Charlotte Street Partners and Global Infrastructure Partners ‘IN CONVERSATION’ WITH NICOLA STURGEON MSP, FIRST MINISTER OF SCOTLAND Presented by James Naughtie The Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh Thursday 15 January 2015 PROCEEDINGS 18:30 - Arrival & drinks 19:00 - Welcome Andrew Wilson, Managing Partner, Charlotte Street Partners 19:05 - Opening remarks Michael McGhee, Founding Partner, Global Infrastructure Partners DINNER Balmoral Own Smoked Salmon served with Caper Sauce Turnip Fondant and Braised Potatoes Rhubarb and Apple Crumble served with Cranachan Parfait Tea & Coffee Red: Borgo Selene, Nero D’Avola/Nerello Mascalese, Sicily White: Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie, Alpha Zeta 21:00 - Introduction to Nicola Sturgeon MSP & James Naughtie Andrew Wilson, Managing Partner, Charlotte Street Partners 21:30 - Q&A 22:00 - Close & vote of thanks Malcolm Robertson, Managing Partner, Charlotte Street Partners GUEST SPEAKERS Rt. Hon. Nicola Sturgeon MSP First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon was born in Irvine in 1970 and educated at Greenwood Academy. She studied law at the University of Glasgow, where she graduated with LLB (Hons) and Diploma in Legal Practice. Before entering the Scottish Parliament she worked as a solicitor in the Drumchapel Law and Money Advice Centre in Glasgow. She was elected MSP for Glasgow in 1999, and is now MSP for Glasgow Southside. Before being appointed Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing after the May 2007 election she had been Shadow Minister for Education, Health & Community Care and Justice. November 2014. James Naughtie Presenter BBC James Naughtie presents Today on BBC Radio 4. For the duration of the referendum campaign, he was also a regular presenter of Good Morning Scotland on BBC Radio Scotland. Before joining the BBC in 1988, he was Chief Political Correspondent of The Guardian, which he joined after seven years on The Scotsman. James has written books on politics and music and last year ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 4 BIOGRAPHIES Nick Barley Director Edinburgh Book Festival Nick Barley initially worked in London and Edinburgh as a publisher and editor before becoming Director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival in 2009. Under his direction, the festival has launched a series of innovations including a free mini-festival of literary performances; the First Book Award for debut novels; an annual series of sessions programmed by Guest Selectors; and the Edinburgh World Writers’ Conference. Nick is the founding Chair of the Word Alliance. Suzanne Burns HR & Communications Director STV Group plc. Suzanne is HR & Communications Director of STV Group plc. with experience in HR and organisation development and strategic communications and PR roles acquired across a range of sectors including technology and utilities; FMCG manufacturing and media. Prior to her appointment with STV, Suzanne undertook an HR role with Allied Domecq plc and prior to that participated in a VC-backed MBO of the former technology and engineering design business of Scottish Power, a venture which was grown for sale to a telecoms company. Suzanne currently sits on the board of Skillset Scotland and serves as a board member of Glasgow Chamber of Commerce. 5 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Algy Cluff Cluff Natural Resources Algy Cluff has been in the oil, gas and mining business for over forty years. He has founded numerous companies ranging from Cluff Oil in 1970 to Cluff Natural Resources in 2012. He has been involved in the North Sea for many years and was part of the consortium which discovered the Buchan Field. He was active in the gold business in Africa for thirty years discovering and bringing to production, seven mines in Zimbabwe, Ghana, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, the Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone. Cluff Resources discovered the Geita gold deposit in 1996, the largest gold deposit in Africa since the Second World War. He was the Chairman of The Spectator Magazine for 25 years and also owned Apollo Magazine and the Literary Review. He was a Captain in the Grenadier Guards and the Guards Parachute Company and is presently Hon Colonel of the 3rd Battalion of the Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment. Keith Cochrane The Weir Group plc. Keith Cochrane is CEO of The Weir Group plc. Scotland’s largest industrial company. Weir was founded in 1871 and is headquartered in Glasgow. Today, the Group designs, manufacturers and services highly engineered equipment for use by its global minerals, oil and gas and power customers. Keith joined Weir in 2006 as Finance Director and was appointed Chief Executive in 2009. Since then, Weir has entered the FTSE-100 index of leading companies and grown to operate in more than 70 countries worldwide employing more than 15,000 people. Before Weir, Keith held a number of senior business positions in Scotland including Director of Group Finance for Scottish Power and Finance Director and Chief Executive of Stagecoach Group. He is currently a Non-Executive Director of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra Society and a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants’ Scotland. