Diana Layfield

Diana is our first female Chair in our 76 year history. She joined the company in January 2022, as we began a new five-year strategy period. As General Manager and Vice President for International Search and Growth (among other roles) at Google, Diana’s work spans technology as well as business. As Vice President, Next Billion Users and Vice President Product Management, she has been responsible for driving the development of products for future users, primarily in emerging markets. She is also the global co-lead for Google’s cryptocurrency research and activities. 

Before Google, Diana served as CEO, Africa Region, at Standard Chartered Bank, responsible for leading the bank’s businesses across wholesale, investment and consumer banking in 27 countries. At Standard Chartered, Diana held a variety of senior management roles, including Group Head of Strategy and Corporate Development, and Chief Operating Officer for the Wholesale Bank. During her time there, she played a key role in coming up with the idea of a joint risk-share facility with BII to support the country’s businesses to continue trading during the Ebola crisis. 

Before that, Diana was Chief Executive of technology company Finexia, and also worked for McKinsey & Company, where she was a sector lead in biotech/life sciences. Having completed early pilot training with the Royal Air Force, Diana also worked as a medical relief pilot in war zones in Africa. Diana is also a Non-Executive Director at AstraZeneca plc and a Council Member of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.