Fiona Jane François (born Fiona Jane Mackay, 22 May 1980) is a British diplomat who 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.
Early life and education
Born in
York
York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
,
she studied economics, politics and sociology at the
University of Northumbria at
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
where she graduated with honours. In 2009, François was appointed HM Consul and Director for the Western Region of
UK Trade & Investment's US Network. Based at the British Consulate-General in Los Angeles,
Career
François has been Chief Financial Officer since the acquisition of Fincentric by Just Build It (JBI) company led by the former founders of InvestCloud, in partnership with Stellex Capital Management. Communify Fincentric, unifying the communication of market (Fincentric) and client data (Communify), delivers unique, high quality digital experiences for the financial industry.
François is Operating Partner at JBI. The JBI mission is to design, build and renovate companies to be best in class. JBI’s focus is on a) Marketing and b) Innovation to automate and scale the financial sector.
François joined the board of charity Cinemagic in May 2024.
François is the former President of
Sales Operations
Sales operations is a set of business activities and processes that help a sales organization run effectively, efficiently and in support of business strategies and objectives. Sales operations may also be referred to as sales, sales support, or b ...
at
InvestCloud, a California-founded
financial technology
Financial technology (abbreviated as fintech) refers to the application of innovative technologies to products and services in the financial industry. This broad term encompasses a wide array of technological advancements in financial services, ...
platform.
François is a Member of the Board of
BritWeek,
a not for profit organization focusing on the British contribution to business, film, fashion and music in Southern California. Through Britweek, Francois supports various charities including,
LA's BEST,
Malaria No More,
Save The Children,
Virgin Unite.
François created the first 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 Chairman of Walt Disney International,
Ian Callum Design Director for Jaguar,
, Co-Anchor Fox 11 News
and
Sir Ken Robinson Internationally Renowned Creativity Expert. Past honored speakers were
Simon Cowell
Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality and businessman. He has judged on the British television talent competition shows ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003), ''The X Factor (British TV series), The X Factor UK ...
,
Nigel Lythgoe and Frank Mottek.
[ ]
Francois is the Chairman and former 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
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.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Francois, Fiona
Living people
1980 births
Alumni of Northumbria University
British diplomats
People from York
British expatriates in the United States