Rentokil Initial plc announced the appointment of Thérèse Esperdy as Chair of the Board commencing September 1, 2026. She will join the Board as a Non-Executive Director and Chair-designate on July 1, 2026. This appointment follows the announcement on March 5, 2026 that Richard Solomons, who has served as the Chair of the Company since 2019, had informed the Board of his intention to retire from the Company.
Thérèse is currently Non-Executive Chair of Imperial Brands plc, a position from which she will retire following their November 2026 Board meeting and Fiscal Year 2026 results announcement, having served on the Board since July 2016. She is also the Senior Independent Director designate of Smith & Nephew plc and a Non-Executive Director of Moody's Corporation. Thérèse was previously Senior Independent Director of National Grid plc.
In her executive career, Thérèse held senior leadership roles with JP Morgan including Global Chair of their Financial Institutions Group, Co-head of Asia-Pacific Corporate & Investment Banking and Global Head of Debt Capital Markets. The Board determined that Thérèse Esperdy is an independent Non-Executive Director on appointment in accordance with the UK Corporate Governance Code. She will succeed Richard Solomons as Chair of the Nomination Committee on September 1, 2026.
Richard Solomons will retire from the Board with effect from midnight on August 31, 2026.
