Two senior hires for 3Keel boost leadership team
Sustainability consultancy 3Keel has installed two senior hires in its UK team. Jonah Grunsell joins as a new managing director, while Mary Short arrives as 3Keel’s first finance director.
Founded in 2013, 3Keel is an Oxford-based firm of sustainability advisors specialised in working with food systems, supply chains and landscapes. The firm became a certified B Corp in 2020, and was awarded platinum ratings for ESG and sustainability in Consultancy.uk’s 2024 Top Consulting Firms in the UK list.
As the company looks to grow further, it has been pursuing the appointment of experienced leaders who can take over management of the business from 3Keel’s four founding directors. Now, the firm has announced the appointment of two senior professionals to take the plans forward.
Jonah Grunsell has taken on the role of managing director, stepping into the shoes of Simon Miller – who moves out of the job after a decade. Miller will now work with Grunsell during a period of transition.
Grunsell spent his early career at Accenture and KPMG, before founding a specialist consulting firm advising government and large NGOs on strategy, organisational development and social impact in 2010. He then turned his focus to education, setting up a consultancy advising UK and overseas governments on education improvement. Most recently, he worked as managing partner of Xynteo, a global sustainability consultancy.
Commenting on his new challenge, Grunsell said, “I am excited to lead 3Keel at this next stage of its growth, working with the Directors and our wonderful people. Together we will help 3Keel become the leading sustainability consultancy in the UK, driving innovative and systemic change, and realising a future where the environment, communities and businesses can grow and thrive in harmony.”
At the same time, Mary Short has also been appointed to the consultancy’s senior management team and board. As a qualified chartered management accountant with more than 30 years’ experience in professional services, not for profit and environmental organisations, she previously worked for Milklink, one of the UK’s largest dairy cooperatives, and Sustain, an environmental consultancy focusing on energy sustainability in the built environment. More recently she has worked at The Impact Facility, a UK charity operating in Africa, which supports small scale and artisanal mining communities.
Short added, “I am looking forward to working with Jonah and the rest of the 3Keel team to support the next stage of growth and build the finance capacity on the successes to date.”
Speaking on the new hires, outgoing Managing Director Simon Miller also noted, “It is a pleasure to pass the reins for managing 3Keel to Jonah and Mary. Everyone in the business is excited to learn and benefit from their combined experience. And for Tom, Rich, Will and me, their arrival allows us to spend more time on the sustainability work which is our real forte.”
The two appointments complete a year of evolution, which saw the appointment of three business unit heads: Fran Edmunds, head of climate, nature and resources; Anna Kitulagoda, head of commodity supply chains; and Catherine McCosker, head of agriculture and land. Together, they are responsible for 3Keel’s delivery teams, which are now approaching 80 people.
