La Fosse names new technology & transformation Chiefs

La Fosse has appointed Barry Sacks as Group Chief Technology Officer and Terry Dawson as Managing Director, Business Systems, Change & Transformation, EMEA, expanding its senior leadership team.

The appointments come as the technology recruitment and workforce consultancy group places greater emphasis on artificial intelligence and international expansion. Sacks joins the board, while Dawson will lead a business line focused on systems, transformation and change across EMEA.

Sacks will lead the rollout of La Fosse's technology and AI strategy across the group's four service lines. He has been connected with the business since its early years, working with it as both a client and a contractor.

He began his career in software engineering before moving into consulting, programme leadership and senior technology roles. Most recently, he served as Chief Technology Officer at several business-to-business software companies, including private equity-backed firms.

He has spent the past year advising La Fosse on its technology and AI direction before taking the role on a permanent basis.

"I'm excited to be joining La Fosse on a permanent basis. We have a distinctive view of the technology talent market, built up over two decades, and I'm looking forward to executing our strategy to unlock value that will be transformative for the business. I'm looking forward to supporting our consultants and our clients to reach their own goals through the innovative use of technology and AI, as we embark on the next stage of La Fosse's evolution," said Barry Sacks, Group Chief Technology Officer, La Fosse.

Dawson joins with nearly two decades of experience in recruitment and business transformation. His background spans technology hiring, SAP, enterprise applications and large-scale business change in the UK and overseas markets.

He began his recruitment career in 2007 and later joined Investigo, where he established its SAP transformation practice. He then helped build specialist teams covering enterprise applications, business systems, CRM, HRIS, cyber security, infrastructure and private equity transformation.

During a period of expansion at Investigo and The IN Group, Dawson held several senior leadership roles and joined the main operating board after being promoted to Senior Director in 2023. Before moving to La Fosse, he had returned to direct operational leadership of the Business and Technology Transformation practice.

At La Fosse, he will oversee the Business Systems, Change & Transformation unit as well as the international teams, putting him at the centre of the company's effort to deepen specialist coverage while extending its reach outside the UK.

"I've followed La Fosse's journey for many years and have always admired its reputation for professionalism, entrepreneurship and its focus on people. The opportunity to join a business with such a strong culture, ambitious leadership team and clear growth strategy was something that immediately stood out. Organisations are increasingly looking for strategic partners that can combine specialist talent, consulting expertise and delivery capability to solve complex business challenges. La Fosse has a compelling proposition across these areas, and I'm looking forward to working with colleagues across the group to strengthen that offering and support the next phase of growth," said Terry Dawson, Managing Director, Business Systems, Change & Transformation, EMEA, La Fosse.

Growth plans

The appointments show how La Fosse is aligning internal technology leadership with commercial expansion. One role focuses on the company's own systems and AI agenda, while the other is aimed at broadening specialist recruitment and transformation work across international markets.

Founded in 2007, the business operates across executive search, specialist recruitment and workforce consultancy. Its client base includes organisations hiring for digital and transformation programmes, an area where demand for AI-related skills and systems expertise has become a stronger feature of boardroom planning.

Ollie Whiting, Chief Executive Officer of La Fosse, said the hires would help turn the company's plans into action. He said Sacks' appointment builds on work already under way in technology, data and AI, and described Dawson as a senior operator with deep experience in building teams and managing change.

"We have big ambitions for La Fosse, and bringing Barry and Terry into these roles is an important part of turning those ambitions into reality. Barry knows La Fosse incredibly well and has already played a significant role in shaping our technology, data and AI strategy. Having him now lead that agenda gives us the opportunity to move quickly from strategy into execution and make sure we're using technology in a way that genuinely improves how our people work and how we serve our customers. Terry brings a fantastic track record of building high-performing teams, growing businesses and leading through complex periods of change. He also brings a huge amount of experience from our industry, which will be invaluable as we look to build on the progress we've made and accelerate our growth over the coming years. Most importantly, they're both great people. They share the ambition we have for La Fosse, but also the people-first approach that has always been fundamental to who we are. I'm really looking forward to having them both around the table and seeing what we can achieve together," said Ollie Whiting, Chief Executive Officer, La Fosse.