Sovereign appoints first Chief Information Officer

14 May 2019 

Kevin Ives has been named as Sovereign’s first Chief Information Officer (CIO).

Kevin will join Sovereign’s Executive Board on 1 August from his current role as Digital Transformation Director at Arriva Trains, which operates eight UK rail businesses including Chiltern Trains and London Overground. As well as leading Arriva’s digital transformation strategy, Kevin has held senior roles at Balfour Beatty, Transport for London and Thames Water.

Mark Washer, Sovereign’s Chief Executive, said: “This new role strengthens our top team and reinforces our commitment to creating a sector-leading technology platform for Sovereign. It’ll help us respond to our customers’ expectations and put our residents at the heart of everything we do, by developing our digital offer, modernising our processes and providing timely and meaningful information across the business.  

“Kevin brings a wealth of experience, having delivered customer-service focused digital transformation at scale both here in the UK and internationally, and I’m really looking forward to having him on the team.”

Kevin said:  “I’m delighted to be joining Sovereign at a critical point in its transformation, and to take on the new role of CIO as it looks to transform and take advantage of the best that technology can offer. Sovereign has a great reputation, and I’m looking forward to working with the team on the next stage of its journey, taking customer service through digital channels to the next level and providing meaningful and robust information to shape its strategic direction. ”