Ardent strengthens Board to support next phase of growth with appointment of Nicola Downing

We are pleased to announce that Nicola Downing, former CEO of Ricoh’s Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) operations, has joined Ardent as a non-executive director. Nicola brings extensive international experience in business transformation, strategic growth and organisational development, strengthening Ardent’s leadership and supporting the continued growth and development of the business.

The appointment comes as Ardent looks to accelerate its growth, build on its established position in the UK’s infrastructure sector and explore new opportunities across its specialist services and markets.

With more than 25 years’ senior leadership experience, Nicola brings extensive expertise in scaling businesses, leading complex transformation programmes and delivering sustainable commercial growth.

A qualified solicitor, she began her early career at City law firm Berwin Leighton Paisner before joining Tesco PLC, where she established the retailer’s in-house function focusing on technology.

Nicola then joined Ricoh, where she spent 20 years in senior leadership roles, including CEO of the FCA-regulated Ricoh Capital and CFO and CIO for the EMEA region, before progressing to Group COO in 2018 and CEO for EMEA in 2022.

During her time at Ricoh, Nicola was involved in the acquisition of approximately 30 businesses, gaining extensive experience in integrating, transforming and scaling organisations across international markets.

Alongside her appointment at Ardent, Nicola holds non-executive positions with cyber and data security firm Autodata and Tees Law and Wealth Management.

Her appointment comes as Ardent looks to continue building on its position in the UK’s infrastructure sector, supporting the delivery of major projects through its specialist land, consent and stakeholder engagement services.

Commenting on her appointment, Nicola Downing said: “What attracted me to Ardent was the combination of its people, reputation and ambition. It’s a business with a strong foundation, an experienced leadership team and significant opportunities ahead, particularly given the scale of investment and change taking place across the UK’s infrastructure and energy sectors.

“Having spent much of my career leading and transforming businesses, I’ve found that what I enjoy most is helping ambitious organisations navigate their next stage of growth. That means being clear about where to focus, making informed decisions about investment and ensuring the right people, systems and structures are in place to support that ambition.

“I see my role as being a critical friend to the leadership team, bringing an external perspective, asking the right questions and drawing on my experience to help Ardent make the most of the opportunities ahead. I’m excited to be joining the business at such an important point in its development.”

Ardent CEO Richard Caten added: “We’re delighted to welcome Nicola to Ardent. As we continue to deliver against our long-term growth ambitions, it’s important that we bring different perspectives and experiences into the business to help us challenge our thinking and make the right decisions for the future.

“Nicola brings an exceptional breadth of commercial and operational experience, having led large international businesses through periods of significant change and growth. Her expertise will be particularly valuable as we look to scale our operations, invest in our capabilities and build on the strong reputation we’ve established across our markets.

“Our ambition is not simply to grow, but to strengthen our ability to deliver on Ardent’s mission: enabling projects that change lives and create a lasting, positive impact for communities and future generations. Nicola’s appointment is an important part of ensuring we have the leadership, capabilities and foundations to achieve that.”