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 6 Rory Cullinan The Royal Bank of Scotland Rory became CEO of the RBS Capital Resolution Group (CRG) on 1 January 2014. Division where he devised and delivered the removal of over £220bn funded assets from the balance sheet. In 2009 he also led the negotiation and establishment of RBS’s entry into the Government’s Asset Protection Scheme. He had previously worked at RBS as Head of Equity Finance (2002-5). Before rejoining RBS he was Co-Managing Partner and Group Board Member at Renaissance Group. Prior to 2002, he worked for a variety Africa and Europe including Permira Advisors, Verdoso Investments (a company he co-founded), Pembridge Investments and Citibank. Chris Deerin Partner Charlotte Street Partners As one of Britain’s most respected journalists, Chris has enjoyed a long and successful career in newspapers in Scotland and Fleet Street. A former Political Editor of the Daily Record, Chris covered the birth of stories. He joined Scotland on Sunday in 2001, where he was executive editor, columnist and leader writer. In 2006, Chris joined the Telegraph Group in London. He was Head of Comment for The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph and telegraph.co.uk until 2013, running the papers’ highly acclaimed successful digital strategy. Chris joined Charlotte Street Partners in January 2014 and he currently writes a weekly column in the Scottish Daily Mail. 7 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Martin Dorchester David MacBrayne Group Martin Dorchester is the CEO of the David MacBrayne Group and operates as Managing Director of both Argyll Ferries and Caledonian MacBrayne. In a career spanning 30 years, Martin has operated nationally and internationally with organisations covering logistics, up the largest Apple reseller business in the UK as well as developing a £100m public sector business. Martin was part of the team that brought the 5 radio authorities together to create Ofcom and worked with the London Borough of Hackney on developing its infrastructure for the 2012 Olympics. Martin is also a keen lecturer and academic and has written a number of papers covering areas as diverse as CSR and Emotional Intelligence in management development. Martin is a Non-Executive Director with Traveline UK and the Seafarers’ Orphan Society. Martin is a supporter of Social and Community Business and chairs Firstport Ltd, a start-up funding organisation for social enterprises. Sir John Elvidge Chairman Edinburgh Airport Sir John Elvidge has been Chairman of Edinburgh Airport Ltd since GIP acquired ownership of the airport in June 2012. He holds a range of other chair and non-executive responsibilities in the public policy, cultural and academic sectors and also advises several overseas governments. From 2003-10 he was Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 8 Paul Frame Managing Director, UK Charities Division Tilney Bestinvest Paul Frame is Managing Director of the UK Charities Division and has more than 15 years’ experience in the Charities sector advising trustees and managing charitable funds. He is a graduate of both the University of Aberdeen and the University of Glasgow and is a Together with his management responsibilities, Paul is a trustee of the mittee of the Glasgow Academicals War Memorial Trust. Paul is actively involved with the Trades House of Glasgow and is an ex-deacon of the Incorporation of Coopers as well as a liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Coopers in London. He is a member of the Development Board of the Marie Curie Hospice in Glasgow, Chair of the ambassador’s committee for the Glasgow School of Art Development Trust and acts as an ambassador for the Ocean Youth Trust of Scotland. David Gaffney Associate Partner Charlotte Street Partners David began his career in public relations when he joined Beattie Media on graduating from Stirling University in 2000. After working his way up through the ranks at Beattie, he showed a nose for judging where the news story is going to be by leaving for an in-house role at RBS in late 2007. He spent three years working on media relations for the Group’s corporate banking division, before joining the bank’s In late 2013, David became Head of Media Relations and Public Affairs for the RBS division that will bring the Williams & Glyn bank brand back to the UK high street when it separates fully from RBS over the next couple of years. He joined Charlotte Street Partners in January and is also a Director of outdoor event company Total Warrior, which is expanding into Scotland in 2015. 9 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Katherine Garrett-Cox CBE Alliance Trust Katherine Garrett-Cox is CEO at Alliance Trust, plc. Katherine is a Member of the Supervisory Board of Deutsche Bank, a Founder Member of TheCityUK and the UK Prime Minister’s Business Advisory Group. She has a BA (Hons) in History from Durham University and is a Member of the UK Society of Investment Professionals, CFA Institute. Katherine was nominated a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum in 2005 and was awarded a CBE in the 2014 New Year Honours List. Andrew Gillespie-Smith Principal Global Infrastructure Partners Andrew Gillespie-Smith joined GIP in 2008 and is a Principal. He focuses on the transport sector and is based in London. Prior to joining GIP, Mr. Gillespie-Smith spent 12 years at Credit Suisse, where he most recently served as a Managing Director of the Investment Banking Division. During his time at Credit Suisse he worked in the Mergers and Acquisitions, Energy and Transport Groups. Mr. Gillespie-Smith previously worked in the Corporate Finance Business at BZW, which was acquired by Credit Suisse in 1998. Prior to BZW, he Smith. During his 19-year career, he has advised on 36 transactions, with a total value of $37 billion, advising clients on a broad range of sectors in Australasia, Europe, Asia and the Americas. Mr. Gillespie-Smith holds an M.A. in Economics from Cambridge University. