Conference Agenda

8.45

Registration and coffee

9.15

Welcome and introduction by conference chair

Current approaches to governance are not working: outline of an agenda of speakers that can radically improve stewardship and understanding of organisations.

Philip Whiteley, chair of Human Capital Forum

9.30

View from the top

Adrian Moorhouse MBE, Olympic gold medallist and founder of leadership advisory firm Lane4 and his colleague Matt Rogan, Board Director of the European Sponsorship Association, describes a radical agenda for:

  • Linking sports sponsorship and engagement initiatives
  • Re-thinking the historic division between marketing and people development

Adrian Moorhouse MBE, Lane4 and Matt Rogan, board director, European Sponsorship Association 

10.20

The real role of the company board

The board is responsible for the company, not for the shareholder. Governance adviser Bob Garratt describes how fads in economic theory have taken boards away from their legal and commercial duties. His ideas for :

  • Abolition of the quarterly reporting cycle
  • Publicly re-stating the role of the Board as steward of the company
  • Introducing separate contracts for executive directors to spell out their board duties

Professor Bob Garratt

11.00

Tea and networking

11.30

Question Time debate – Is business news coverage part of the problem?

Conference chair Philip Whiteley introduces a debate by asking:

  • Are business journalists overly concerned with the quarterly financial results?
  • Should they be asking more questions around engagement, staff turnover, and risk management?

Panellists:
Simon Caulkin, newspaper columnist and blogger
Ann Graham, contributing editor, strategy and business
Stefan Stern, Financial Times management columnist and director-designate of strategy at PR firm Edelman

12.30

Lunch and networking

13.45

Introduction to afternoon session

Philip Whiteley

14.00

Company profiles and the research base

Michael Reddy of Human Potential Accounting describes the powerful role of human capital analysis. He states:

  • The real sources of value-generation and of risk are hidden in conventional accounts
  • Audits of people risk, culture and value creation can be used to create fuller analyses of the strengths and weaknesses of the organisation

Michael Reddy, Human Potential Accounting

14.45

The evidence base for investment in human capital

Petra Wilton, director of policy & research at the Chartered Management Institute, will describe the Institute’s research on the powerful impact of human capital investment. This address will show:

  • Evidence that demonstrates how superior management and leadership aligned to the business objectives creates superior performance
  •  Pioneering examples of leading-edge investor research institutes that identify some of the generators of value in an organisation 

Petra Wilton, director of policy & research, Chartered Management Institute

15.30

Break and networking

15.45

The new normal

Neela Bettridge, of the advisory firm Article13, calls for a fundamental rethink of management, based on:

  • An understanding of the inter-dependence of all businesses, including employees, customers, and the environment as well as shareholders
  • An understanding of sustainability in its broadest definition, including environmental, financial and organisational dimensions

Neela Bettridge, Article 13

16.30

Closing remarks

17.00

Close of conference