George Makris

Global Head of Reward The Magnum Ice Cream Company | Supervisory Board Member | World at Work Faculty Member (teaching Global Remuneration Professional courses)

Netherlands

About

I am passionate about using Reward to underpin culture and drive business performance. My experience combines Group Head/Senior Reward roles with consulting and shareholder & corporate governance background. I take pride in using this experience to develop a distinctive Reward proposition which attracts, retains and motivates our people to perform at their best. As a member of the HR Leadership Team, I shape the development and implementation of the wider People agenda. As a faculty member of World at Work, I also teach various Reward topics mainly focusing on variable pay, communications and business acumen.

Experience

  • Global Head of Reward at The Magnum Ice Cream Company
    Feb 2025 - Present · 1 yr 5 mos

    The Magnum Ice Cream Company is the world's largest Ice Cream company with a revenue of over €8bn and 19000 colleagues. Come November 2025, we will be listed on the Amsterdam, London and New York stock exchanges.

  • Head of Reward Ice Cream at Unilever
    Feb 2025 - Jul 2025 · 6 mos

    In 2024, Unilever announced that it would spin-off its Ice Cream division into the world's largest independent Ice Cream Company, with revenues of over €8bn. This new company will be known as The Magnum Ice Cream Company, with its headquarters in Amsterdam and listings on the Amsterdam, London and New York stock exchanges. Operational and legal entity separation from Unilever is set to 1 July with listing planned for Q4 2025.

  • Global Head of Reward at JDE Peet's
    Oct 2022 - Feb 2025 · 2 yrs 5 mos

    Listed on the Euronext Amsterdam, JDE Peet’s (Jacobs Douwe Egberts) is the world's leading pure-play coffee and tea company. In 2023, JDE Peet’s generated total sales of EUR 8.2 billion and employed a global workforce of more than 21,000 employees. JDE Peet's unleashes the possibilities of coffee and tea in more than 100 markets with a portfolio of over 50 brands including L’OR, Peet’s, Jacobs, Senseo, Tassimo, Douwe Egberts, Old Town, Super, Pickwick and Moccona.

  • Reckitt (6 yrs 6 mos)
    • Head of Executive Reward and Total Reward Strategy
      Oct 2020 - Oct 2022 · 2 yrs 1 mo

    • Reward Director, Hygiene Home
      Jan 2018 - Oct 2020 · 2 yrs 10 mos

    • Compensation & Benefits Director, Global Functions
      May 2016 - Dec 2017 · 1 yr 8 mos

  • Group Head of Reward at Direct Line Insurance Group plc
    Aug 2013 - May 2016 · 2 yrs 10 mos

    Direct Line Group (DLG) is the UK's largest retail general insurer and a member of the FTSE 100, owning brands such as Direct Line, Churchill, Privilege and Green Flag. DLG was also recognised in the top three of the Sunday Times Best Big Companies To Work For ranking. I joined the business shortly after its IPO initially to lead on executive reward, before taking on responsibility for driving the overall reward agenda across the Group in early 2014, advising management and the Remuneration Committee and leading the ongoing design, development and implementation of the reward strategy. In addition, as a member of the HR Leadership Team, I contributed to the strategic direction of HR and the development and implementation of the wider people strategy.