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Gatwick Airport Limited and Edinburgh Airport. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 10 John Glen Buccleuch industry sectors, including 8 years with Air Liquide, where he worked in Paris as CFO and 19 years with Unilever. John was also extensively engaged in the development of international accounting standards as vice-chair of the European Financial Reporting and Accounting Group, which advised the European Commission. As CEO of Buccleuch, John is responsible for the business interests of mercial property business across the UK. Alongside his work at Buccleuch, John is Vice-Chair for both Scottish Forum on Natural Capital and the 2020 Climate Change Group, working with the Scottish Government and public and private sector bodies to help Scotland achieve its climate change targets. John also sits on the Boards for Alba Trees plc. (Chair), Scottish Land and Estates, BIC, TR Property Investment Trust and the charity ProjectScotland. Rebecca Greeves Public Affairs Manager TheCityUK Rebecca joined TheCityUK in January 2011 as Marketing Communications Manager, following several years as a postgraduate researcher at the University of Cambridge. She took over as TheCityUK’s Strategy Manager in January 2012 and now works in the Policy and Public Affairs team, leading the company’s regional engagement work and managing a programme of UK policymaker engagement. 11 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Sir Angus Grossart Chairman Noble Grossart Sir Angus Grossart is one of the United Kingdom’s most successful businessmen. His principal activity is as chairman of Noble Grossart Limited, the Scottish merchant bank which he jointly founded in 1969. Sir Angus has served as a director of nearly 20 listed public companies in the UK, the USA and Canada. He is a former Vice Chairman of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group and a former Chairman of the Scottish Investment Trust plc. and of Edinburgh Fund Managers plc. Furthermore he served as Chairman of the National Museums of Scotland, the National Galleries of Scotland and the Heritage Lottery Fund in Scotland. Currently he is a director of numerous companies including Chairman of The Fine Art Society, Edinburgh Partners, Lyon & Turnbull and Scotland International. He is also Deputy Chairman of Ronson Capital Partners. Fraser Ingram Kleinwort Benson Fraser Ingram is the COO of Kleinwort Benson Group. In 1984, he started a banking career in Paisley, since when he has held several senior roles. These include time in the US as CIO of Citizens Bank, Director of Technology Development for RBS Group and Managing Director of Support for RBSG Retail Bank. He splits his time between work in London and Lewis, where he lives in his croft with his family. Fraser is a Member and Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and holds an MBA from Edinburgh & Aston Universities. 1994 and is a supporter of Gaelic Medium education. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 12 Pete Irvine MBE Founding Director Unique Events Ltd. Pete Irvine is the founding Director of Unique Events who have created, produced and managed Edinburgh’s Hogmanay since its inception and are also responsible for most of the major public events in Scotland including those around the opening of the Scottish Parliament in 1999. In 2012 they produced the launch of the Cultural Olympiad / London 2012 Festival: The Big Concert in the Raploch, Stirling and in 2014 the signature event of the Homecoming year, Bannockburn Live and the recent Forth Road Bridge 50th Celebrations. Pete is the author of Scotland the Best, Scotland’s best-selling independent guide book. A photographic version, Scotland the Best 100 Places was published in November 2014. Pete was awarded the Scottish Tourist Boards Outstanding Achievement Award for 2000, an MBE for services to the City of Edinburgh in 2001 and in 2010 an Honorary Doctorate from the Open University. Mike Kean UK Rail Development Director Abellio UK Mike Kean joined Abellio in 2008 and has been heavily involved in UK rail bidding. Prior to joining Abellio, Mike worked in the water industry delivering innovative solutions to government and municipal clients. Before taking on his current role as UK Rail Development Director, Mike has worked as Abellio’s bid director for the ScotRail Franchise where he delivered a sustainable, innovative and attractive solution to Transport Scotland and the wider stakeholder community. 