James Lea

James became Society’s Managing Director, Asia Pacific in 2021, after being its first Regional Director North America for two years, opening the New York office and leading the global Hospitality & Leisure Practice previously for eight years. Formerly he worked in executive search and recruitment for the PSD Group, Hostec and Hudson Global Resources.  

As Managing Director, Asia Pacific James has responsibility for developing Society’s market segments in the region. These include Hospitality and Leisure, Higher Education, Schools and Colleges and Not-For-Profit. He has lead leadership appointments for clients ranging from the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group to RMIT University and Médecins Sans Frontières and from University of Technology Sydney and The Foreign Correspondents’ Club Hong Kong.  

James believes in tailoring recruitment solutions to meet the needs of his clients that bring global diverse candidates to the table, and he is passionate about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

James attended Stonyhurst College and later studied for a Hospitality HND at Thames Valley University (now the University of West London). He has lived and worked in London, Sydney, New York and now Auckland and has a truly global perspective.