News

Posted: 5 March 2025

Scottish Rowing is excited to announce the appointment of Katharine Ford as its first-ever Head of Business Operations following a competitive recruitment process.  With a diverse and impressive background in senior leadership roles across both public and private sectors, Katie brings a wealth of experience in strategic policy development, risk management, and business operations that will further strengthen the organisation’s operations.

Katie, who is an Affiliate member of CIMA and the IRM, joins Scottish Rowing from Ofgem, where she has worked in energy policy across both energy market arrangements and energy infrastructure, in addition to working as the Risk Lead during the gas crisis.  Her extensive work in the energy sector, alongside her entrepreneurial background, positions her to make a significant impact on Scottish Rowing's strategic objectives.

Katie’s experience also extends to the sporting world, where she has held leadership positions such as the first female President and Chair of the World Ultra Cycling Association, building on her individual success in this discipline where she is a 4-time world record holder and was the first Scot to complete the 3000-mile Race Across America.  With a passion for sport, charity fundraising and community development, Katie has acquired a broad range of sports governance experience in non-executive roles with organisations including the Team Scotland Youth Trust, British Dodgeball and Interactive (London Disability Sport).

Commenting on her appointment, Scottish Rowing’s new Head of Business Operations, Katharine Ford, said:

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be joining the Scottish Rowing family and look forward to doing my part to improve the sport for all Scots.  Having rowed whilst studying for my Sport degree, I know only too well the effort our rowers put into the sport at all levels.

“I hope to match that with the effort put into the business operations of Scottish Rowing, supporting Lee and the board in delivering our overall strategy.”

Lee Boucher, Chief Executive of Scottish Rowing, shared his enthusiasm about Katharine’s appointment:

“I’m delighted to be welcoming Katie to the Scottish Rowing team.  She joins the organisation at an exciting time, as we build towards the launch our new strategic plan at the end of the year.

“Katie’s diverse skillset will complement the existing leadership team, and she will play a key role in ensuring that Scottish Rowing strengthens our operations and long-term sustainability.

“I’d like to place on record my thanks to sportscotland for their ongoing support.”

In this exciting new role, which Katie takes up from Monday 17 March, she will oversee Scottish Rowing’s day-to-day business operations, including governance, compliance, HR, financial planning, and membership systems. She will work closely with the CEO and Senior Leadership Team to implement the strategic plan, drive continuous improvement, and ensure the organisation operates efficiently and effectively in line with our mission to grow rowing across Scotland.