Julie Mercer

• Advised on the impact of policy reform on regulation and funding for higher education institutions, including new providers
• Worked with universities to transform student experience, redesign student services and build new delivery models
• Helped universities to reshape operating models and career pathways for professional and support staff, and developed the academic model for teaching and learning and for research
• Led governance and leadership reviews for universities and government bodies, improving accountability, diversity and ways of working
• Developed digital strategies for universities and public bodies, improving student/customer experience, quality and access, enhancing data insight, and streamlining processes
• Advised large corporates serving the public sector on growth strategies to better understand and prioritise their market opportunity and improve performance.

Julie is passionate about the opportunity education provides for individuals, communities and society and about education’s role in driving innovation, social cohesion and economic growth. She speaks at conferences and writes articles on the topic. Julie holds non-executive/trustee roles focussed on transforming lives through education. These roles incude:

• PTI, a charity that raises aspirations for all teachers and realigns staff with the passion required to make a difference to students lives
• Institute of Coding, a government-funded consortium of universities and businesses addressing the digital skills gap in the UK economy
• UpGrad College, a digital institution offering non-traditional students the chance to study degrees from some of the world’s best universities to achieve their career goals.

Julie enjoys spending time with her family and friends, exploring new places, enjoying film and theatre or being creative upcycling furniture and gardening.