Sharon Ward

A former senior compliance practitioner to director level, Sharon is well qualified with extensive practical experience in Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) related matters. Passionate about developing individuals to support personal growth and professional practice within industry, over the past three decades she has been actively involved in a number of initiatives in this field. This included the early days development of a new professional body (the International Compliance Association) with roles spanning Global Head of Education & Training, Development Director and, more recently as part of her growing portfolio of roles, Chief Examiner (GRC).

Acting as a trusted Board/Committee Advisor and as an Assessor and Trainer, Sharon has supported organisations and individuals on a range of GRC related projects: ongoing work as an assessor of individuals (from new entrants through to senior leaders) including Apprentice assessment; as Module Director for the Financial Services Compliance Elective of the Chartered Banker MBA programme (CBMBA) at Bangor Business School; as Editor/Member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Business Compliance; as author of, and contributor to, professional education texts and journals.

She previously served as Chair of the Compliance Institute in the UK, where she was a member of its Professional Education Board. Sharon holds an MSc in Financial Regulation & Compliance Management, is a Fellow of the ICA and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Educational Assessors.