Thu, 20 June, 2024
David Wrathmall was appointed as the interim Chief Executive of The Welding Institute Group as of 29 April, 2024.
A graduate of University College London and a Chartered Management Accountant, David has held c-level positions with broad operational remits over the past 16 years. These positions, which were held across Europe and in emerging markets, included those at internationally listed companies in digital technologies, telecoms, financial services, and the research and education sectors.
Having been an active member of The Welding Institute Council and Chair of the Audit Committee, David has knowledge and experience of The Welding Institute Group activities and the challenges of recent years, such as navigating the Covid-19 pandemic, which led to internal restructuring and the recent strategic sale of land owned by The Welding Institute Group.
David brings experience of SME, corporate, publicly-funded, and membership-based organisations. He has experience in delivering cross-border organisational restructuring programmes, including mergers and acquisitions, and is keen to focus on key issues to ensure the sustainability of the Group while capturing the needs of as many Members as possible.
He explained, “Having invested three years into The Institute as a member of Council, I feel a commitment to assisting staff, our Members and the Council itself. I am delighted to have the opportunity to meet the challenges to ensure we provide value and make the Group more efficient and sustainable in managing and meeting the expectations of our Members.”
Although David’s position as interim Chief Executive is for a minimum period of six months, he recognises the sustainability of The Welding Institute Group is a long-term matter. However, during the interim, he is determined to make the right decisions regarding the Group’s future direction and investment to ensure a sustainable entity that can navigate the shifting sands of business, government and industry. Of course, this external focus will include finding opportunities that can be realised in the short term, while building for a long-term future.
Meeting the technological needs of Members is just a part of this mission, which will also encompass international training through TWI to help industry address global skills shortages in welding, joining and allied technologies.
Allying research and support services for industry with career support, training and advancement for professionals, David said that he is going to work to help Members feel closer to The Welding Institute and TWI Ltd, through a stable and supportive working environment for staff.