The African Development Bank Group is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Stephen Ashcroft as Director, General Services and Procurement, with effect from 16 February 2022.
Mr. Stephen Ashcroft, a British national, brings more than 25 years of progressively responsible managerial experience in procurement and related fields. He is joining the Bank after a career at AECOM, a Fortune 500 multinational infrastructure consultancy. His last role was as Commercial Director at NEOM, Saudi Arabia, the world's largest construction program of any kind ($500bn), to build the most modern city in the world. His role was to lead the procurement, contract administration and change management strategy across every category of expenditure for the overall development.
Mr. Ashcroft holds a Master's degree in Management from the University of Liverpool, United Kingdom (2005) and a Bachelor's degree in Engineering from the University of Coventry, United Kingdom (1990). He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS) and a recognised procurement expert and author of the CIPS textbook 'Contracting in the Public Sector', among many.
Mr. Ashcroft worked for AECOM in various capacities. They included the role of as Associate Director, Commercial and Contract Management (2015 - 2016) at Jeddah Metro, where he provided procurement, commercial and contractual expertise to support the design and building of the world's largest public transportation Program (rail, metro, bus, tram and ferry systems) with a program budget of $4.2 billion. He was also Director, Procurement Advisory (2016 - 2019), maximizing the humanitarian impact of the UK government's £29 billion disaster relief and development aid program across Africa and Asia. In this capacity, he led and delivered procurement projects and was responsible for pre-contract awards, project management and contract management, and the end-to-end process from procurement project ideation to commercial close-out.
Mr. Ashcroft also worked as Director, Contracts and Procurement from 2019 to early 2021. He led the transformation of Saudi Arabia's 14 land, port immigration and customs border crossings, an important component of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030, (a $ 1 billion infrastructure transformation project). He was part of the six-person leadership team of the Saudi Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority Entity Program Management Office, which was named Infrastructure Project of the Year at the Construction Week Saudi Arabia Awards 2021.
Before joining AECOM, Mr. Ashcroft served in various procurement consultancy capacities in the UK, USA and Europe. This included creating Deutsche Bank's global procurement playbook for a 400-person project, designing and delivering a supply management strategy for each category of goods, services and works. He also worked for many UK government departments, including the Department for International Development. There, he was a trusted advisor for the procurement of the construction of an airport and related infrastructure in St Helena, a UK overseas Commonwealth territory. He personally reported outcomes to the government minister. For the London 2012 Olympic Games, Mr. Ashcroft designed and delivered an award-winning engagement program for business stakeholders. He worked with 1,000 firms, including small to medium enterprises, social enterprises and not-for-profit organisations seeking contracts for the games, enabled by awareness of supply management policies and procedures (including procurement portals).
Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Ashcroft said: "Joining the African Development Bank fulfills a career aspiration to leverage my experience in a purposeful context. The General Services and Procurement team and I are energized by the vision of President Adesina for the Bank and Africa. We are fully committed to working with our stakeholders, including the senior management team, to elevate the value of assets, resources, relationships and supply chain to further enable the Bank's mission for sustainable development".
Commenting on the appointment, the President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina said: "I am delighted to appoint Mr. Stephen Ashcroft as the Bank's Director of General Services and Procurement Department. Stephen is a vastly experienced professional who brings global expertise to this role, where he will provide leadership for ensuring efficient management of the Bank's general services, real estate and assets management, as well as institutional procurement services".
