Laurie Fitzjohn-Sykes is director of research at Tomorrow’s Company.
He worked for eight years in investment banking and venture capital, primarily as a sell-side research analyst. He worked for Dresdner Kleinwort, Frontiers Capital and was vice president on the Citi telecoms equity research team before joining Tomorrow’s Company in 2015. Laurie led the Tomorrow’s Company Futures Project, reviewing progress since the foundation of Tomorrow’s Company in 1996, and developing a fresh agenda for the years ahead, published in the report, 'UK Business: What’s wrong? What’s next?'. He is also the author of 'Playing the Long Game - How to Save the West from Short-Termism' (2015). Laurie studied Economics at Cambridge University.
Anthony read engineering at Cambridge, then became a solicitor specialising in international liability and insurance law. During two decades as a partner in one of the leading legal specialists in the handling of international disasters, he refined strategies to prioritise and reconcile the reputational, humanitarian, commercial, legal and insurance issues arising in crises. He also advised major brands in the wake of severe adverse events. Following his retirement from the law, Anthony founded Reputability, of which he is chairman. He is co-author of "Roads to Ruin", the Cass Business School report for Airmic and, with Derek Atkins, of "Rethinking Reputational Risk: How to Manage the Risks that can Ruin Your Business, Your Reputation and You".
Jennifer Flock is a partner in Heidrick & Struggles’ Paris office and head of the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Practice in EMEA. She works with senior executives and leadership teams to create significant and sustainable impact in DE&I to create the kind of inclusive environment that allows companies to attract, retain, and get the best out of 100% of today’s talent.
Gary is a political sociologist with broad research interests in the relationship between business and society with a particular focus on the impact of business political activity over health policy and financial regulation. His work covers the role of multinational corporations in shaping the regulatory architecture of the European Union and European member states, their use of corporate social responsibility practices to influence policy and their use of outsider political strategies and third parties to expand policy conflicts.
Kay Formanek is a global speaker on diversity and inclusion (D&I), visiting lecturer at leading business schools and founder of Diversity and Performance, which is committed to unleashing the power of diversity performance within profit and not-for-profit organisations around the world.
Within this role, Kay offers advisory and research services, including coaching for inclusive and strategic diversity leaders. She has also worked for leading global professional services organisations for over 20 years as partner and managing director, actively supporting their D&I strategy realisation.
Her proven approach to leading diversity strategically draws on extensive research and advisory work with over 50 organisations.
Lars-Erik Forsgårdh (known as 'LEF') has extensive experience of chairing boards of different types of companies and organisations, as well as being a member of boards in both listed and non-listed companies. He is a current board member and former chairman of ecoDa (the European Confederation of Directors' Associations). He is also chairman of the Swedish Academy of Board Directors and chairman of the Swedish Society of Share Promotion, an organisation that annually informs 25,000 students how to invest in stocks and mutual funds. LEF has a PhD in Finance and Accounting from the Stockholm School of Economics where he worked as teacher and researcher. He is a former managing director of the Swedish Shareholders' Association and cofounder of Euroshareholders. LEF was also a member of the Swedish Corporate Governance Board.
Philippa Foster Back CBE is director of the Institute of Business Ethics. She has 30 years of business experience, having begun her career at Citibank. She speaks widely on business ethics issues, encouraging high standards of business behaviour based on ethical values. Philippa sits on the boards/advisory boards of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment, and RAND Europe. She is a visiting fellow of the Saïd Business School at Oxford University and honorary vice president of the Employee Ownership Association. She chairs the Antarctic Place Names Committee and is former chairman of the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust. Philippa was awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours 2006 for services to the Ministry of Defence, and in July 2008 was awarded the BITC Marks & Spencer Sieff Award. In the 2014 New Years Honours she was awarded a CBE for services to Antarctic Heritage.
Dr Monica Franco-Santos is a senior lecturer at Cranfield School of Management. Monica's research broadly focuses on organisational governance systems. She is part of the teaching faculty of Cranfield's MBAs, MScs, PhD, DBA and various executive education programmes. Monica is also a visiting professor in ESADE (Barcelona, Spain) and an occasional lecturer in a number of European academic institutions.
Claude Francoeur holds the Stephen A. Jarislowsky chair in governance at HEC Montréal. His research focuses on the determinants and consequences of having more female directors and executives in public firms. His work has been published in leading journals such as the Journal of Business Ethics, Strategic Management Journal, British Journal of Management and Gender Work and Organization. In 2008, he received the Emerald Citation of Excellence Award, for a paper entitled "Gender Diversity in Corporate Governance and Top Management", published in the Journal of Business Ethics.
Katharine Freeland has more than 20 twenty years’ experience in legal publishing as a journalist, editor and communicator. As editor of Trusts and Estates Law & Tax Journal, a former co-editor of Property Law Journal and with five years’ experience as editor and writer for The Legal 500, Katharine works with law firms and barristers’ chambers across practice areas and around the world, from global firms to boutiques. As a freelance journalist, she writes news and features for various industry publications, including the Law Society Gazette and WorldECR – the journal of export controls and sanctions.
Alan Frost is a partner, business consulting, at professional services firm Mazars. He focuses on strategy and planning, organisational design, project and change management, and business performance improvement. He advises businesses on controls and processes, working closely with our management information data advisory team to ensure all clients receive a fully integrated service.
Alan’s main expertise lies in assisting clients who undergo significant levels of change, both in the UK and internationally, advising around strategy and growth plans, utilising his core skills of project management, agile thinking and problem solving.
Barry Gamble is an experienced private, public company and charity board director, chair of The NED City Debates, and senior adviser to the Non-Executive Directors Association.
He has led a private equity MBO, public company IPO, secondary fundraisings, including working with The Takeover Panel, and an AIM de-admission. Through a role as senior adviser at Boudicca Proxy he also has experience of activists, institutions and corporate boards in shareholder engagement and activist scenarios.
Alongside board advisory and NED roles he regularly writes and speaks about the challenge of board best practice working with a range of organisations and media outlets. Formerly Editor-at-Large at BoardRoom magazine, the letters columns of the Financial Times have published a number of his views on corporate governance.
