New Chief Financial Officer appointed

Thursday, 17 November 2016

The University is delighted to announce that Samantha - Sam - Foley has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer after an extensive recruitment process.

Sam is currently the Director of the Government Finance Academy. Prior to that, she was the Finance, Commercial and Policy Director for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

In her current role, Sam has been responsible for the creation and leadership of a new Academy providing high quality learning and development to circa 14,000 finance professionals. In her role with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, she had a wide range of executive-level responsibilities which included acting as the Programme Director for the commercial close down of the London 2012 Olympic Games and the multi-million pound conversion of the Olympic Village from athlete accommodation to 3,000 new apartments.

As Chief Financial Officer, Sam will have responsibility for managing the University’s finances, investments and business support, together with the provision of other services such as procurement. She will support the Vice-Chancellor as a key member of the University Executive Board.

Speaking of her appointment, Sam said, “I’m very excited to be joining such a great institution. Over recent months the University team, both academic and administrative, has impressed me with their professionalism, commitment to excellence and desire to create a great atmosphere for students and staff alike. And the future for the University of Reading is full of opportunities and interesting challenges that will make this a truly brilliant role.”

Vice-Chancellor, Sir David Bell, said, “We are delighted to have someone of Sam's calibre and experience joining us at Reading. At interview, she impressed us with her knowledge of the opportunities as well as the challenges that face us a university. At the same time, Sam made very clear her willingness to make a full contribution to all aspects of campus life. For these reasons, and many more besides, I believe that Sam will be a brilliant addition to the Executive Board and the University more generally.”

Sam will be joining the University in early January 2017 and will be eager to meet as many staff and students as possible once she is in post.

Sir David Bell KCB

Vice-Chancellor

University of Reading