Suzanne Heywood
Suzanne Heywood | |
|---|---|
| Born | Suzanne Elizabeth Cook February 25, 1969 Southampton, England |
| Occupation(s) | Business leader, former government official |
| Years active | 1993–present |
| Known for | Chief Operating Officer of Exor Group, Chair of CNH Industrial, Chair of Iveco Group |
Suzanne Elizabeth Heywood, Baroness Heywood of Whitehall, (; born 25 February 1969), is a prominent British business leader and former government official. Since 2022, she has held the position of chief operating officer at the Exor Group and has been the chair of CNH Industrial since 2018. Additionally, she serves as chair of the Iveco Group.
During her childhood, Heywood spent ten years sailing around the globe with her family. She pursued higher education at Somerville College, Oxford and King's College, Cambridge. Her professional journey began at HM Treasury, followed by a significant tenure at McKinsey & Company, where she advanced to senior partner before joining Exor in 2016.
In recognition of her contributions to business leadership, she was honored in the 2024 Birthday Honours as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).
Early life and education
Heywood was born in Southampton, England, to educators Gordon Cook and Mary Brindley. Between 1976 and 1986, she voyaged worldwide with her family aboard the schooner Wavewalker, retracing the final expedition of Captain Cook. Originally planned as a three-year journey, it extended over a decade. In 1977, a severe storm inflicted major damage on their vessel; Heywood herself suffered a critical head injury that required several surgeries.
Her childhood was characterized by difficult family dynamics, including troubled relationships with her parents and brother. She has described this period as lacking in warmth and affection. Despite these hardships, she continued her education through Queensland Correspondence School while at sea.
At sixteen, Heywood returned to England independently and enrolled at Somerville College, Oxford in 1987 to study zoology, earning her BA in 1990. She then obtained a PhD from King's College, Cambridge in 1993, researching filial imprinting in chicks.
Career
Heywood began her career in 1993 as a fast stream trainee at Her Majesty's Treasury. By 1995, she had become private secretary to the Financial Secretary to the Treasury and held a Grade 7 civil service position until 1997.
In 1997, she moved into the private sector by joining McKinsey & Company as an associate. She became partner in 2007 and was elevated to director (senior partner) in 2013, overseeing the Global Organisation Design Service Line. Heywood left McKinsey in 2016 to become managing director of the Exor Group, later being promoted to Chief Operating Officer in November 2022.
Since July 2018, she has chaired CNH Industrial, stepping in as interim CEO from March 2020 to January 2021 after Hubertus Mühlhäuser’s departure. From December 2019 to July 2020, she also served as Chair of the Royal Opera House. Her board memberships include the Covent Garden Foundation, Chanel Ltd., The Economist Group Ltd., and the Royal Academy of Music.
Personal life
In 1997, Suzanne Cook married senior civil servant Jeremy Heywood, who served as Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Home Civil Service until shortly before his passing in 2018. Together they had three children, including twins.
Heywood authored a biography of her mother-in-law, archaeologist Brenda Swinbank, published in 2017. In 2021, she publicly defended her late husband amid criticisms connected to the Lex Greensill controversy.
Her memoir Wavewalker: Breaking Free, released in 2023, recounts her maritime childhood and her determination to pursue education as a pathway to change.