Professor Lorne Crerar, CBE,

The firm said that whilst responding to the pandemic and carrying on with the important day-job of filling leadership and senior positions took up nearly all of its time, it didn’t create as much of a fanfare as it should have done.

Aspen People has said it now feels like a very good time to rectify that situation.

Professor Crerar is co-founder and chairman of independent law firm Harper Macleod LLP. Undoubtedly one of Scotland’s most renowned legal figures, he has played an important and wide-ranging role in Scottish public life. Until 2020 he was also Chairman of Highlands and Islands Enterprise and was made a Commander of the British Empire in recognition of his contribution to Scotland’s economic and community development.

As part of Aspen’s ambitious plans to accelerate growth, Professor Crerar has been actively involved in all strategic planning activity within the business since the beginning of 2020.

Speaking about his role, Donogh O’Brien, Aspen director, said: “We are extremely proud of attracting Lorne to be our Non-Executive Chairman. We believe the fit to be perfect in terms of our alignment of values and the spirit of collaboration that we are forging between professional service providers. His extensive knowledge and experience will be hugely important to our future development as we build on our successes and cement our reputation as Leaders in Executive Search and as a noteworthy business established in Scotland.”

Professor Crerar added: “Cultural fit is of vital importance to me personally and it was evident from the first meeting with the senior Aspen team that there was great synergy between our respective philosophies and ambitions. The last 12 months have undoubtedly been turbulent, but we have emerged leaner, fitter, hungrier and have demonstrated a resilience that will serve us and our clients well for many years to come.”