Annette Thomas


Annette Thomas is an American-born publishing executive specializing in science publishing, who lives in the United Kingdom. In 2020, she was named chief executive of the Guardian Media Group.

Early life

Thomas was born in Washington, D.C. in 1965, and grew up near Washington. Her African American father worked as a pharmacist at the Food and Drug Administration; her mother is German. She attended the Eleanor Roosevelt High School, Greenbelt, Maryland. She has a degree in biochemistry and biophysics from Harvard University and a PhD in cell biology and neuroscience from Yale University.

Career

In 1993, immediately after finishing her graduate work, Thomas moved to London to begin her career in publishing as a cell biology editor at Nature. She served as the founding editor of Nature Cell Biology. She became publisher and then managing director of the Nature Publishing Group in 2000. She was responsible for founding the Nature Reviews series. Other positions that she has held include chief executive of Macmillan Science and Education, as well as leadership roles at Clarivate Analytics' Web of Science citation and abstract search database.
Thomas is a trustee and member of the governing board of Yale University. She is also a past recipient of the prestigious Wilbur Cross Medal, awarded to distinguished Yale Graduate School alumni. She has previously served on various boards, including the Creative Commons Board of Directors.
Thomas was named chief executive of the Guardian Media Group on 14 January 2020. She began in the role in March 2020.

Personal life

Thomas has lived in the United Kingdom since about 1995, most recently in Cambridge. She is married to a scientist. They have three sons and a daughter.