Saffron Building Society has appointed Mark Williams as its new head of people as of this month.
Williams will join from Metro Bank, where he spent five years in various people partnering roles across its retail, business and commercial banking functions, and rose to the role of head of people partners – corporate functions. Prior to this, he spent nearly eight years at Marks and Spencer, initially joining as an HR management trainee and progressing to head of region HR business partner roles.
With more than a decade of HR experience, Williams has supported the rapid growth of Metro’s retail banking business from 55 stores when he joined to 78 stores when he left, and managing the complete transfer and integration of staff when Metro Bank acquired RateSetter in 2020.
Williams said: “In every interaction, be that with local residents, community groups, charities and most critically, our members, we are driven to create lifelong relationships with those around us to meet their needs and support their financial wellbeing.
“If we are championing money happiness to our members, then we need to make sure that both our members and staff understand what that looks like and feel supported in their financial wellbeing. I see that happening by building upon the already solid foundations and creating a successful business that is powered by high-performing individuals who feel connected to their work. This enables them to be themselves and do their best, fostering a supportive atmosphere that goes beyond mere financial concerns.”
Colin Field, chief executive officer at Saffron Building Society, added: “We are delighted to welcome Mark onto the senior leadership team. Mark has extensive experience in the retail and banking sectors, and he is the ideal candidate to lead our people division. Organisation values and culture are a central focus of our business and our employee engagement scores reflect this. I am looking forward to seeing what positive changes Mark can bring to the business.”