The John Lewis Partnership has appointed Helen Webb OBE as its new chief people officer, effective 24 November.
Webb will succeed Jo Rackham, who has been serving as interim chief people officer since March 2024. She brings three decades of senior leadership experience in people management and organisational development across retail and other sectors.
Most recently, Webb was chief people officer at WHSmith, a role she held from April 2023 to July 2025. Prior to this, she served as chief people and services officer at the Co-op between 2017 and 2022, having earlier been its HR director for food. She has also held senior roles at Sainsbury’s, where she was central retail director, as well as at Marks & Spencer and Aviva.
Jason Tarry, chairman of the John Lewis Partnership, said Webb’s appointment would strengthen the executive team. He noted that she would be instrumental in shaping the company’s people strategy, nurturing its partner ethos and leading talent development, adding that she would play a key role in ensuring the partnership remained a strong workplace with a distinctive culture.
Webb described joining the partnership as an “incredible privilege” and said she was committed to fostering an environment where employees could thrive and feel a sense of belonging. She expressed enthusiasm about working with the team to build on the organisation’s foundations in people development.
The appointment follows the partnership’s announcement in September that former Tesco executive Tom Denyard will join as managing director of Waitrose in January, succeeding James Bailey, who departed at the end of September.
