// M&S hires MWM Consulting to help benchmark the top three contenders to replace CEO
// The process could see the appointment of the first female CEO
// A formal search process had yet to get under way
Marks & Spencer has hired consultants to help benchmark the top three contenders to replace its chief executive Steve Rowe.
M&S has hired search firm MWM Consulting in an effort to shape a three-way internal contest to find its next boss.
The process could see the appointment of the first female chief executive in the chain’s 137-year history.
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The three internal candidates include chief operating officer Katie Bickerstaffe, Stuart Machin, who leads the company’s food business, and finance director Eoin Tonge.
Bickerstaffe became a non-executive director of M&S in 2018, before becoming chief strategy and transformation director two years later.
A formal search process had yet to get under way, and Rowe could remain at the helm for another couple of years.
Rowe has been chief executive since 2016 after taking over from Marc Bolland.
“Every board has succession planning as part of its thinking but we have no formal process in place,” M&S said.
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