Keynote Speaker
Deanna Watson Oppenheimer
Chief Executive of the UK Retail Bank
Barclays
Deanna Oppenheimer joined Barclays in October 2005 as UK Banking Chief Operating Officer. She became Chief Executive of the UK Retail Bank in December of that year, taking the helm at one of the largest retail banks in the UK, with more than 32,000 employees, serving some15 million customers through contact centres, online banking and more than 1,700 branches.
UK Retail Banking has seen significant uplift in financial results since Ms Oppenheimer’s appointment delivering profit of £690m in the first half of 2008, a 7% profit increase on the first half of 2007. The growth and sustainability of the financial results have been delivered through Ms Oppenheimer’s relentless focus on the execution of a clear and compelling vision and strategy with customers firmly at its heart.
Under Ms Oppenheimer’s leadership, the Retail Bank has delivered some impressive achievements. She masterminded one of the biggest integrations ever undertaken in the UK financial services industry which transformed The Woolwich from a separate high street branch network into Barclays powerful mortgage brand. Between May and July 2007, 3.3 million Woolwich customers with 4.6 million accounts, representing £12billion in balances were automatically transferred into Barclays accounts. This integration was completed two months ahead of schedule.
As a firm believer in the power of innovation, Ms Oppenheimer has also introduced new products and ways of doing business. Barclays account opening process is now considered best-in-class. Brand awareness has seen the biggest leap of all the major clearing banks in the UK and by offering customers value-driven, simple, transparent and often market-leading propositions, Barclays has been recognized with a number of awards; for example Woolwich mortgages have been awarded in the ‘Best Lifetime Tracker’ category at the 2008 Moneywise awards and Barclays won 'Best Cash ISA Provider' at the 2008 Moneyfacts Awards.
In addition to her role at Barclays, Ms Oppenheimer chairs the board of trustees of the University of Puget Sound and supports a number of charitable organisations. Ms Oppenheimer graduated cum laude from the University of Puget Sound with degrees in political science and urban affairs. She completed the Advanced Executive Programme at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
Before joining Barclays in 2005, Ms Oppenheimer held a number of senior management positions at Washington Mutual.
Ms Oppenheimer’s awards include Media Inc.’s Person of the Year and the Seattle Advertising Federation’s Double Halo Award for community service.
In September 2007, Ms Oppenheimer was named Britain’s Business Communicator of the Year by the British Association of Communicators in Business (CiB) and in October 2008, was chosen by US Banker as one of the most powerful women in banking.
