EY veteran named CEO of consulting firm Anthesis

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Pure-play sustainability consulting firm Anthesis tapped Matthew Bell, a long-time EY services executive and former U.K. government climate policy lead, to succeed co-founder Stuart McLachlan as CEO.

The appointment is effective Dec. 1.

Bell, an 18-year EY veteran, most recently led the accounting firm’s climate change and sustainability practice, which includes more than 4,300 specialists. He’s currently chair of the World Green Building Council, a network of 75 regional organizations focused on decarbonizing real estate and construction. He joined Anthesis because of its exclusive focus on accelerating climate action. 

“Anthesis has the DNA of a consultancy, an impact business and a technology company rolled into one,” Bell told Trellis. “Add to that its incredible design creative capability and you’ve got all the ingredients to generate impact at scale.”

The firm, founded in 2013, has more than 4,000 clients in 80 countries, including Cisco, Nestle, Reckitt, Target and Tesco. Under McLachlan, who will remain on the board of directors, it has grown to 1,400 employees worldwide — partly due to the acquisition of 24 businesses over the past 12 years.

“Matthew is the right leader to build on our strong momentum and guide Anthesis through its next stage of growth, bringing his deep industry expertise and a proven ability to build high-performing global teams,” said McLachlan.

Bell’s first priority is to identify places where Anthesis can build on existing best practices. “We’re already working at incredible depth across sectors, so the question now is: How do we connect that expertise globally, amplify our data and digital capabilities and make sustainability transformation easier for every client to execute?” he said.