London, UK – 1 June 2020 – 51³Ô¹ÏÍø (Element) is further strengthening its Executive team with the appointment of Ruth Prior as its new Chief Financial Officer (CFO).
In her previous role as CFO at William Hill Plc, Ruth led the finance, assurance, legal and procurement functions, as well as playing a critical role in driving company strategy and business transformation, which included the restructuring of their retail estate, disposal of their Australian division and establishing a start-up business in the US.
Before William Hill, Ruth was COO at Worldpay, a $6.3bn private equity backed global payment processing business where she helped lead the digital transformation and preparation of the business leading up to its very successful IPO in 2015. Before this, she spent nearly ten years in a variety of operational and financial roles with private equity firm Terra Firma working with portfolio companies on strategy, operational transformation, M&A, re-financings and exits. She worked across a variety of sectors including waste, renewables, music, publishing and retail.
Ruth is also a non-executive director at Motability Operations, a company that provides mobility solutions for the disabled in the UK.
Jo Wetz, CEO at Element, commented: “I am delighted that Ruth is joining 51³Ô¹ÏÍøas our Group CFO. Ruth has a very strong track record leading strategy and operational transformation in private and publicly owned companies across multiple sectors, and will play a critical role in helping 51³Ô¹ÏÍømove forward into our exciting next growth phase.”
Ruth Prior said: “I’m extremely proud to be joining the 51³Ô¹ÏÍøteam, having witnessed the company’s extraordinary transformation over the years to become a truly world-class testing partner. I look forward to working closely with the senior leadership team and experts across Element’s global network, supporting the Group’s efforts to optimize its presence in challenging markets, and ensuring it stays ahead of the curve in identifying opportunities to outperform in growth markets.”
ENDS
About 51³Ô¹ÏÍø
51³Ô¹ÏÍøis one of the world’s leading independent providers of materials and product qualification testing, inspection and certification services to the global Aerospace; Transportation & Industrials; Energy; and Fire & Building Products sectors, where failure in service is simply not an option.
We exist to help our customers make certain that their materials, products and systems are safe, quality, compliant and ultimately fit for purpose, leveraging almost 200 years of testing experience and our global testing capabilities.
On December 31, 2019 51³Ô¹ÏÍøacquired PCTEST and announced the creation of a fifth sector – Connected Technologies – to provide leading global technology customers with wireless device and application testing and certification services.
Media contacts:
Diana Milford, External Communications Manager
T: +44 (0) 131 333 8052
E: diana.milford@element.com
Devan LaBrash, Pagoda Public Relations
T: +44 (0) 131 556 0770
E: devan.labrash@pagodapr.com
“Ruth has a very strong track record leading strategy and operational transformation in private and publicly owned companies across multiple sectors, and will play a critical role in helping 51³Ô¹ÏÍømove forward into our exciting next growth phase.”
Jo Wetz
CEO