Arcadis appoints Anusha Shah as Director of Resilient Cities
The UK wing of engineering consultancy Arcadis has strengthened its global cities programme with the appointment of Anusha Shah, who arrives at the firm as Director of Resilient Cities. The newly created role will see Shah focus on working with city leaders to better understand short and long-term resiliency planning challenges.
International professional services firm Arcadis specialises in design and consultancy services. The firm’s 27,000 people are active in over 70 countries, generating annual revenues of €3.2 billion. While globally, Arcadis reported a multi-million pound loss in its annual results earlier in the year, one region of the company to buck its downward trend was the UK. There, Arcadis enjoyed growth of 13% in 2018, well ahead of the broader UK consulting market.
In a bid to maintain the positive momentum of its UK wing, Arcadis recently sought to emphasise the role of entrepreneurialism in its firm with a new appointment. Nilesh Parmar, who has been with Arcadis since 2004, has joined the business’ UK leadership team in the recently created role of Chief Entrepreneur. Now, the firm has continued its drive to innovate its British business model, with the appointment of its first Director of Resilient Cities.
Anusha Shah joins Arcadis for the newly created role, in which she will work with city leaders to better understand short and long-term resiliency planning challenges. She will also support organisations in meeting their net zero targets, and maintain sustainability as they respond to the pressures of mass urbanisation and climate change. A chartered engineer, Shah specialises in water and environmental engineering, and brings almost 20 years of experience in designing, managing and leading projects and programmes to the firm.
Speaking on her appointment, Shah said, “With mass urbanisation on the increase, creating resilient cities that can withstand, respond to and thrive in the face of some of the world’s most pressing issues around climate change and water scarcity is more important than ever. We need to find innovative ways to address these challenges, not just from a societal perspective but also in terms of developing bankable solutions and attracting investment.”
Shah joins Arcadis from her previous role as founder and CEO of Plan for Earth, a consultancy offering advisory services in water, climate change adaptation and resilience, sustainability and inclusive design. Earlier in her career, she was also a Director at Jacobs, and a Senior Consultant with TRIOSS.
Peter Hogg, UK Cities Director at Arcadis, remarked, “Anusha’s expertise in climate change and sustainability will bring a real depth and focus that supports our work with cities and city leaders around the UK. In creating places where people want to live and work, we need to be planning long-term, and creating resilient, future-proofed communities is a key part of the picture. Understanding the impacts of climate change and how we can respond to its challenges will be crucial to how we shape our cities, and Anusha will play an integral role in driving forward this agenda.”
