Times Higher Education (THE), the global leader in higher education data and insights, has announced the appointment of John Gill as its new chief executive officer.
Gill, who joined THE in 2007, has served as editor since 2012, and also held the position of chief content officer. He succeeds Paul Howarth, who had been chief executive since 2020.
Gill led THE¡¯s transition from a UK-focused policy magazine to a global provider of higher education news and analysis attracting more than 65 million online readers every year.
His editorship coincided with the growth of THE¡¯s influential suite of global university rankings, which now attract the participation of more than 4,900 institutions from 143 countries, and the development of its agenda-setting series of events, including the flagship World Summit Series.
Under the ownership of leading European private equity firm Inflexion Private Equity, which acquired THE in 2019, Gill also had oversight of the US-based Inside Higher Ed, acquired in 2022, and business school publication Poets&Quants, which was acquired the following year.
As chief executive he will have responsibility for the full range of THE¡¯s activities, which also include data products, consultancy, branding solutions and recruitment. The company boasts more than 700 customers in 85 countries, and last year was recognised in the King¡¯s Awards for Enterprise for its contribution to international trade.
Other acquisitions under Inflexion¡¯s ownership have included BMI, the leading global organiser of in-person and digital international student recruitment fairs; dataHE, the provider of code-based, data-led insights for the UK higher education sector; and the Education World Forum, the world¡¯s largest gathering of education and skills ministers.
Gill said: ¡°It is a privilege to step up into this role as THE¡¯s CEO and lead this wonderful business, which supports one of the world¡¯s most important sectors.
¡°Over the last two decades I have seen first-hand what an indispensable partner THE has become in helping universities, governments and industry partners both understand and succeed in the ever-evolving landscape of global higher education.
¡°The opportunity ahead is to guide the next chapter for THE, and find ways to make our deep and enduring relationships with universities even more powerful.¡±
THE is headquartered in London, with offices in Australia, the US and Singapore.
It holds more than 11 million performance data points on over 6,700 universities from 155 countries.
The business is engaged in dozens of national excellence initiatives with various governments around the world, including Austria, Hungary, India, Kurdistan, Saudi Arabia, Thailand and Uzbekistan.
It also works with dozens of leading global brands, supporting their engagement with universities.
A new editor for?THE?will be appointed shortly.