Mark Scharneck is currently the head of external affairs at BHP Billiton Energy Coal SA Ltd. (BECSA), a wholly owned subsidiary of BHP Billiton PLC. Mark also serves as an independent non-executive director on the board of JDGU, the insurance arm of the JD Group and as the chair of the JDGI audit committee. Mark joined the BHP Billiton group in 2003 as VP Finance for its Samancor Chrome business and was subsequently transferred to BECSA in 2005 where he took up the position of Head of Finance. Prior to joining BHP Billiton Mark was employed as the Finance Director of Nova Risk Partners (Nova), a boutique insurance solutions subsidiary of the Munich Re. Mark’s most notable recent achievements include building a start-up business in close collaboration with the CEO to a robust business; fostering and enhancing the diversity within BECSA’s finance function, and nurturing and mentoring the talent within the finance function. Mark is a Fellow of the eighth class of the Africa Leadership Initiative-South Africa and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.