13 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Gordon Lee Marketing Director Capita Gordon is a senior marketing and design professional with a 20-year track record in the development and implementation of marketing, design and business development programmes. Having run his own agencies in Scotland, he joined Capita in 2008 where he leads the marketing communications, service design, behavioural insight and research teams in the company’s Group Marketing function. He is responsible for ensuring that new and existing client contracts have best practice design and intelligence disciplines embedded into business solutions. Capita serves clients across the UK and internationally in public and private sectors. In Scotland, Capita has approximately 4,500 employees working in local government, health, IT, insurance, pensions, property and contact centre operations. Laura Leslie Associate Charlotte Street Partners Laura grew up in Northern Ireland and graduated from Edinburgh Napier University with both an MA in International Finance and BA Hons in Business. While at university, Laura was President of the University netball club and a member of the University Sports Executive Committee. Following this Laura joined the Scottish Widows Public Affairs team in 2007 on a year long internship. In 2010 Laura joined Lloyds Banking Group where she spent three years in the Group’s Insurance and Scotland communications function, during which she worked on Public affairs activity for both the Group’s Scottish Widows business and the Bank of Scotland. She then joined the Corporate Affairs team in the new TSB in 2013 working on communications for the Bank’s launch and IPO, as well as managing Scottish political engagement during the Scottish Referendum and looking after local engagement across the UK. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 14 Fergus Linehan Festival Director Edinburgh International Festival Fergus Linehan was appointed Festival Director in October 2014. Fergus began his career in the theatre in Dublin, producing shows and going on to direct the Dublin Theatre Festival. During that time he commissioned work by artists including Seamus Heaney, Brian Friel and Roddy Doyle. From 2004 to 2009, Fergus was Chief Executive and Artistic Director of the Sydney Festival where he presented performances by Robert Lepage, Christopher Wheeldon and Björk to name but a few. From 2010 to 2012, Fergus was Head of Music at Sydney Opera House and, from 2012 – 2014 was Festival Director of Vivid LIVE, an annual event, celebrating popular music and digital art. Josh Littlejohn Co-Founder Social Bite Josh Littlejohn is one of Scotland’s leading young Social Entrepreneurs. Inspired by the Nobel Peace Prize winner Prof. Muhammad Yunus, he has created a chain of high street sandwich shop Social Bite - 2 in Edinburgh and 2 in Glasgow. Josh has ambitions to replicate and franchise the shop to become a large chain of sandwich shops to compete with Pret a Manger and Eat - but to do it 100% for a social and employs 25% of its workforce from the homeless community. Josh is also the founder of The Scottish Business Awards and has brought world leaders to Scotland to speak at his events including Sir Bob Geldof, Prof. Muhammad Yunus, President Bill Clinton and Sir Richard Branson and has raised circa £1 million for charity in three years. 15 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Rod MacRae Group Head of Risk and Executive Director Aberdeen Asset Management plc. Rod is Group Head of Risk and Executive Director of Aberdeen Asset Management plc., he is responsible for UK and global risk including regulatory compliance, legal services, business and market risk. Rod joined Aberdeen in 2003, following the acquisition of Edinburgh Fund Managers. He graduated with an MA in Economics from the University of Edinburgh and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland. Kath Mainland CBE Festival Fringe Society Kath Mainland is a native of Orkney, Scotland. She began her career in the arts in 1991 as Administrative Assistant at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. In January 2005 Kath became General Manager of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, the largest public celebration of the written word in the world, and was Administrative Director there until 2009 when she took up the newly created post of Chief Executive of the Festival Fringe Society. At the Society, Kath implemented a new Business Plan, has undertaken a constitutional review and seen the Fringe grow in size of performa number of arts boards in Scotland, including Festivals Edinburgh (where she was Chair from 2010 – 2013), a high-level organisation, created and managed by the directors of Edinburgh’s 12 major Festivals, to take the lead on their joint strategic development. She lives with her partner in Leith, is passionate about the arts, their place in society, and particularly passionate about the unique and world class festival city of Edinburgh. She was awarded a CBE for services to culture in Scotland in June 2014. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 16 Stephen McCranor Founding Director Frame Creative PR Stephen McCranor is a Founding Director of Frame Creative PR, part of Frame Group. Frame Group works across a number of communication disciplines including brand strategy, graphic design, digital, advertising, events, print & production management, promotional marketing and PR. The agency’s wide range of UK clients includes Green Investment Bank, Finsbury Food Group, S1 Jobs, Scottish Rugby, Harlequins Rugby, Scottish & Southern Energy, First Milk and Celtic Football Club. Frame Creative PR launched in October 2014 as a joint venture between Stephen McCranor, Frame Group and Charlotte Street Partners. Michael McGhee Founding Partner Global Infrastructure Partners Michael is a Founding Partner of Global Infrastructure Partners based in London. He led GIP’s acquisition of London City Airport in 2006, London Gatwick Airport in 2009 and Edinburgh Airport in 2012. He also led four investments in the ports sector including in 2013, a joint He was previously Head of Credit Suisse’s Global Transportation and Logistics group from 1997 to 2006 and prior to that was Head of Transport Investment Banking at BZW from 1990. He has been the lead advisor on the privatisations of over 25 airports or airport groups and was lead advisor to the UK Government on the Public Private Partnership of NATS in 2001. He has advised on several airline transactions in the UK and globally. 