Professor Kemsley co-directs the Centre for HR Excellence at Henley Business School, which he joined in 2010. He contributes to the Centre’s research and activities for members and also designs and delivers open and bespoke development programmes for Henley Business School. He also runs his own consultancy, Org-onomic, which specialises in organisational capability and HR effectiveness. His client list includes major organisations such as Aviva, GlaxoSmithKline, the NHS, KPMG, Oxfam, RBS and Siemens.
After spending his early career in engineering and management roles at Rolls-Royce Aerospace and GEC-Alstom, he spent eight years at Mars Inc, working in supply chain before moving into European OD and management development. He joined industrial gas giant BOC Group as a Global OD Director, and remained through its merger with Linde AG. He then spent two years at Prudential as Director of Talent & Capability before joining private equity-owned technology business Travelport as Group Vice President for Organisation Effectiveness.
In his new role at Head Light, he will advise on best practice and new trends in the HR industry and he’ll work closely with the management team to further differentiate the company’s business proposition and guide its growth.
Ian Lee-Emery, Managing Director of Head Light, said: “As well as being a very experienced HR practitioner who has led organisational development, talent, leadership and performance functions in multi-sector businesses, Nick also has significant experience of working with Boards and senior leadership teams on strategic, operational and HR issues. He has a reputation for encouraging organisations to think differently to improve performance and increase effectiveness. His expertise, insights and pragmatism will add real value to our business and we’re very much looking forward to working with him.”
Commenting on his appointment, Nick Kemsley said: “Today’s organisations want insights about their people, not just information. In today’s talent market, they want to know how people are performing, what their potential is and what will engage and motivate them. Head Light is a company that can provide these insights, help support behavioural change and enhance the capability of line managers. It’s an exciting and successful business with a bright future. I want to help Head Light to grow its capability in this respect.”