Joanna Shields steps down as CEO of Tech City UK, former BlackBerry World exec takes the reins

Joanna Shields will step down as the CEO of the Tech City UK organisation in London, making way for Gerard Grech, who held the role of Senior Director of BlackBerry World Marketing since just September 2013.

Grech, who will take up the position as of February 3, said:

Tech City is a blueprint for what can be achieved when the right people and the right policies work together. London has become a leading centre for digital innovation and entrepreneurship and my role, together with Joanna and the team, will be to help take things to the next level, delivering on key initiatives, introducing more partnerships and further solidifying Tech City in the international tech scene. As a Shoreditch resident, I’m especially keen that our initiatives serve the wider local community, keeping the ground fertile for the next wave of digital start-ups.  I’m delighted to be joining the team at this exciting time.

Shields, who left Facebook to take on the role in October 2012 and started in January last year, will continue to be involved in the Tech City UK organization and is staying on as UK Chairman and UK Business Ambassador – both of which are unpaid roles. She will also continue to be involved with the US/UK task force aimed at keeping kids safe online. Shields has also today taken up a non-executive director role on the  board of the London Stock Exchange along with Sherry Coutu, who currently serves on the Advisory Boards of Linkedin.com, as well as the Boards of Cambridge University (Finance Board), Cambridge Assessment, Cambridge University Press, Raspberry Pi, and Artfinder.

See also: Facebook VP talks technology, data privacy & the London riots

Featured Image Credit – Getty Images

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