17 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Tony McElroy Head of Government Relations Tesco plc. Tony McElroy leads government relations for Tesco plc. in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. Before this role he managed Tesco’s Regional PR teams in Scotland, Manchester and Northern Ireland. Tony started his career in public affairs consultancy, before moving to the Labour Party, where he was head of communications in Scotland. Tony is Vice Chair of the Scottish Retail Consortium and a member of the IoD’s West of Scotland Committee. Outside of work, he likes Tartan Noir, Celtic and running. He is a board member of Impact Arts Scotland’s leading community arts charity. Keith Miller CBE Group Chief Executive The Miller Group Keith joined The Miller Group in 1975 and has been the Group CEO since 1994. The Miller Group is a major UK property business specialising in housebuilding and commercial property. He has a BSc (Hons) in Building from Heriot-Watt University, a Postgraduate Diploma in Management Studies (DMS) from Glasgow University and an Honorary Doctorate of Engineering (DEng) from Napier University. He is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Building (FCIOB) and a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (FRICS). Keith received a CBE for services to the Construction Industry in Scotland and to Charity in January 2005. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 18 Andrew Milligan Investment Director, Head of Global Strategy Standard Life Investments Andrew Milligan joined Standard Life Investments in 2000 as Global Investment Strategist before being appointed Head of Global Strategy in January 2001. Prior to joining Standard Life Investments, he was employed by HM Treasury, followed by Lloyds Bank where he was an Economic Adviser, and Smith New Court as an International Economist. In 1994 he was appointed Chief Economist with New Japan Securities Europe. He then moved to Morley Fund Management in 1996 to take up the position of Director of Economic Research & Business Risk. He is also a member of Court of Heriot Watt University, is the Deputy Chair of Work Place Chaplaincy Scotland, is a member of the Thomson Reuters Customer Advisory Board, and advises several small charities. From 2007-14, he was a Board member of the Technology Strategy Board, now Innovate UK. Stephen Moir Head of Communications UK Green Investment Bank Stephen is responsible for communications at the UK Green Investinfrastructure. Stephen also recently acted as a special advisor to Lord Smith of Kelvin in his work on helping to reach agreement on further powers for the Scottish Parliament. Stephen joined GIB from RBS in 2013 where he was latterly Head of Strategic Communications and responsible for communications insight, research, planning, programme management and employee communications across the Group. 19 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Les Montgomery Highland Spring Group Les Montgomery joined Highland Spring in 1985 when it was a business with a turnover of £3.2 million. Today Highland Spring Group is the UK’s No 1 bottled water producer and brand with a turnover in excess of £100 million. Following a long-term role as Finance Director, Les was appointed to the position of CEO in February 2008. Les lives in Falkirk with his wife Elaine and two daughters. As well as being a long term season ticket holder of his local football club, Falkirk FC, his interests includes golf, gym, reading and running (and still has an ambition to repeat his 2005 effort to run in the New York marathon). James Murgatroyd Managing Partner RLM Finsbury James joined Finsbury as a Partner in 1996 and is currently Managing James advises a range of clients, including Reed Elsevier, RBS, Compass and Paddy Power and his recent projects include the merger of Alliance Boots with Walgreens and Suntory’s acquisition of Beam. James started his career as an investment banker at Dean Witter, UK and US. He has a degree in economics and politics. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 20 Blair Nimmo Senior Partner, Head of Restructuring KPMG Following 8 years with Cooper and Lybrand’s Restructuring Practice, Blair joined KPMG in 1991 and became a Partner in 1993, building the dominant market-leading insolvency practice in Scotland. Blair leads a team of 200 restructuring professionals spread across Blair has over 30 years’ of experience of advising stakeholders in stressed and distressed businesses focusing on solvent turnarounds or insolvent solutions across a wide range of sectors. Andrew Nunn Cluff Natural Resources plc. Andrew is a Chartered Geoscientist with an MSc in Environmental Management and 18 years of experience gained through exposure to a diverse range of exploration, mining and geo-environmental projects in Australasia, Europe and Africa. He joined CNR in May 2014 with a remit to take CNR’s underground Prior to joining CNR he was the Exploration Manager at Dart Energy (formerly Composite Energy) and was responsible for the planning and execution of their coalbed methane, shale gas and tight oil exploration activities across Europe. 