Our board

Joe Saxton was founder and driver of ideas at nfpSynergy a research consultancy for Charities, until he sold the business to two colleagues in November 2021. He has been the Chair of six different charities and founded two. He was Chair of the Institute of Fundraising for three years, and co-founder and Chair of CharityComms for seven years.  For six years until June 2021, he was Chair of Parentkind, the umbrella body for PTAs. He also sits on the board of two small grant-makers. In total he has worked with over 200 charities.

He was in the top ten of the most influential people in UK fundraising every year for its first decade including top of the poll on four occasions. He was named one of the most influential people in voluntary sector communications by PR Week, and has twice been named as one of the 1000 most influential people in London by the Evening Standard newspaper. He was given the Lifetime Achievement award by the Institute of Fundraising, and was highly commended in the Chair of the year category in the Third Sector excellence awards.

I am a Chartered Management Accountant and an Associate of Taxation Technicians.

For the past 15 years, I have been managing an accountancy practice, offering comprehensive services in compliance, taxation, and advisory. With a passion for assisting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), I work closely with clients to optimise their financial processes, mitigate risks, and maximise profitability. I am confident that my commercial acumen will be a valuable addition to AoC’s board.

By profession, I am an Optician and not long after qualifying, I joined my first board, which was the Opticians professional body.  I have become very involved with education, being a principal examiner and chief practical examiner for one of the Livery Companies of London. After 6 years as a university Senior Lecturer and Programme Director, I started my own training company, offering workshops, courses, qualifications and CPD. I was involved with the new T-Level qualifications, as an adviser, then becoming a Chief Examiner; I also sit on the Department for Education’s T-Levels Action Group. I have had the pleasure of being on the board for various local and national charities, as well as membership bodies. Over the years I have also been a vice-chair, co-chair and chaired various committees.

My board experience comes from the voluntary and community sector, at regional/Yorkshire level and locally. I’ve been a trustee, a Vice Chair and chaired York CVS, an infrastructure organisation supporting front line charities. I have a particular interest in the governance and leadership of small charities, their survival, development and wellbeing. I am delighted that this is something that AoC is well resourced to encourage and support.

Currently, I’m leading a campaign – Action for Trustee Racial Diversity – to increase the racial diversity of trustee boards. I’m also a trustee of the British American Drama Academy and an independent panel member of the Ministry of Justice Public Appointments Unit. I’ve previously been Chair of the Young Harrow Foundation and Vice Chair of both Anti-Slavery International and Nacro. I’ve worked across the public, private and not for profit sectors where I’ve largely been involved in funding or seeking funding for charitable organisations.

I am a first-time trustee and am delighted to have joined the Association of Chairs last year. I’m an Energy Solutions Consultant at Gemserv where I provide governance and secretariat support to our clients who are trade associations in the energy sector.

Prior to this role, I worked in alumni relations at King’s College London where I led the engagement strategy for its recent graduates and students. I was also a member of the Race Equality Working Group where I worked to promote better outcomes and understanding about race in the workplace. I have previous experience administering a scholarship trust where I’ve seen how crucial good governance is.

Following 20 years in executive director of HR/workforce roles in healthcare/charity sectors at local, system, regional and national level, I now have a portfolio of consultancy, NED/Trustee, teaching and coaching roles. I’m the Managing Director of Zenon Consulting, a boutique people management and development consultancy, and Senior Teaching Fellow at the University of Greenwich. I’m a Chartered Fellow of the CIPD, Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a Chartered Management Business Educator and member (and judge) of HR in Hospitality.

My current board roles in addition to AoC are Non-Executive Director at the Liaison Group (finance and workforce digital specialist consultancy), where my key focus is on growth strategy and senior stakeholder engagement, and the Healthcare People Management Association London Academy, where I am a Founder member and now the Education lead Board member. From 2010 to 2019, I sat on the Board of a Southwark charity, United St Saviours, as Chair of Housing and Chair of Governance. I was a Board Trustee at Borough Market, from 2015–2019, where I was the non-executive lead on Learning and Entrepreneurship. I was also Chair of Hammersmith and Fulham CAB from 1997-2001.

I bring over 25 years of international experience to the table, including 7 years of board experience across diverse not-for-profit organisations, including a UK university. My career journey has traversed both technology and business domains in the private sector. I have held various leadership positions, ranging from Business Unit Head to spearheading large-scale digital transformations, global change management initiatives, crisis and risk management, executive hiring, and business development. Throughout my board tenure, I have served on several committees, such as Audit and Risk, Governance and Resources, Marketing, and Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI), as a Non-Executive Director (NED) in various not-for-profit entities.

I earned my Sloan MBA from London Business School (LBS) in 2012, further solidifying my expertise and knowledge in the field. I have found much satisfaction in my diverse board and committee engagements and am keen to broaden my portfolio career, leveraging my extensive professional skills and lived experiences. Currently, my focus lies on Governance and Sustainability, areas where I aim to make meaningful contributions and drive positive impact.

With a leadership background spanning the Private, Public, and Third sectors, I currently serve as the Chief Executive of Communities 1^st, a local infrastructure charity that supports around 450 charities across Hertfordshire. My career reflects a commitment to social change, community engagement, and thoughtful strategic planning. My experience in enhancing operational efficiency and programme development has made meaningful contributions to the sectors I have been involved with. I am an active participant in the broader community, holding trustee positions with the Community Transport Association (CTA), Voluntary Sector Studies Network (VSSN), Trustee and Vice-Chair of the National Association of Community & Voluntary Action (NAVCA) and now proudly join the Association of Chairs (AoC). My work is driven by a belief in the power of collaborative leadership and the importance of strong governance in enhancing the effectiveness and reach of organisations within the voluntary and community sector.