Anna Barsby swaps retail for banking as she joins The Cumberland

Anna Barsby has joined The Cumberland building society as a non-executive director.

Barsby’s CV includes stints at Morrisons (as Chief Technology Director) and Halfords (as CIO).

Her appointment to the board at The Cumberland is part of the FI’s plans to focus on changing consumer patterns which have seen a commitment to invest heavily in new technology.

She says: “My whole career has been about change and transformation - both in technology and in business. I have worked in a wide breadth of organisations, but mostly consumer industries with lots of customer facing work.”

“I’ve lived through lots of digital and technology and data transformations and it feels like that’s a skill set that The Cumberland could do with for the next few years as we undertake such a fundamental change to our system landscape.”

She adds: “The Cumberland seems to be doing all the right things, taking the right steps to add skills and new positions to its senior team which is brilliant.”

“Everything I’ve seen so far is strong and robust - we have to make sure we don’t over govern and allow some process to allow pacy decision making and make sure risks are understood, visible and then tightly managed.”

On The Cumberland’s recent focus on providing ‘Kinder Banking’, she comments. “I love it - it really sings to the strength of being a mutual.”

“Banks are automating so far for efficiency, but forgetting what customers want. Kinder”

“Banking is a great way of explaining that people are central to The Cumberland. Values are so important to young people, too, and it’s something The Cumberland should be shouting about.”

AppointmentsStaff WriterAnna Barsby, Banking, FIs, Building societies, Appointments, Morrisons, Halfords, The CumberlandComment