21 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Christine O’Neill Chairman Brodies LLP Christine O’Neill is Chairman of Brodies LLP. She is, uniquely in Scotland, rated by Chambers and Partners as a Star Individual in adminisand local government law. She acts for a range of Scottish and UK clients including BBC Scotland, the Scottish Government, the Gambling Commission and a number of Scottish airports. She currently leads the team acting for the Scotch Whisky Association and European drinks producers in their challenge to the Scottish Parliament’s legislation on minimum pricing of alcohol, a case which is currently before the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg. with Bill Drummond, Managing Partner of Brodies, in contributing to strategic board. Rachel Osborne Head of Marketing and Business Management Charlotte Street Partners Rachel graduated from the Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance in London, with a BA Hons before embarking on a career At the same she worked as an Executive Assistant in the drinks, travel and media industries. For the last decade Rachel has worked in events management in posts across the UK, most recently for six years with Rachel is Vice Chairman of the Event Network, a committee that brings together Edinburgh’s in-house event managers to support planning and networking. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 22 Mike Parker Head of Onshore Wind UK RWE Innogy UK Mike has over 17 years experience in the energy business, including 5 years at RWE Innogy UK Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of RWE Innogy GmbH, part of the RWE Group; and 8 years at it’s sister company RWE npower plc. His experience spans a range of disciplines across the conventional and renewables sectors, including renewables policy and development, and retail operations. Mike is currently Head of Onshore Wind UK at RWEI UK, having served as Head of Onshore wind development since 2007. He assumes responsibility for RWEI UK’s entire onshore wind portfolio following the departure of Julia Lynch Williams, it’s former Managing Director. John Penman Director of Communications, Insurance and Scotland Lloyds Banking Group John Penman heads the communications team that combines the media and public affairs functions of Scottish Widows, and the General Insurance arms of Lloyds Banking Group. In addition to this, John and his team look after all corporate communications in Scotland for Lloyds Banking Group. John joined LBG in 2009 after more than 25 years working in the media covering news, politics and business. Latterly he was Business Editor Scotland for the Sunday Times. He was Business Writer of the Year in Scotland in 2008. John worked for a number of titles across the UK including the Daily Record and Scotsman. He was the Political Editor of the Scotsman at Westminster for three years which included the 1997 General Election. John left to become an Assistant Editor at the Daily Record before helping form the group that conceived and launched the Scottish business newspaper Business AM in 2000. He was Editor in Chief and Managing Director until Business AM closed in December 2002. 23 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Sarah Richardson Director of Public Affairs Centrica Energy Sarah leads the public affairs strategy and thought leadership for Centrica’s international upstream business. CE’s International Exploration and Production arm is headquartered in Aberdeen, employing waters. CE also has a 50% stake Glens of Foudland onshore windfarm and a 20% interest in Torness and Hunterston B nuclear stations. Sarah joined CE from strategic consultancy Edelman in September 2014, where she provided senior counsel for clients including Unilever, Shell, Starbucks, Balfour Beatty, URS and Roche. A former journalist and commissioning editor on the London Evening Standard, she has also worked for The Times, Telegraph and Guardian, and in politics both in Westminster and in the United States Congress. Malcolm Robertson Managing Partner Charlotte Street Partners Malcolm began his career at Diageo where he spent six years, before joining Beattie Media in 1996. Malcolm was appointed Head of Public Affairs at BAA Scotland in 1999. He then enjoyed a sustained and successful career at the airport operator, where he served as Director of Communications for BAA Scotland, before taking a number of broader, group wide roles, including Group Public Affairs Director, Deputy Director of Group Communications and latterly, Director of Communications. Most recently, Malcolm has run his own strategic advisory company, representing clients in the banking and airports sector, as well as for Development and Industry (SCDI), and Chairman of its London Committee. He is a former member of the CBI’s London Committee, and a member of the Barnardo’s Scotland development board. Malcolm is also a Non-Executive Director of the recently launched online travel adviser, Tartan Marmalade. