Andy Pike, a respected figure in Whitehall, is stepping down after two years as director of the UK’s flagship trade promotion campaign, Sky News understands.
By means of Mark Kleinman, city editor @MarkKleinmanSky
Sunday, May 21, 2023 4:03 PM, UK
The government is on the hunt for a new boss of its flagship trade and cultural promotion campaign after the incumbent party decided to resign after two years.
Sky News understands that Andy Pike OBE resigned as director of GREAT earlier this month and will leave the position in September.
Mr Pike briefed members of the GREAT campaign’s private sector council – chaired by former Fortnum & Mason boss Ewan Venters – in a memo outlining proposals to open the position to private sector applicants.
He also referred to “unprecedented support, including from the Prime Minister personally” for the initiative.
Last month, GREAT brought the promotion of the UK tech sector to the heart of Silicon Valley with a marketing effort dubbed “Unicorn Kingdom” – a reference to the number of UK-based start-ups that have reached a valuation of $1 billion or more.
Mr Pike has previously led GREAT and also worked in senior communications at the Northern Ireland Office and within the intelligence community.
In 2021, he replaced Dan Ramsay, who resigned to join broadband infrastructure group CityFibre Holdings, at the helm of the GREAT campaign.
His departure comes amid an ongoing debate over the effectiveness of Britain’s trade promotion efforts, with international trade recently merged with the Department for Business.
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Sky News announced last week that the government has held the Global Investment Summit would be postponed by several weeks from the original schedule in October.
Mr Pike could not be reached for comment.
