V&A Announces New Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer, V&A, 8 October 2026
The V&A is delighted to announce the appointment of Jane Ellis as its new Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer. Jane joined the V&A in 2019 as Director of Finance and Resources and will take up her new role in November. Jane will take on an
expanded remit, and will assume responsibility for Audiences, Security, Legal and Directorate in addition to her existing portfolio.
In Jane’s previous role she led the Technology, People, Finance and Redesign teams, later also becoming accountable for the Commercial division.
She guided the V&A’s finances through Covid-19 and subsequent recovery and oversaw the financial
management of the V&A East capital programme. Jane established and sponsored the V&A Redesign programme, which delivered major change projects to help establish the V&A’s family of museums with a focus on collaboration and inclusivity. This included a new approach to volunteering, the revolutionary Order an Object service, new visitor experience standards and changes to ways of working including delivery of a multi-site intranet. Jane also oversaw the establishment of a new Commercial division, bringing retail, box office and membership together to create the conditions for growth in visitor-led income.
She is the V&A’s lead executive on AI, chairing the steering group that ensures a balanced approach to the adoption of new technology. Jane also led the development of the V&A’s strategy to 2030, Creativity for All.
Before joining the V&A, Jane was Director of Corporate Services at the Science Museum Group, where she was responsible for finance, technology and commercial activity. Major achievements in that role included the development of a new dedicated
space for daytime conferencing (Illuminate); the implementation of a successful ticketed model for the children’s gallery Wonderlab and financial management during a period of major capital investment across sites. Jane began her cultural sector career at the National Gallery, where she became Director of Finance and IT, having previously
held accountancy roles at Deutsche Bank and BMW and trained at Arthur Andersen.
Jane has a degree in English literature from Cambridge University and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
V&A Director, Sir Tristram Hunt, said: “We are delighted to appoint Jane us as our new Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer. Having served so successfully as our Director of Finance and Resources since 2019, Jane brings an exceptional understanding of the museum, it’s people and its ambitions, alongside strong leadership, ethics and
strategic expertise. I greatly look forward to working with Jane in her new role in leading
the V&A family.”
Jane Ellis said: “At such an important moment for the V&A it is a real privilege to be taking on this role. As we become a fully operational group of museums, I look forward to working with my brilliant executive board colleagues to deliver our new strategy and to support the collaborative, creative community that makes the V&A so special.