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 24 Gordon Robertson Director of Communications Edinburgh Airport Gordon Robertson is Director of Communications at Edinburgh Airport. He and his team handle all external and internal communications for Scotland’s busiest airport - a role that sees them deal with a hige variety of stakeholders, media and situations. Following the succesful rebrand of the airport, Gordon’s key task is to explain to the world how the new ownership of the airport will drive growth and choice for passengers and improve the experience at Edinburgh Airport as a whole. Chris Sibbald Associate Charlotte Street Partners Chris grew up in Edinburgh before graduating from the University of Glasgow in 2013 having studied Modern History. While at University Chris served as President of Glasgow University Union. Chris also founded the Union’s alumni charity, Friends of Glasgow University Union, which he chaired for three years. Actively involved in student politics, Chris ran the successful Charles Kennedy for Rector election in 2011 and was also a columnist for the Glasgow Guardian. In 2012 Chris worked as a researcher in the House of Commons for the SNP Westminster Leader, Angus Robertson MP. In 2013 Chris began working as a consultant for Malcolm Robertson to help launch Charlotte Street Partners, while also supporting his day-today work across a number of industries. 25 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Robert Stansfeld Group Corporate Finance Director Abellio Robert Stansfeld was born in Dundee, lives in Edinburgh, and is currently the Group Corporate Finance Director at Abellio, a European rail and bus passenger transport group. He has overseen annual turnover growth in the UK and Germany to over €2.3 billion in 2015, including the recent award of the ScotRail contract which Abellio starts operating from 1 April 2015. Prior to his 6-year stint at Abellio, he spent 7 years at Serco in several for Rail, and prior to that 9 years at Deloitte in its London and Milan Iain Steele Senior Partner, Scotland and Northern Ireland Deloitte Ian is the Senior Partner for Deloitte in Scotland and Northern Ireland. He sits on the Deloitte LLP Board, and has done for the past 8 years. Ian is a Corporate Finance Advisory Partner, based in Glasgow, and has clients across Scotland. He has been involved in advising on transactions for over 20 years, and clients include Companies, Management Teams and Private Equity Houses. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 26 Graham Swindells Finance Director Cluff Natural Resources Graham joined Cluff Natural Resources as Finance Director in 2013. He vising and raising funds for mid and small-cap public companies. He trained as a chartered accountant in Ayr, before moving to PricewaterhouseCoopers in Glasgow where he worked in corporate restructuring. Before joining Cluff Natural Resources, Graham was a Director in Ernst & Young’s Mergers & Acquisitions Team in London. Graham graduated with a Bachelor of Accountancy Degree from the University of Glasgow. Anthony Tait Partner Baillie Gifford & Co. Anthony is a Partner with Baillie Gifford & Co. He joined Baillie Gifford in 1991 as an investment trainee and was, for a number of years, a fund manager specialising in US small companies. He is now head of the Clients Department which has responsibility for liaising with existing clients and marketing to potential clients. Anthony is a graduate of both St. Andrews University and Cambridge University. 27 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Celia Tennant Inspiring Scotland senior leader developed a breadth of experience across many areas. Celia joined Inspiring Scotland at its inception and since then has developed a deep appreciation and understanding of the voluntary sector, having led on the implementation and management of all of Inspiring Scotland’s Funds. It has delivered over £55 million to the Scottish voluntary sector to take on youth unemployment; lack of free play opportunities for children; more support in early years; and support for disadvantaged communities to harness their own assets. In her role as Chief Executive she brings passion and unparalleled knowledge of the ventures across all of Inspiring Scotland’s funds as well as a commitment to improving the lives of Scotland’s most vulnerable people. She is a voluntary Board member for a number of not for Anthony Thompson Head of Public Affairs and Community Investment TSB Anthony Thompson is Head of Public Affairs and Community Investment at TSB - the biggest new entrant to the UK banking market in living memory. Anthony joined TSB in August 2013 from Lloyds Banking Group where he ran the public affairs teams covering Lloyds’ insurance businesses, including Scottish Widows, as well as leading the Group’s engagement with politicians and opinion formers in Scotland. Before joining Lloyds, Anthony spent almost ten years in various communications, policy and lobbying roles at the CBI covering both the ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 28 Simon Thomson Cairn Energy Simon Thomson originally joined Cairn in 1995 and was appointed as CEO in July 2011, having been Legal and Commercial Director since 2006 and holding various posts across the organisation including head of assets. Simon was educated in Scotland and holds an LLB (Hons) from Aberdeen University and a Diploma in Legal Practice from Glasgow University. He started his career as a lawyer for Shepperd & Wedderburn and went on to join Cameron McKenna where he specialised in contracts and energy law before joining Cairn. Simon is also a Non-Executive Director of Graham’s The Family Dairy Limited. Simon is a member of the Nomination Committee and attends the Remuneration Committee by invitation. David Thomson DC Thomson & Co. Ltd David is Director and COO of DC Thomson & Co Ltd, a private, family-run company which is one of the leading publishing houses in newspaper titles The Courier and The Press and Journal, as well as The Sunday Post. It also publishes a wide range of magazines for both adults and children, ranging from The People’s Friend to The Beano. DC Thomson also owns other media companies including Parragon, Puzzler Media Ltd., brightsolid Online Technology and DCT Family History. David is currently a Non-Executive Director on the Board of Directors for Design Dundee Limited, the company set up to build and develop V&A at Dundee. 