive records of advising upon the appointments of CEOs, Deans, Chairs of Department, Institute Directors and Research professors within the widest array of academic medicine and health science disciplines. Our international reach is unparalleled.
As a firm, we have partnered with clients globally on the appointment of over 2,000 Senior Academics from Senior Management teams, including Deans of Faculty, Heads of School, and Directors of Institute. Senior leaders in academic medicine, from Heads of Department to Vice-Presidents, must balance a diverse set of needs and stakeholders. Higher Education Institutions around the world seek leaders who are able to drive personal and institutional research strategies, while simultaneously playing a crucial role in the education strategy for their institution. In addition, clinical academic leaders must also act as leaders of clinical excellence in their field, forging connections and collaborations with healthcare providers locally, nationally, and globally. The complexity, demand, and diversity of such roles are not to be underestimated.
With clients in 50 countries, and experience working with over half of the top 200 universities in the world, we at Perrett Laver have an unparalleled understanding of academic medicine globally, such that we are able to provide our clients with at once a global outlook, while remaining sensitive to our clients’ local health system and the impact this may have on an incoming appointee.
With leading practices in healthcare, research and higher education, we are uniquely placed to support health research institutes in their recruitment of Directors, Chairs, and senior leaders. As these institutes seek to address the global challenges facing medicine and healthcare, their appointees must be able to lead in research and clinical environments, as well as communicate with a diverse range of stakeholders across sectors, organisations, and traditional academic boundaries.
Our in-depth understanding of research excellence in clinical sciences is vital to the successful search for global academic talent on behalf of our clients. Of the over-200 faculty-level appointments conducted by Perrett Laver annually, one third are conducted in the health and life sciences disciplines. Ranging from Chairs in applied health and professional practice, to clinical trials, to medicine and biosciences, our extensive track record in health and medical faculties has led to an extensive network and in-depth database of academic talent, which we are able to employ to the benefit of our clients.
Organisational structures that comprise an academic health system are varied and complex making the need for excellent Boards, Chief Executives and Senior Executives increasingly vital to the success of these organisations. Perrett Laver understands the importance of having this focus on translation between research, clinical services, education and training and feel that they directly lead to clinical benefits for patients.
Bringing together organisations engaged in education, clinical research, informatics, innovation, training, and healthcare delivery, academic health systems offer a real opportunity to improve patient health and care through innovation and knowledge exchange, and consequently to generate wealth for the local health economy.
Working at the interface between health and social care and academia we are well placed to understand the profiles, values and motivations required by these organisations in their leaders.
Gordon is a Regional Managing Partner, Americas. He leads our Canadian operations and delivers senior-level searches across all of the sectors in which we operate. He began with the firm in our London office and subsequently opened the Vancouver office in 2013 and the Toronto office a few years later.
Gordon holds a B.A. in Classics and Anthropology from Alberta, an MPhil in Archaeology from Glasgow, a PhD (on the looting and illegal trading of antiquities) from Cambridge (Homerton College) and a Corporate Executive Certificate from the Alberta, School of Business. He held junior research positions at Texas (Institute of Classical Archaeology) and Westminster (ESRC Project on the UK’s Dealing in Cultural Objects Offences Act 2003) and he was Collections Management Advisor at Alberta (Museums and Collections Services). He was also an Associate Scholar on the Intellectual Property in Cultural Heritage Project and continues to write book reviews for a few academic journals. He also brings government experience from the UK (Parliamentary Ombudsman) and Canada (Government of Alberta), where he managed a socioeconomic program evaluation team and received a Premier’s Award for outstanding client services.
t: +1 604 358 7113
Erik is Managing Partner for Perrett Laver’s work in the US and is based in Raleigh, North Carolina.
His experience in senior level executive search includes Board, Chief Executive and other senior leadership appointments our Social Impact & Environment, Higher Education, and Research, Technology & Innovation practices.
Erik holds BA in History from Menlo College in California, where he was class Valedictorian and an MSt in History from the University of Oxford. Before joining the firm, he held the position of Business Development Manager for the geopolitical consulting firm Oxford Analytica.
t: 650-666-7037
Birgit Brandt is Regional Managing Partner, Asia Pacific.
Her experience includes Chief Executive and Senior Academic and Administrative appointments in Higher Education and Research, Schools and Global Non-Profit Practices with Asia-Pacific.
Birgit holds a PhD from the University of Warwick in Sociology and MAs in Race and Ethnic Studies and Political Science from Warwick and the Freie Universitat Berlin, respectively. Birgit began her career as a Research Fellow in Berlin moving to the University of Warwick to work in the Centre for Research in Ethnic Relations and the Department of Politics and International Studies. She moved on to join a novel research grants programme that sought to support partnerships between UK universities and charities and was appointed Head of Grants at the Royal Society and Director of Programmes at the British Academy. She has travelled extensively, including six months in PRC learning Mandarin.
t: +61 (0) 2 8075 4640
Katharine is a Partner at Perrett Laver and co-lead of our Hong Kong operation.
Her experience includes Chief Executive and Senior Academic and Administrative appointments in Higher Education and Research within Asia-Pacific.
Katharine has until recently been the Resident Director for the Alliance for Global Education in Beijing. A native of Kentucky, Katharine, has lived and worked in mainland China for many years, beginning with a study abroad experience in Beijing in 1992-93.
After graduating from Reed College (BA in Chinese Language & Literature; Biochemistry & Molecular Biology) she spent a year in China as a Thomas J. Watson fellow and then completed her M.H.S. at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. In 2000 Katharine returned to China, where she has worked as epidemiologist on various public health projects, including projects focussing on AIDS/STD prevention and control, with the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, the World Health Organization, and the Chinese government. She also received a fellowship from the Blakemore Foundation to study advanced Mandarin Chinese at Tsinghua University in 2008-09.
Simon Laver is one of Perrett Laver’s co-founders. His diverse experience in senior level executive search included CEO and board-level appointments in higher education, international development, research, life sciences and healthcare.
He holds a first class degree from the University of Oxford and an MBA from the London Business School (including a semester at the Tuck School, Dartmouth College). Throughout his working life he has been very active in the Global Development sector having been Chair and Trustee for a number of internationally leading INGOs.
Graham is a Partner & Global Practice Head, Research, Technology and Innovation.
His experience of senior level executive search includes Chair and Professorial appointments for a range of global Higher Education institutions, Chief Executive and senior administrative appointments in RTOs and multiple research leadership appointments in research and innovation focused organisations.
Graham holds a first-class honours degree in Zoology and a PhD (on the genetics of brain development and dysfunction), both from Trinity College Dublin. Before joining Perrett Laver, Graham was a Research Fellow at Imperial College London, investigating the mechanisms of neural degeneration and repair.
As Global Senior Partner, Sinead is responsible for the long-term strategic development of Perrett Laver alongside the acceleration of its commercial growth.
During her ten years at Perrett Laver, she established and led the firm’s operations in Amsterdam and Dublin, while continuing to grow Perrett Laver’s Research, Technology and Innovation, and Higher Education practices across Europe. Sinead’s experience at Perrett Laver includes advising on senior executive and non-executive appointments for universities, public and privately funded research institutes, as well as research-oriented charities and non-profits.
Sinead holds an honours degree in Natural Science from Trinity College Dublin and a PhD in Neuroscience from University College Cork.
t: +353 1 905 3709