BETTER BUSINESS ACT - Key Persons
Andrew worked as an advisor in Parliament for a Conservative MP between 2010-2013,
Chris is Impact Director at Ella's Kitchen - the UK's most loved kid's food brand, and one of the UKs first certified B-Corps
Chris has been part of the Ella's Kitchen family since January 2011, where he joined as a Sustainability Executive, rising to European Sustainability Manager and Head of the Good Stuff We Do, before taking on the role of Impact Director in September 2022. In all of these roles, Chris has spent over a decade championing sustainability and advocacy within Ella's Kitchen - seeing Ella's become known as the ‘little ones' lobbyists' due to the company's efforts to improve the lives of the under-5s.
Chris previously worked for Oxford University Press and the political think tank The Foreign Policy Centre. He holds a First Class BA Hons in International Relations from The University of Leicester and a PgCert in Sustainable Development from The University of Exeter.
Job Titles:
- Campaign Director
- Member of the Campaign Team
Douglas joined Tony's Chocolonely in October 2022 as Chief Chocolonely (CEO). Before this, he spent 15 years at innocent drinks where he held a number of leadership, marketing and innovation roles and was CEO for 9 years. As CEO, Douglas grew innocent drinks by 50% to £300m of turnover to become Europe's leading chilled drinks brand. Before joining innocent drinks, Douglas began his career at KPMG and also worked at Freeserve (now Orange broadband). He studied at the University of Edinburgh and Harvard Business School.
Job Titles:
- External Affairs Director at SUEZ Recycling & Recovery UK
Dr Adam Read has been External Affairs Director at SUEZ Recycling & Recovery UK for the last 5 years after a successful career in academia, local government and environmental consultancy. At SUEZ he leads the company's sustainability agenda, driving forward the triple bottom line approach to business decision-making, focusing on increasing social value and improving environmental performance.
For the last 4 years Adam has co-led the company's work with UK Government on the development of the new Resources & Waste Strategy and associated consultations. He has worked on resource efficiency and circular economy projects for more than 20 years, as a consultant, client, contractor and community engagement specialist, and is now helping Governments to normalise these activities. Adam sits on numerous industry technical working groups, is a regular speaker and facilitator, a technical report author and a frequent blogger and social media enthusiast.
Fergus has extensive experience in public policy at UK and EU level, advocating for regulatory frameworks that help to create and maintain a sustainable and responsible investment system. He previously worked as Head of Public Policy for the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association and in Westminster for a range of MPs during the Coalition Government. Joining in 2018, Fergus leads on ShareAction's UK policy output and engagement with government and regulators.
Job Titles:
- Principal With Two Rivers Associates Limited
Ida Levine is a principal with Two Rivers Associates Limited consulting on public policy, strategy and governance. She serves on the Financial Markets Law Committee, and the Advisory Board of the UCLA Institute of Carbon Management.
Previously Ida was a Board Director and Senior Vice-President and Senior Counsel of Capital Group (CG) and served as its Director of Public Affairs in Europe. Before CG, Ida was European Counsel with JP Morgan Investment Management and a Partner at the international law firm Jones Day (London and New York). Ida was a founding Director of the UK Investor Forum.
Ida has a keen interest in the Arts - and is Vice-Chair of the Royal Academy of Dance Board of Trustees. She also is a Trustee of Dancer's Career Development (DCD) and the Maria Bjornson Memorial Fund.
Job Titles:
- Head of Sustainability at Slaughter
Jeff is Head of Sustainability at Slaughter and May. He leads the firm's sustainability advisory team and responsible business initiatives. He has been a corporate lawyer for over 30 years. He has been past Chairman of UKSSD (now merged with UNGC) and of the Legal Sustainability Alliance. He is currently chairman of the Commonwealth Education Trust.
Job Titles:
- Professor of Law and Finance at Oxford University
John Armour is Professor of Law and Finance at Oxford University and a Fellow of the British Academy and the European Corporate Governance Institute. He studied at the University of Oxford and then at Yale Law School. He has held visiting posts at various institutions including the University of Chicago, Columbia Law School, the University of Frankfurt, the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Private Law in Hamburg, and Sydney Law School. He is a member of the American Law Institute and an Academic Member of the Chancery Bar Association.
