Fiona Jane François (born Fiona Jane Mackay, 22 May 1980) is the chairman and former President of the British American Business Council, Los Angeles Chapter. She was formerly HM Consul and Director for the Western Region of UK Trade & Investment's US Network.

Biography

Born in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

, she studied Economics, Politics and Sociology at the

University of Northumbria , mottoeng = A lifetime of learning , established = 1877 - Rutherford College of Technology1969 - Newcastle Polytechnic1992 - gained university status , type = Public , budget = � ...

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

where she graduated with honours before joining Her Majesty's service. In 2009 Fiona François was appointed HM Consul and Director for the Western Region of

UK Trade & Investment , type = Non-ministerial government department , nativename = , nativename_a = , nativename_r = , logo = UKtrade.svg , logo_width = 190px , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = Department for Business, Enter ...

's US Network. Based at the British Consulate-General in Los Angeles,

InvestCloud

Fiona François is President, Sales Operations at InvestCloud, a California founded company that has grown from an idea in a garage to a platform with 670 clients & over $1.7 of assets in just 7 years. Headquartered in Los Angeles.

Britweek

Fiona François is a Member of the Board of

BritWeek BritWeek is a 501(c)(3) organization based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded by ''So You Think You Can Dance'' and American Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe, the former British Consul-General in Los Angeles Bob Peirce, Simon Wright and Paul J ...

, a not for profit organization focusing on the British contribution to business, film, fashion and music in Southern California.

Brits Give Back

Through Britweek, Francois supports various charities including, LA's BEST,

Malaria No More Malaria No More is a nonprofit organization that seeks to eradicate malaria. The organization has offices in the United States, as well as affiliates in India, Japan and the United Kingdom, and is known for its participation in the Idol Gives Ba ...

Save The Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization established in the United Kingdom in 1919 to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic ...

Virgin Unite Virgin Unite is the working name of The Virgin Foundation, the independent charitable arm of the Virgin Group. Created by Richard Branson and Virgin employees in September 2004, Virgin Unite pools volunteering efforts from across the Virgin Gro ...

Business Innovation Awards

Fiona François created the first ever UKTI / Britweek Business Innovation Awards in 2010 for Businesses with joint operations in the UK and California to be recognized for their achievements in innovation before an audience of elite international commercial players, as well as the wider California business community. François shortlists finalist in each category to be judged by renowned business leaders. Past judges were,

Andy Bird Andy Bird CBE is a British executive. He was chairman of Walt Disney International until 2018. Bird is the current CEO of Pearson Education. Early life Bird grew up in Warrington, England and was educated at King's School, Macclesfield. In 1 ...

Chairman of Walt Disney International,

Ian Callum Ian Stuart Callum (born 30 July 1954) is a Scottish car designer who has worked for Ford, TWR, and Aston Martin. In 1999 he became the Director of Design for Jaguar Cars, later Jaguar Land Rover, a position he held until mid 2019. In 2019, ...

Design Director for Jaguar,

Carlos Amezcua Carlos Amezcua is a journalist best known for his sixteen years as the original co-anchor for the ''KTLA Morning News'', with Barbara Beck as his co-anchor, Mark Kriski handling weather and Sam Rubin reporting on the entertainment industry. Airin ...

, Co-Anchor Fox 11 News and

Sir Ken Robinson Sir Ken Robinson (4 March 1950 – 21 August 2020) was a British author, speaker and international advisor on education in the arts to government, non-profits, education and arts bodies. He was director of the Arts in Schools Project (1985 ...

Internationally Renowned Creativity Expert. Past honored speakers were

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of ''The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on t ...

Nigel Lythgoe Nigel Lythgoe OBE (; born 9 July 1949), also known as Nasty Nigel, is an English television and film director and producer, television dance competition judge, former dancer in the Young Generation and choreographer. He was the producer of the ...

will.i.am William James Adams Jr. (born March 15, 1975), known professionally as will.i.am (pronounced "Will-I-am"), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is the founding and lead member of the musical group Black Eyed Peas. ...

and Frank Mottek.

British American Business Council

Fiona is President of the British American Business Council (BABC) and actively supports the chapters in Los Angeles, Orange County, San Francisco, the Pacific North West, Chicago and Houston

L.A. Business Journal's "Women Making A Difference" Awards

In 2013, François was one of the top 5 finalists for the L.A. Business Journal's "Women Making A Difference" Awards. Fiona was one of 252 nominees for the 2013 Awards in the "Rising Star" category.

Career and professional appointments

* (2002–2004) Policy Advisor for the Scottish Government * (2004–2008) Senior Policy Advisor for The Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) * (2007–2008) Policy Advisor for HM Tresaury * (2008 2009) Senior Policy Advisor for The Department for International Development (DFID) * (2009 to 2014) HM Consul and Regional Director

UKTI , type = Non-ministerial government department , nativename = , nativename_a = , nativename_r = , logo = UKtrade.svg , logo_width = 190px , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = Department for Business, Enter ...

West Coast * (2009 to present) Appointed to the Board of

Britweek BritWeek is a 501(c)(3) organization based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded by ''So You Think You Can Dance'' and American Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe, the former British Consul-General in Los Angeles Bob Peirce, Simon Wright and Paul J ...

* (2009 to present) Distinguished member of the British American Business Council, Los Angeles Chapter * (2012 to 2014) Foreign Direct Investment Director for UK Trade and Investment USA Network * (2013 to present) Member of the

British Academy of Film and Television Arts British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

(BAFTA) Los Angeles * (2014 to present) Chief of Staff a
InvestCloud
* (2016 to present) President of the British American Business Council, Los Angeles Chapter

Publications and presentations

* (April 2010) Organizer and Speaker, Britweek and UKTI Business Innovation Awards in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. B ...

* (April 2011) Organizer and Speaker, Britweek and UKTI Business Innovation Award at the Fairmont San Francisco Hotel, as part of the 2011 BABC Conference. * (March 2012) Honored Guest Speaker, British American Business Council Pacific North West Annual General Meeting in Seattle, WA * (April 2012) Organizer and Speaker, Britweek and UKTI Business Innovation Awards in

* (April 2013) Organizer and Speaker, Britweek and UKTI Business Innovation Awards in

Other appearances

Britweek, Emmy's, Golden Globe, Sundance, BABC, Otherhttp://babcla.org/images/events/August_2013_Everton_Lunch/Pages/33.html

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Francois, Fiona Living people 1980 births British diplomats People from York British expatriates in the United States