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London, UK--De Beers Group today announced that David Prager, executive vice president and chief brand officer, and Ryan Perry, acting executive vice president of strategy and innovation, will be leaving the company in 2024.

De Beers Group appointed Tom Johnson to the position of general counsel, effective January 1, 2024. In this role, he will join the De Beers executive committee overseeing the company’s legal and secretariat functions. Johnson is based in the UK and first joined De Beers as part of Element Six in 2016.

Both Prager and Perry will continue to serve on the executive committee while overseeing the transition of their responsibilities to its other members. Prager will also continue to serve as chairman of the Natural Diamond Council (NDC) until a successor is elected by the NDC Board.

[David Prager]

Prager joined De Beers in 2006 and has led the transformation of its purpose and brand, De Beers said in a statement.

“Throughout his time at De Beers, David’s insight, creativity and leadership have propelled us forward. He transformed our brand and marketing strategy; managed complex issues in a way that built trust with stakeholders and strengthened our reputation around the world; and he designed a sustainability framework that has protected the natural world, improved people’s lives and deepened our clients’ connection to our diamonds,” Al Cook, De Beers Group CEO said in a statement. “While I will be very sorry to lose David, I know that his values and ability to build common ground will stay with De Beers for years to come.”

Ryan joined De Beers in 2002 and has worked in operational and strategic leadership roles across the company’s value chain.

“From tackling technical mining challenges to predicting the future of diamond demand, Ryan has contributed outstandingly across the De Beers Group,” Cook said. “He has always been effective in bringing different parties to work together successfully, leading change programmes during the global pandemic, leading strategy development and leading the creation of the Diamonds for Development Fund in Botswana. In my time at De Beers, Ryan has helped me understand the nuances of the market and our product, and I am deeply grateful for his wide-ranging contributions.”