Franco-British Trade and Investment Awards Judges
Ilaria Regondi
Deputy Trade Commissioner for Europe and Country Director for France at the Commercial Section of the British Embassy in Paris
Ilaria Regondi joined the Commercial Section of the British Embassy in Paris as Her Majesty’s Deputy Trade Commissioner for Europe and Country Director for France in September 2019. She heads up the trade and investment teams covering Europe South (Cyprus, France, Greece, Israel, Portugal and Spain). Her previous roles include the Department for International Trade's (DIT) Deputy Director for the International Strategy Directorate, responsible for DIT’s Europe, Middle East and Central Asia desks. Ilaria is dedicated to diversity and inclusion, holding the position of Inclusivity Champion at the British Embassy in Paris. Ilaria has held numerous senior positions across UK government, including ministerial Chief of Staff and Chief Operating Officer to Healthcare UK. She has worked globally throughout her career, notably as a member of the World Bank’s East Asia team based in Washington, the World Health Organisation in Geneva and the Overseas Development Institute in South Africa. She studied European Social and Political Studies at UCL, followed by a Masters in Health Policy and Economics at The John’s Hopkins University. Ilaria is an avid traveller and keen cyclist and lives with her husband and their child.
Paul Taylor
Chief Operating Officer at the Commercial Section of the British Embassy in Paris
Paul Taylor took up the role of Chief Operating Officer at the Commercial Section of the British Embassy in Paris in May 2016. Immediately prior to his arrival in France, Paul spent five years in Prague as Regional Director for Trade & Investment with Central and South Eastern Europe. Paul’s Government career encompasses both the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and the Department for International Trade. Previous responsibilities in Whitehall include managing bilateral relations with South America and, subsequently, the Middle East & North Africa; while other overseas experience includes diplomatic postings to the British Embassies in Mexico City, Santiago and Madrid.
Thierry Drilhon
President of the Franco-British Chamber
Thierry Drilhon
President of the Franco-British Chamber
Thierry Drilhon has 35 years of experience in the technology, digital and innovation sphere, acquired as an international manager of major companies such as Microsoft and Cisco Corp. of which he became Senior Vice President in 2007, based in Paris and San Francisco and member of the World Executive Committee. In 2012, he joined Euro Media Group in Paris as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, which he would go on to transform into a European media leader present in 8 European countries. Profoundly attached to the Franco-British relationship, Thierry was elected President of the Franco-British Chamber of Commerce & Industry in June 2018, thus putting his international experience at the service of the attractiveness of Franco-British business relations. Very committed to health and the heart, since 2002, as President of Cisco France, he has accompanied Professor Christian Cabrol in favour of organ donation, participating for 10 years in "La Course du Coeur". In January 2019, he became the Managing Director of the French Federation of Cardiology, from which he went on to co-found the Endowment Fund "Agir pour le Coeur des Femmes - Women's Cardiovascular Healthcare Foundation" with Professor Claire Mounier-Vehier. Knight in the Ordre National du Mérite, he is a graduate of EAD Paris and Stanford University in the United States.
Catherine Le Yaouanc
General Manager at Franco-British Chamber
Catherine has been the General Manager of the Franco-British Chamber since 1993, when she accepted the challenge of the Chamber's financial recovery, the creation of new services and the development of membership. Catherine has played a central role in creating more innovative events, developing new digital media outreach for the Chamber as well as establishing the Cross-Channel Institute, a Franco-British economic think tank. The Franco-British Chamber is today one of the most dynamic chambers of commerce in the United Kingdom on European soil, and has been awarded numerous prizes (Events, Membership and Digital communication...). For her 20 years in the Chamber in 2013, her European peers awarded her "The Howard Rosen Special Award for Excellence". The number of memberships is constantly growing with a high attractiveness factor for all types of members – President’s Forum, Corporate and Entrepreneurs. Catherine previously held positions in a Special Products Export Department of the Elf Atochem-Ceca group. She is also a board member for the Fondation Franco-Britannique de la Colony de Sillery.
Arnaud Naudan
Chief Executive Officer at BDO France
Arnaud Naudan is Chief Executive Officer at BDO France, 5th largest audit and consulting network in the world, which today has more than 1,500 employees in 45 offices in mainland France as well as in Guyana, Reunion Island and French Polynesia. He is also EMEA Board Member of BDO International and global Head of Risk Management activities. Chartered accountant and statutory auditor, he began his career in 2006 at PwC in Luxembourg, New York and Paris, before joining BDO in 2013. He actively contributes and develops BDO's activities in the financial sector (banking, insurance, and asset management). Father of two children, he is also passionate about sports (triathlon, hiking, parachuting) and represents BDO in numerous events, including Ironman races. Arnaud Naudan graduated from HEC Paris and ENSAE.