John Armour is Professor of Law and Finance at Oxford University and a Fellow of the British Academy and the European Corporate Governance Institute. He studied at the University of Oxford and then at Yale Law School. He has held visiting posts at various institutions including the University of Chicago, Columbia Law School, the University of Frankfurt, the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Private Law in Hamburg, and Sydney Law School. He is a member of the American Law Institute and an Academic Member of the Chancery Bar Association.
Armour has published widely in the fields of company law, financial regulation, and corporate insolvency. His current research agenda focuses on the application of artificial intelligence to law and the role of pro-social norms in corporate governance.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Campaign Team
- Campaign & Events Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Partner at the Law Firm Bates Wells
Luke Fletcher is a partner at the law firm Bates Wells, the first law firm in the UK to become a B Corp, and co-leads the firm's Purpose & Impact practice.
In 2015, Luke co-authored the legal requirements for B Corps in the UK and was a member of the B Lab UK founding team. Luke has since advised a growing number of firms, from multinationals to start-ups, on the adoption of the B Corp legal requirements and their implications for firms and their stakeholders.
Luke also authored the draft of the Better Business Act which helped to launch the campaign and is a member of the Better Business Act steering group.
Margaret Casely-Hayford was appointed Chair of Shakespeare's Globe in January 2018, the same year in which she was appointed Chancellor of Coventry University. She is an Honorary Fellow of Somerville College, Oxford, a trustee of the Radcliffe Trust, an elected member of the Board of the Co-op Group and a Bencher of Gray's Inn. She was awarded a CBE in the Queen's Honours list, for services to charity and for promoting diversity, in 2018.
Margaret was Director of Legal Services and Company Secretary for the John Lewis Partnership for nine years, and prior to this, was a partner at City law firm, Dentons. She champions better governance and democratic processes, supporting and advising organisations on governance and advising those, in particular women and BAME or LGTBQ+ people, who wish to embark upon board careers. Margaret has been named in the Powerlist of Britain's most influential Black People.
Job Titles:
- Chief Creative Officer
- Founder
Mary has worked with some of the biggest names in global retail. Her BBC series - Mary Queen of Shops - premiered in 2007 and she has presented on television and radio ever since. In 2009, she worked to reinvent charity shops and to date, Mary's Living & Giving shops have raised more than £20 million for charity. Mary also conducted a review of the future for high streets for the British government in 2011, is the author of three books and hosts the podcasts ‘The Kindness Economy' and ‘Beautiful Misfits'.
Job Titles:
- Campaign Manager
- Member of the Campaign Team
Job Titles:
- Professor of Law at the City Law School
Nina is Professor of Law at the City Law School, University of London, where she heads the Research Group on Global Corporate Law. Her academic work researches variations in the design of corporate ownership, and its effects on the interaction between markets and their regulation. She specialises in the development of sustainable common ownership models in business organisations, including for social enterprises, employee-owned and cooperative firms. Her teaching includes courses on corporate governance, company law and corporate finance.
Sir William (Bill) Blair is a former Judge of London's Commercial Court whose expertise is in commercial and financial law and dispute resolution. He is considered a leading international expert in the law of banking and finance.
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder and Chair of BritainThinks
- Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences
Viki Cooke is Co-Founder and Chair of BritainThinks, one of the UK's leading insight and strategy consultancies. Viki has led the business to becoming a B Corp and employee owned.
Viki has a track record for innovation having pioneered deliberative research methods in the UK - she has been involved in delivering the UK's first Citizens' Jury, firstCitizens' Forum and first Citizens' Summit. Viki is passionate about involving citizens in informed, influential and inspiring debates about the issues that impact on them.
Viki is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences and aCMI Companion. She is a Trustee ofThe Climate Group,a Non-Executive Director of Blakeney Group, a member of the Net ZeroBuilding Council and newly appointedVice Chair of Q. She is former Chair of Hubbub Foundation and, until, January 2020 she was Vice Chair and Pro Chancellor of the University of Warwick.