Vice-Chancellor's Executive
Our Vice-Chancellor's Executive exercises considerable influence upon the development of University strategy, the identification and planning of new development and the shaping of the University ethos.
Click on any image to view Executive Team biographies.
Visit 'More About our Leadership' to learn more about our Vice-Chancellor's Executive.
Professor Quintin McKellar CBE
Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive
Quintin has been the Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive of the University since 2011. His responsibilities include the day-to-day running of the institution, the delivery of strategic and operational plans, performance, its internal structure and organisation, and its interface with external bodies and agencies. In 2015 he was elected as a Board member of Universities UK (UUK), and in 2020 was elected as UUK Vice-President (England and Northern Ireland). In 2021 he was elected as a Board member of Advance HE. He was made Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2011 for services to science.
Professor Mairi Watson
Deputy Vice-Chancellor
Professor Mairi Watson was appointed Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Hertfordshire in January 2024, having been (since May 2020) Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Student Experience. Mairi has overall responsibility for all academic resources, working with the Deans, as well for research and enterprise, education and student success, marketing and recruitment, and international recruitment and partnerships. She is engaged in all strategic and operational decisions that underpin the success of the University and led the development and implementation of the new University Strategy 2025-2030.
Mairi started her academic career as a sessional lecturer at the University of Birmingham. Then, at De Montfort University (DMU) she was a Senior Lecturer in Organisational Behaviour and Human Resource Management, Principal Lecturer, then Head of Corporate Programmes. At the University of Northampton she was Head of Corporate and Postgraduate Programmes, Deputy Dean in The Northampton Business School and then Dean of the Faculty of Business and Law.
As a student she graduated from the University of Edinburgh with an LLB (Hons), from Kings College, London, with an LLM in Criminology and Criminal Justice, from the Open University with an MBA, and from DMU with a PGDL. Her PhD examined the leadership of organisational change in prisons and prior to working in Universities, Mairi had roles from prison officer to governor in HM Prison Service (England and Wales) on an accelerated promotion scheme.
Mairi is a Professor of Learning and Teaching, a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.
Dr Charmagne Barnes
Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education and Student Experience)
Charmagne joined the University in February 2024 as Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Student Experience. She leads strategy and performance, as well as policy development and delivery, in learning and teaching, student experience, quality assurance and student union relationships. She is also responsible for the University’s performance in external metrics such as the National Student Survey (NSS), the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) and the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF).
Charmagne was previously Pro Vice-Chancellor Dean of the College of Nursing, Midwifery and Healthcare at the University of West London.
Professor Wendy Wills
Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research and Enterprise)
Wendy was appointed in November 2023, and has a wealth of research and enterprise leadership expertise. She successfully co-led the largest Unit of Assessment submission for the Research Excellence Framework 2021, with her own research contributing to a impact case study.
She is responsible for leading University research and the Research Office, chairing the University Research Committee, developing international research partnerships, and overseeing the Doctoral College, which is a community of more than 700 research degree students. She is also responsible for leading Business, Enterprise and Innovation and its alignment with research.
Wendy joined the University in 2005. Her previous role was Director of the Centre for Research in Public Health and Community Care (CRIPACC), and Associate Dean (Research) for the School of Health and Social Work.
She is the Director of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) for the East of England.
Alistair Moffat
Group Finance Director
After a career in senior positions in the transport industry, Alistair was appointed Group Finance Director in 2009. He has responsibility for all aspects of financial management within the University Group, including financial control, statutory reporting, treasury, tax, insurance, procurement and commercial financial support for the academic community.
His role incorporates Board responsibility for the management of the University's estate and sport. He is a director of UH Holdings Limited, which oversees the commercial subsidiaries in the Group, and is a director of our subsidiary companies.
Alistair was joint chair of the London and South-East British Universities Finance Directors’ Group (BUFDG) from 2016-2021.
Sharon Harrison-Barker
Secretary and Registrar
Sharon was appointed in January 2020. She was previously the Academic Registrar, Head of the Student Centre and Faculty Registrar for the Business School and has worked in various further and higher education institutions. She achieved an MBA in Higher Education Management from the University of London in 2010.
Sharon is responsible for the management and operation of the Board of Governors and the Academic Board, compliance with University policies, regulations and procedures, legal matters of the University and its wholly owned subsidiaries, health and safety, internal audit, equality, registry, human resources, library and computing services, the office of the dean of students and professional staffing.
Jo Stuart
Pro Vice-Chancellor (International and Marketing Communications)
Jo was appointed in August 2023, and oversees the work of the International Office and Marketing Communications.
Her responsibilities include developing and leading the University’s Global Engagement Strategy across recruitment, Trans-National Education and Global Experiences. She also leads the work to drive the brand and reputation of the University and UK student recruitment.
Jo joined the University in 2018 as the Director of Marketing and Communications where she transformed the University’s marketing and communications function by embedding insight and data-led decision-making across all marketing and communications activities.
She previously worked in the Financial Services sector, bringing with her 20 years’ experience in senior leadership roles across product development, marketing, communications and sales.