Affinia strengthens leadership team with two senior appointments

Affinia has expanded its leadership team with the appointment of Ellie Burford as director of people and Neil Ford as operations and transformation director.

Burford joins from Azets and Grant Thornton and will work with leaders and managers to build high-performing teams and support career development.

A CIPD-qualified HR professional, she has a background in cultural change and talent strategy.

Meanwhile, Ford brings more than 25 years’ experience across financial services and advisory, including senior roles at Lloyds, General Electric, Cardano and Mercer.

His focus will be on aligning strategy with delivery and embedding processes to strengthen operations.

The two appointments come as Affinia expands across London, East Anglia and South East England. Both will report to Vanessa Emens, chief people and operations officer.

Emens said: “Neil and Ellie join us at a really exciting time. We’re growing fast, and that means making sure we stay consistent in how we deliver for clients and how we support our people. Neil’s transformation and risk experience will help us sharpen our operations, while Ellie brings fresh energy to our people team.”

Burford added: “What stood out to me about Affinia was the ambition and the culture. I’m excited to work with leaders and managers to keep building a great colleague experience – with clear expectations, thoughtful people practices and development that helps our teams do their best work.”

Ford concluded: “Affinia’s got great momentum, and I’m looking forward to helping turn that into delivery that makes a difference. It’s about building strong foundations, moving at pace, and making sure we’re set up to deliver consistently and confidently.”