29 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Chris Van Der Kuyl Founder, Owner and Chairman Tayforth Group and 4J Studios Chris is the Founder, Owner and Chairman of both the Tayforth Group and 4J Studios. 4J is one of the UK’s most successful videogame developers and is responsible for the multi-million selling and multi-award winning Minecraft Console editions. Minecraft is a global phenomenon and is currently on track to become the most successful videogame of all time. Chris is a visiting professor of digital entertainment at University of Abertay Dundee and was recently awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Dundee as well as an honorary Doctor of Business degree from Edinburgh Napier University. Elected as one of the youngest Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Chris is convener of the RSE Young People’s Committee and also sits on the boards of brightsolid Online Technology, the Scottish Institute for Enterprise, the UK Digital Catapult, Dundee Science Centre, Dundee Museums Trust, High School of Dundee and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. David Williamson Government and Communications Director Scotch Whisky Association David Williamson is Government & Communications Director at The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), the industry’s representative body. Since joining in 1998, David has held various SWA roles covering international trade policy, EU affairs, government and media relations. He represents the industry within the European Spirits Organisation and previously worked at the European Parliament. A Law and History graduate of Edinburgh University, he has a Masters in International Affairs from the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy in the USA. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 30 Andrew Wilson Managing Partner Charlotte Street Partners Andrew began his career as a Civil Servant with the Government Economic Service. He joined the headquarters team of the SNP as Researcher / Economist and as Director of Business for Scotland through the 1997 General Election and Referendum. He then joined the Royal Bank of Scotland as a business economist 1999. During his time in Parliament, Andrew served as the Shadow Minister for Finance, Economy, Transport and Lifelong learning. He was also a columnist for The Sunday Mail. From 2003 Andrew held a number of posts at RBS Group including Deputy Chief Economist and through the banking crisis as Head of Group Communications. In 2012, Andrew joined WPP in a client strategy role before launching Charlotte Street Partners in 2014. Andrew currently has a weekly column in the Scotland on Sunday. Rob Woodward STV Group plc. Rob Woodward was appointed to the STV Group plc. board as CEO in 2007 where he has led the turnaround of the company. Prior to this Rob served as Commercial Director of Channel 4 Television. He was an executive member of the Channel 4 Corporation Board and responsible for Channel 4’s commercial wellbeing. Included in his responsibilities was the management of the portfolio of commercial businesses in 4 Ventures. Prior to joining Channel 4, Rob was a Managing Director at UBS Corporate Finance where he worked in both London and New York. Before this, Rob was the Managing Partner of Braxton UK, the strategy consulting practice of Deloitte. He also led Deloitte Consulting’s European Telecom Media and Technology (TMT) group. Rob is the Pro-Chancellor at City University, London, on the Board of Trustees of Nesta, a Non-Executive Director of Regenersis plc. and is Chairman of the Scottish Government’s initiative Invest In Young People. 31 ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER Alan Young Managing Director, Corporate Affairs SSE Alan Young is Managing Director, Corporate Affairs, for SSE, the UK-listed energy provider. He joined SSE in 2001 and is responsible for the company’s corporate communications, stakeholder engagement, corporate reporting, sustainability policy and community investment. Stephen Baxter The JLA Group Stephen is the CEO of The JLA Group of companies that distribute and service Commercial Laundry and Catering equipment in the UK. JLA is the largest independent distributor in Europe. Prior to this he was CEO of The Peel Ports Group which included Clydeport, Port of Liverpool, Manchester Ship Canal and the Ports on the River Medway. Stephen spent 5 years at airport operator BAA joining as Glasgow Airport MD progressing to Divisional Director for Scottish Airports and the Group COO. He has international experience having spent 5 years in the USA with powertool giant Black and Decker. He is married with 3 kids. ‘IN CONVERSATION’ DINNER 32 NOTES 33 DINNER DINNER 34 35 DINNER A CHARLOTTE STREET PARTNERS