Susan Searle, chairwoman of Mercia Technologies and a GUV Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, has stepped down to be replaced by Ian Metcalfe.

Susan Searle stepped down from her position as non-executive chairwoman of UK-based investment firm Mercia Technologies on Tuesday to focus on her other commitments.
She has been replaced by Ian Metcalfe, who has been a senior independent director with Mercia since 2014. Mercia plans to appoint an additional non-executive director focused on asset management following Metcalfe’s promotion.
Searle was non-executive deputy chairwoman of Mercia Technologies at the time of the firm’s initial public offering in 2014, before a promotion to chairwoman in 2016.
She previously served as chief executive of Touchstone Innovations, the commercialisation firm spun out of Imperial College London then known as Imperial Innovations, from 2002 to 2013. During her tenure, she led the firm through its IPO in 2006.
Her curriculum also includes stints with the tech transfer office of Monash University as well as a range of positions in the corporate world, including Shell Chemicals, Signet Group and Bank of Nova Scotia.
Searle continues to serve as chairwoman of Woodford Patient Capital Trust, an investment fund set up by Woodford Investment Management that focuses on spinouts and technology startups. She has held that position since the fund’s launch in 2015.
She currently serves as a non-executive director of Benchmark Holdings, Horizon Discovery and QinetiQ Group. Searle was the inaugural recipient of the GUV Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013.
Searle said: “I have taken the decision that now is the right time for me to step aside so I can continue to make the appropriate time commitment for my other roles.
“It has been an honour to work with the team as Mercia has successfully matured as a business, both by significantly increasing its funds under management and deploying balance sheet capital into high growth technology businesses predominantly from the UK regions. I wish Mercia continued success in the future.”
Metcalfe said: “On behalf of the whole board, I would like to thank Susan for her significant contribution to Mercia over the last five years. She played an important role during a period in which Mercia has grown to the significantly scaled position it is in today.
“With our increasing focus on further growing Mercia’s assets under management to accelerate the path to profitability, our intention is to appoint a new non-executive director in due course with experience of the specialist asset management sector.”
– Photograph courtesy of Mercia Technologies

Thierry Heles

Thierry Heles is the editor of Global University Venturing, host of the Beyond the Breakthrough interview podcast and responsible for the monthly GUV Gazette (sign up here for free).