Anna Cassell-Ward – Vice President, UK & Ireland
Anna qualified as an accountant at KPMG before moving to Walgreens Boots Alliance, where she spent 12 years in diverse roles across various parts of the organisation, encompassing retail, digital, opticians, and international brands. As well as multiple roles in finance, Anna has worked in both commercial and transformation.
Anna is passionate about people leadership and development and creating an environment where people can thrive and be at their best.
Anna lives in Leicestershire with her husband and two football-mad boys alongside a tankful of prolifically multiplying fish. Before accidentally becoming an accountant, she studied languages and European law.
Alistair Wright – Growth and Innovation Director
Alistair worked as an accountant and consultant at KPMG for 13 years before he joined Linnaeus in 2022. After working across Finance, Data, IT and Transformation, he is now part of the UK&I leadership team, as Growth and Innovation Director.
Alistair values creativity, freedom and recognising the efforts of our Associates. He strives to figure out what's most important to the business, use data to inform decisions and work with teams locally and globally to turn new ideas into real results. His goal is to help the business stay ahead by finding smart, practical ways to improve how we work and serve our customers and their pets.
When not at work, Alistair can be found wrangling two primary school-children with his wife, or supporting his fellow members of the Knowle and Dorridge Round Table with charity events.
Nicolas Woodbridge – Medical Director
Nic qualified as a veterinarian in 2008 after graduating from the Royal Veterinary College, London. He completed a surgical residency at DWR Veterinary Specialists, earned a Masters in Veterinary Surgery from the University of Nottingham and became a Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2015. Nic brings a wealth of medical and operational leadership experience to his role, with an international career spanning general practice, specialist referral practice, and six years in Asia, where he first joined Mars. He has held multiple senior leadership positions, most recently at Linnaeus as Operations Director for London and the Southeast.
As Medical Director for the UK & Ireland (UK&I), Nic sits on both the UK&I leadership team, and the Mars Veterinary Health Europe medical leadership team, championing clinical quality and ensuring medical excellence remains at the heart of decision making. He is passionate about representing the UK&I medical team and fostering a supportive community across both Primary Care and Referral practices, as together we strive to make a better world for pets.
Nic lives in Cambridge with his wife, two children, and Rufus, their energetic black Labrador. Outside of work, he is a keen rugby fan and enjoys spending time with his family, long walks with Rufus and exploring new places both in the UK and abroad.
Alice Herring – People and Organisation Director
Alice’s HR career has spanned multiple sectors, including Automotive, Financial Services, Transport and Retail. It has been defined by significant change, in M&A, IPO, restructuring and financial turnarounds. Throughout this, people and their employee experience have been central to the agendas that Alice has led, and she thrives in dynamic organisations, partnering leaders with a strong value set.
Alice is delighted to have joined Linnaeus as a purpose led organisation with a strong commitment to Associates’ careers and development. With Wellbeing and Associate experience high on the priorities for the business, under Alice’s leadership, the People and Organisation team lead work that delivers meaningful contributions towards our shared purpose of MAKING A BETTER WORLD FOR PETS.
Alice is also a volunteer Board Trustee and Chair of the Governance, People and Partnerships Committee for a Multi-Academy Trust. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family and running and cycling.
Juliet Oosthuysen – Client Director
Juliet studied modern languages and began her career at Barclays International before joining The Boots Company. She has held diverse health and retail leadership positions across FMCG and service industries, repositioning and growing global, consumer-facing brands that make a difference.
Following her time as Brand Director at Central Co-op, Juliet moved agency-side for several years, working predominantly with a Paris-based, pharmaceutical, diagnostic and consumer healthcare company. She is delighted to be back client-side at a time of great change for Linnaeus and Mars Veterinary Health.
Beyond her professional role, Juliet serves on the University of Staffordshire's Board of Independent Governors and chairs the Strategy and Performance Committee. She lives in the West Midlands, where she enjoys windsurfing, river swimming, and walking in the Lickey and Clent Hills with her family and their beloved cocker spaniel, Jesse.
Emma Hayward – Area Operational Director
Before joining Linnaeus in 2024, Emma built a career spanning more than 25 years in retail operations with WHSmith and Tesco, later holding senior leadership roles at Signet Jewellers and New Look. In 2019, she transitioned into the healthcare sector, taking on senior operational positions at Care Fertility and Specsavers. This diverse experience created a strong foundation for her move to Linnaeus.
Emma is a people- and client-focused leader who is passionate about developing strong, resilient teams built on empowerment. She firmly believes that long-term commercial success is achieved through investing in people.
A devoted animal lover, Emma shares her home with three cats and two rabbits adopted from the RSPCA. Recently, her daughter started university, marking an exciting new chapter for the family. Outside of work, Emma enjoys crafting, walking and is an active member of Toastmasters International, where she hones her public speaking skills.
Jessica Dingley – Corporate Affairs Director
Jessica looks after Corporate Affairs for the UK & Ireland, bringing her nearly 20 years of experience to support the company’s mission of: A BETTER WORLD FOR PETS. With a background in corporate communications - both in agency, working with Coca-Cola, Aldi and British Gas, and in-house for global logistics and automotive brands - she brings a strong track record in strategic communications, stakeholder engagement, media relations and issues management.
In her role, Jessica delivers communications programmes across the UK & Ireland business, leading the local corporate affairs strategy and aligning global priorities with regional goals. She works closely with senior leaders, regulators and industry partners to shape policy discussions, support the business’s licence to operate, and keep teams connected and informed.
Outside of work, Jessica lives with her husband, their dog Lyra and three cats - Luna, Aurora and Brian – and as an animal fanatic, she is always advocating to bring even more pets home.
Rachael McGregor – Area Operations Director, North and Scotland
Rachael qualified as a Veterinary Surgeon in 2006 and spent 15 years in clinical practice at Park Vet Group and Calder Vets. Over this time she progressed into clinical leadership roles, before moving into field operational leadership, and now leads the North and Scotland Primary Care and Referral teams as Area Operations Director.
Rachael is passionate about quality veterinary care and championing the amazing work that teams do every day to achieve it for their patients and clients. As Area Operations Director, Rachael is responsible for driving operational and clinical excellence across her region, supporting her teams to deliver outstanding care while building a strong, connected culture across sites.
Outside of work, Rachael is renovating a house in York with her husband and young daughter. She's a keen hot yoga fan and loves to travel whenever she gets the chance.
Ronan Doyle – Area Operations Director for London and the Southeast
Ronan has been a vet for over 25 years, having worked across general practice, academia and referral practice. He became a Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2005, after which he joined Davies Veterinary Specialists as a Soft Tissue Surgeon, leading the service from 2010 and later serving as Clinical and Hospital Director after Davies joined Mars Veterinary Health in 2019.
As Area Operations Director for London and the Southeast, Ronan is responsible for regional strategic development, championing operational excellence, high clinical standards and collaborative team growth. He is passionate about creating cultures and high-performing teams within which people can thrive and deliver high quality care for patients, and is a strong believer in the importance of teamwork in the delivery of patient care and being highly responsive to the needs of pet owners and referring vets.
Ronan lives in Hertfordshire with his wife, their three children and their Labrador, Echo. When not at work, he's kept busy with the family, training a local grassroots underage football team, and walking with Echo in the surrounding countryside.