Zillah Byng-Thorne (née Byng-Maddick, born November 1974) is a British businesswoman, and chief executive of Dignity Funerals. She is the former CEO of Future plc, an FTSE 250 British media company, since April 2014.[1] She was described by The Guardian in September 2022 as "one of the UK’s most successful media executives."[2]
Zillah Byng-Thorne | |
|---|---|
| Born | Zillah Byng-Maddick 1974 (age 49–50) Cumbernauld, Scotland |
| Education | University of Glasgow Henley Business School |
| Board member of | Betfair, Future plc, Mecom, Trustpilot |
| Spouse | Max Thorne |
| Children | 5 |
Early life
editShe was born in Cumbernauld in 1974, grew up near Glasgow, and earned a MA in management from University of Glasgow and a MSc in behavioural change from Henley Business School. She is a chartered management accountant and qualified treasurer.[3]
Career
editByng-Thorne qualified as an accountant with Nestlé UK.[4] She later had senior finance roles with GE Capital and HMV, before becoming CFO of Threshers, then finance director of Fitness First.[4]
She was previously CFO of Auto Trader Group.[5][4]
Byng-Thorne joined Future in November 2013 as a part-time chief financial officer (CFO), and became CEO in April 2014.[4][5] In 2021, she earned £8.8 million as chief executive, which included a salary of £575,000, a bonus of £1.15 million and £7.03 million through a performance share plan.[1]
She is a non-executive director of Mecom and Betfair.[4] She was the senior independent non-executive director of online retailer THG[6] until stepping down in September 2022, at the same time as she was appointed as deputy chairman of online reviews site Trustpilot.[2]
Zillah Byng-Thorne became CEO of the Dignity Funerals Group in June 2024.[7][8]
Personal life
editShe is married to Max Thorne. She has three sons and two stepsons.[9]
References
edit- ^ a b Khalique-Loonat, Hamzah. "Publishing chief Zillah Byng-Thorne's bright Future after £9m payday". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
- ^ a b Sweeney, Mark (20 September 2022). "Shares in Marie Claire publisher Future plunge as chief announces departure". the Guardian. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
- ^ Frean, Alexandra (10 March 2017). "Readers are passionate and content strong, so why shouldn't we charge?". The Times.
- ^ a b c d e "Zillah Byng-Thorne: CEO, Future". PPA. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
- ^ a b Sweney, Mark (23 August 2021). "'Hand on heart, I don't do this for money': Zillah Byng-Thorne on success at Future". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
- ^ Pratley, Nils (14 October 2021). "THG needs to reassure shareholders and finally get a proper chair". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
- ^ Ralph, Alex (26 August 2024). "Dignity Funerals is repaying debts after 'going concern' warning". The Times.
- ^ "Dignity Group Holdings Limited – Find and update company information". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
- ^ Byng-Maddick, Zillah (24 September 2015). "Secrets of my success: Zillah Byng-Maddick, chief executive of Future". The Evening Standard. Retrieved 16 October 2021.