-
Jo Sweetland, Managing Director
“A global talent advisory firm, Green Park is an industry pioneer in building diverse, senior leadership teams and more equitable workplace cultures.”
-
Jo Heath, Managing Partner and Head of DICE
“Championing Diversity & Inclusion since our inception, we are driven by the core belief that there’s no shortage of talent, only opportunity.”
-
Kai Adams, Managing Partner
“We deliver sustainable business value on a global scale to help organisations bring the future into focus.”
-
Trevor Phillips, Chair
"Our clients benefit from our data-rich insights into what will drive productivity today and continue innovation through turbulence tomorrow.”
-
Jo Sweetland, Managing Director
"Our candidate care lasts long past the point of placement and is key to the rich relationships we build from a foundation of trust, authenticity, transparency and inclusion."
-
Raj Tulsiani, CEO & Co-Founder
“We founded Green Park in 2006 with a mission to change the face of leadership. We retain that same passion and entrepreneurial spirit today as when we started.”
The Requirement
WHSmith has undergone significant transformation over the past year, shifting its focus towards international travel retail and away from its traditional high street presence. In March 2025, the company sold its 480 UK high-street stores to Modella Capital, rebranding them as TG Jones. This move aligns with WHSmith's strategy to prioritise its profitable travel retail division, which now constitutes the majority of its sales and profits. The North American market is a key focus, with the company targeting a 20% market share in the U.S. travel retail sector by 2028.
Leadership changes have accompanied this strategic shift, with Carl Cowling, the Group CEO, emphasizing the company's commitment to becoming the leading global travel retailer, highlighting the scalability and growth opportunities within the travel business. With WHSmith's strategic pivot towards international expansion and its adaptation to the evolving retail landscape, the business recognised a need to future-proof its leadership by improving diversity across its senior leadership population.
The Challenge
WHSmith approached us with a clear mandate: increase ethnic and gender diversity within their senior leadership population, particularly across Commercial, Finance, and Procurement functions.
Their traditional talent channels had not delivered the diverse representation or fresh thinking they were seeking and with the business focus on international expansion, increasing competition and shifting consumer expectations, this was now a priority for Carl Cowling and his leadership team.
Our Approach
Green Park partnered with WHSmith on a two-pronged strategy combining executive search with a Diverse Talent Engagement Programme. Diverse Talent Engagement (DTE) is a proactive initiative that complements retained search efforts. Unlike traditional recruitment, DTE places emphasis on identifying critical and highly sought-after skill sets rather than targeting specific roles.
Our unique networks - strengthened by our research, publications, Race Equality Matters charity, Progress Together initiative and the extensive connections of our leaders and consultants, enabled us to not only identify but deeply understand and engage with the diverse talent WHSmith needs. We excel in engaging with talent that other organisations struggle to reach. Since our inception, our proven track record includes bridging gaps between diverse communities and clients, ensuring effective & inclusive attraction and assessment processes.
The Result
4 Key Focuses:
- Deep Discovery: Investing time upfront to understand the business strategy, leadership culture, and capabilities needed for the future.
- Skills-First Identification: Prioritising capabilities and potential over traditional career paths or sector backgrounds.
- Narrative Development: Co-creating a compelling value proposition tailored to attract underrepresented talent.
- Market Engagement: Actively mapping and building relationships with high-potential diverse talent across industries who may not have previously considered the retail sector.
Why It Worked:
- Deep Immersion: Our investment in understanding the business context, leadership culture, and strategic direction ensured candidates aligned both in capability and mindset.
- Talent Storytelling: We crafted a compelling narrative that showcased the retailer’s ambition, impact, and opportunities - opening doors to talent beyond their usual reach.
- Partnership Mindset: We acted as trusted advisors - not just headhunters - helping the client navigate internal conversations around inclusive hiring and future-fit leadership.
3
Female Leaders Appointed
3
Ethnic Minority Hires
Case Studies
Book a Free Consultation
Green Park's mandates span the Private & Commercial and Public Sector & Civil Society sectors, due to this many of our Executive Search and Interim roles are confidential and not advertised.
Please get in touch to find out about all available opportunities and we’ll be happy to assist.