GambleAware promotes from within to fill CEO vacancy
Safer gambling charity lands replacement for Marc Etches some five months after he confirmed intention to depart
GambleAware made an internal appointment to replace outgoing CEO Marc Etches with the charity’s communications director. Zoë Osmond, who was selected after a competitive recruitment process overseen by GambleAware’s board of trustees, will assume the role at the end of Q1. Osmond served as GambleAware’s communications and engagement director for the past two years, where she spearheaded multi-million-pound Safer Gambling and treatment campaigns. Prior to joining GambleAware in 2018, Osmond spent two years as managing partner at London-based marketing agency Oystercatchers. The Durham University graduate also served from 2010 to 2014 as the CEO of NABS, a charity that supports people working in media and advertising. The appointment of Osmond comes nearly five months after Etches confirmed his intention to step down as CEO after 10 years in the role. Osmond said: “GambleAware is at an exciting moment in its history, and over the past 10 years, Marc Etches has done a phenomenal job in leading the charity to this point. “It is a critical time for the gambling sector and the recent pledge of up to £100m from the gambling industry means this is a significant time to shape and drive forward GambleAware’s vital work and develop its own expertise. “I am excited by the prospect of transformation and the opportunities now available to GambleAware to work with other organisations to prevent gambling harm and I look forward to taking on the challenge,” she added. Kate Lampard, GambleAware chair, said Osmond would be “instrumental” for GambleAware in its next steps. Lampard said: “In the past two-and-a-half years that I and trustees have worked with Zoë, she has demonstrated to us that she fits the criteria we are looking for perfectly. “Her knowledge and experience of GambleAware means she can hit the ground running, something that is of particular importance when starting a leadership role during a pandemic. “Her ability to work with a wide range of subject matter experts and her experience of transforming a charity, building businesses, and leading change will be instrumental in taking GambleAware to the next stage in its development,” she concluded.