Varda Shine
Varda Shine is a Non-Executive Director, Mentor and Diamond & Business advisor. Over a 30-year career in the diamond industry with De Beers, culminating with the role of CEO at De Beers Trading business (the Mid-stream business with an annual turnover of approximately $6bn, operating in London, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Canada, working with a global client base).
Varda developed a wealth of experience and expertise in fields such as government relationship management, corporate strategy development, the growth of markets in emerging economies, personal development for senior employees and business development.
She now applies these skills as Chair at Petra Diamonds PLC; and as a Board member of Mineral Development Botswana, Ecora Resources plc, and Sarine Technologies; as well as a Trustee of the Teenage Cancer Trust and as a Merryck Mentor.
With a strong focus on values, collaborative working and commercial skill set, Varda’s approach aims for people, businesses and nations to be at their best. She has a strong track record in developing talent from diverse cultures and embedding effective succession planning to ensure business sustainability. A champion of diversity, Varda has proven the commercial effectiveness of developing and supporting integrated employment across cultures to the benefit of businesses and the local communities in which they operate. Varda’s approach is epitomised by the words of economist Bernard Baruch: “You don’t have to blow out the other fellow’s light to let your own shine.”
Using her understanding of multiple stakeholders’ needs, she has overseen the creation of an international network of public/private joint-venture operations in sensitive and multicultural environments, dealing with a complex supply chain. Varda also successfully completed the multibillion-dollar relocation of sales operations from London to Botswana in what was one of the largest ever transfers of economic activity from the northern to the southern hemisphere. In 2014, having successfully completed the relocation, Varda stepped down as CEO to pursue a portfolio career. Varda has completed business and management courses at Templeton College, Oxford, Cranfield and INSEAD. She has an MSc in executive coaching from Ashridge. She was the first woman to be awarded honorary lifetime membership of the Israel Diamond Exchange (IDE) and in 2011 received the Women’s Jewellery Association (WJA) Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014 she was awarded Honorary Membership of the London Diamond Bourse. As well as working as a non-executive director on boards and working as a mentor Varda has supported Channel Capital LLP over the last 4 years with a focus on growth and transformation.
Varda is married to Chaim. Opera, travelling and yoga are her hobbies, but what Varda enjoys most is to spend time with friends and family.
