John Holland-Kaye | Non-Executive Director

John Holland-Kaye is a Non-Executive Director on the Thames Water board. He was appointed in April 2023.

Relevant skills:

Expertise in leading major capital and infrastructure projects in the UK and internationally
Proven success embedding customer needs at the heart of business decision making in a large organisation serving millions of customers
Expertise in strategic business management and environment/sustainability, within a regulated, highly dynamic environment

Relevant experience:

John Holland-Kaye has been the CEO of Heathrow Airport since July 2014. He led the transformation of Heathrow from being rated by consumers as one of the worst airports in the world to one of the best. Heathrow has become a leader in many aspects of sustainability by:

Decarbonising global aviation
Becoming a London Living Wage employer
Being a champion for diversity and inclusion

Before this, John was Development Director at Heathrow. He was responsible for delivering the £1 billion annual capital programme which included the new Terminal 2: The Queen’s Terminal. This opened on 4 June 2014, on time and on budget. John joined the company as Commercial Director in May 2009.

John was previously Divisional CEO with Taylor Wimpey PLC and Managing Director, National Sales for Bass Brewers. He also worked as a strategy consultant with LEK Consulting for many high-profile businesses. John has an MBA from INSEAD and a classics degree from Cambridge University.

John is also currently:

Chair of the Governors at Bedford School
Board Advisor to Mace Group

John was formerly:

Non-Executive Director of Thames Tideway Tunnel
Chair of Business in the Community’s Employment and Skills Taskforce
Advisory Board member and Chair of the Aviation Task force of HM King Charles’ Sustainable Markets Initiative
Commissioner on the Energy Transitions Commission