Sharon Thorne

Sharon had a 36-year career with Deloitte becoming an audit partner in 1998. She has extensive experience of auditing and advising global clients across a broad range of sectors. During her time at Deloitte, she held numerous Executive and Board roles before becoming Deputy CEO and Managing Partner Global and Strategy, Deloitte North-West Europe in 2017 and Global Chair from 2019, retiring at the end of 2023. She played a key role supporting the globalisation and transformation of Deloitte, substantively improved governance and oversight globally and was a key advocate for developing Deloitte’s global approach to sustainability and climate change.

Sharon’s various leadership roles at Deloitte included running significant parts of the UK business and prior to this leading Deloitte UK’s people and purpose agenda. She governed significant parts of the Deloitte network, including the CIS and spent 14 years on the global board.

Sharon is an advocate for collective action on environmental sustainability and climate change and is a strong believer in the need for greater diversity, equity, and inclusion in business and civil society, and she has long championed greater diversity in senior leadership roles.

Sharon is a Fellow of The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and has a BA (Hons) Philosophy, Politics and Economics from Oxford University.

Current appointments: Rio Tinto plc Board Director and member of the Audit and Risk Committee; Common Goal Advisory Board member; Deloitte Centre for Sustainable Progress Advisory Council Member.

Previous appointments include: Social Progress Imperative Board Director; Climate Governance Initiative Advisory Board member; Accounting 4 Sustainability Advisory Council member; CBI Board Director and Audit Committee Chair; Prostate Cancer UK Trustee.