BGS Senior Leadership Team
Prof. John Ludden — Executive Director
Before taking the post of Executive Director at the BGS, John Ludden was Director of the Earth Sciences Division at the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS). He has also served as Director of Research for the CNRS in Nancy, France, where he also taught at the French National School of Geology (ENSG-Nancy). Prior to this, Professor Ludden worked at the University of Montreal, Columbia University and with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the USA. He holds a doctorate in Igneous Petrology from the University of Manchester, UK. Professor Ludden is currently Past-President of the European Geosciences Union and a visiting professor at Oxford and Leicester universities.
Prof. Denis Peach — Chief Scientist
Before his appointment as Chief Scientist, Denis Peach spent over nine years as the Manager of the BGS Groundwater Programme, based at Wallingford. He is a hydrogeologist with very broad interests in the area of environment geoscience, including shallow geophysics, hydrogeochemistry, engineering geology and numerical modelling. He has 35 years' experience which includes work for a UK water authority, overseas work in tropical hydrogeological environments and work for international consultants in arid zone hydrogeology. His particular scientific interests have included the development of groundwater modelling in BGS. Denis has a track record of collaborating with several universities and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology across the disciplines in integrated catchment science. He is an Honorary Professor at the University of Birmingham and has been a Vice President of the Geological Society of London.
Dr Mike Patterson — Chief Operating Officer
Dr Mike Patterson joined BGS as Chief Operating Officer on 1 April 2011. Mike comes with a variety of skills in business and operations at a senior level and at the same time understands the environmental sciences sector through his involvement with Golder Associates.
After graduating from Nottingham University, Mike took a research post at Loughborough University and obtained a Ph.D. in environmental radiochemistry. He joined Golder Associates in 1994 as a consultant and after 6 years working with very bright, technically minded scientists and engineers on a variety of projects, he left to pursue a more aggressive sales role with Willis, the global insurance intermediary based in the City, working as an insurance broker and specialising in selling risk financing tools to both the private and public sector.
Mike rejoined Golder Associates in 2003 as their first Commercial Manager, with a remit to increase sales capabilities across the company and specifically grow revenues. Over the following 7 years he held a variety of commercial and operations roles including Global sector leader for land development, Golders' third largest business with £60 million plus in revenues. He was also a UK Board Director with responsibility for the day-to-day running of a 350-man group of companies, including implementation of the business strategy, cost management, and improving business efficiency whilst maintaining profit and adding stakeholder value.
