Board of directors and company secretary
Sir David Grant
Interim Non-executive Chair
Appointed April 2012
Contribution, skills and experience
Sir David has extensive engineering experience, having held various leadership positions at international engineering companies and government-related science and technology bodies, where he has been recognised for his contributions to industry. Sir David's career experience, initially as a student apprentice and latterly as a university vice-chancellor, also brings a unique insight into how the Company recruits talent, increases diversity and develops its current people, who are central to the Company's strategy and long-term sustainable success. The Board also values Sir David's role as Senior Independent Director.
Background
Sir David was vice-chancellor of Cardiff University from October 2001 until August 2012, with responsibility for 30,000 students, 6,000 members of staff, and an annual income of £430m. Prior to that he held leadership positions at a number of international engineering companies including Dowty Group and GEC plc where he was group technical director. Sir David has served as a vice-president of the Institution of Engineering and Technology; and from 2007 to 2012 he was a vice-president of the Royal Academy of Engineering. He has been a council member of EPSRC and a governing board member of Innovate UK. His PhD in Engineering Science was awarded by the University of Durham in 1974. In 1997, he was made a CBE for his contribution to the UK Foresight Programme. Sir David was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 1997 and elected an Honorary Fellow of Wolfson College, Cambridge, in 2000. He served on the Board of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory from 2012 until 2018, and as a non-executive director and remuneration committee chair of IQE plc from 2012 until 2021. He was also chair of STEMNET until 2018, chair of the National Physical Laboratory from 2015 until 2021. Sir David received a knighthood in the Queen's Birthday Honours 2016 for his contributions to engineering, technology and education.
External appointments
None
John Deer
Non-Executive Deputy Chairman
Appointed July 1974
Contribution, skills and experience
Having held responsibility for manufacturing and quality for many years, John's extensive experience is important in ensuring Renishaw continues to deliver efficient, high-quality manufacturing – a key component of the Company's strategy. In addition, having founded the Company with Sir David McMurtry, John's commercial and international experience also brings deep insight and strategic vision to the Board. John has been and continues to be instrumental in the strategic decisions for growing the business into new markets and territories, whether organically or by acquisition.
Background
John trained as a mechanical engineer and worked for Rolls-Royce plc, Bristol, from 1960 to 1974. He was Managing Director of Renishaw from 1974 to 1989, primarily involved in the commercial direction of the Group, with particular emphasis on marketing and the establishment of the Group's whollyowned subsidiaries in the USA, Ireland, Japan, Germany, France and Italy. John and Sir David McMurtry were members of the four-man team of Renishaw engineers honoured with the MacRobert Award in 1987. In 2012, John was awarded the Swan Medal by the Institute of Physics jointly with Sir David McMurtry for their roles in founding Renishaw and leading it to become one of the world's principal manufacturers of metrology equipment. In September 2014 John was awarded an honorary fellowship at the University of South Wales for his contribution to UK manufacturing and in October that year he and Sir David were jointly honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at Gloucestershire Business Awards. He was also awarded an honorary doctorate of engineering by the University of Bristol in 2018 and in 2019 he was made an Honorary Fellow of the Faculty of General Dental Practice. In 2019 he was also honoured by the Manufacturing Technologies Association for his outstanding contribution to British engineering.
External appointments
None
Will Lee
Chief Executive
Appointed August 2016 as Group Sales and Marketing Director, February 2018 as Chief Executive
Contribution, skills and experience
Will has an in-depth understanding of the Group's businesses, products and markets, having held various senior management positions, which have included engineering, operations, and sales and marketing, prior to his appointment as Chief Executive. Will was selected as Chief Executive having demonstrated to the Board the leadership capabilities, breadth of knowledge and relationships to continue to develop the Renishaw business and has a record of performance execution.
Background
Will joined the Renishaw graduate scheme in 1996 and became Director and General Manager for the Laser and Calibration Products Division in 2007. He holds a degree in physics from the University of Oxford and an MBA from the University of Bath. In 2014 he became Director and General Manager of the Machine Tool Products Division. In December 2015, he was appointed to the new role of Director of Group Sales and Marketing and became a member of the Executive Committee.
In February 2018 Will was appointed Chief Executive, taking over from Sir David McMurtry. He is responsible for the product divisions, overseas sales subsidiaries and human resources.
External appointments
None
Allen Roberts
Group Finance Director
Appointed October 1980
Contribution, skills and experience
Allen has a deep understanding of the Group's businesses, products, relationships and the sectors in which it operates. Having led the finance function for many years, the Board values his management of the financial risks, reporting and planning for a Group that has seen significant growth, as well as his contribution to strategy and business development. Allen has a strong record of operational excellence.
Background
Allen qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1972 and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Before joining Renishaw in 1979, he was employed for 11 years by Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co. Allen heads Group Finance and is also responsible for corporate social responsibility.
External appointments
None
Sir David McMurtry
Non-executive Director
Appointed September 1975
Contribution, skills and experience
As co-founder of Renishaw and now through his responsibilities for Group innovation and product strategy, Sir David continues to be a key contributor to the long-term sustainable success of the Company. His strategic vision, technical and industry knowledge, gained from building the Company from inception with John Deer, mean he is able to provide a significant contribution to all aspects of the business.
Background
Sir David was employed by Rolls-Royce plc, Bristol, for 17 years, latterly holding the positions of deputy chief designer and assistant chief of engine design for all Rolls-Royce engines manufactured at Filton, Bristol. After inventing the original probe in the early 1970s, Sir David co-founded Renishaw in 1973 with John Deer.
His CBE was awarded for services to Science and Technology and he was appointed a Royal Designer for Industry (RDI) in 1989. He is a visiting professor at the University of Huddersfield, where he was awarded an honorary doctorate in 2017, and has been awarded an honorary Doctorate of Engineering at the University of Birmingham and honorary degrees of Doctor of Engineering at Heriot-Watt University, the University of Bristol and the University of Bath. He has also been awarded an honorary fellowship at Cardiff University. Sir David is a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, a Fellow of the American Society of Manufacturing Engineers, a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, and in 2011 became a Fellow of The Royal Society. The Institute of Physics jointly awarded its 2012 Swan Medal to Sir David and John Deer for their roles in founding Renishaw and leading it to become one of the world's principal manufacturers of metrology equipment. In 2019 he was honoured by the Manufacturing Technologies Association for his outstanding contribution to British engineering.
External appointments
None
Catherine Glickman
Independent Non-executive Director
Appointed August 2018
Contribution, skills and experience
Catherine brings extensive HR, remuneration and pensions experience to the Board. Working closely with the remuneration committees at Genus plc and Tesco PLC, Catherine developed reward structures that aligned leadership motivation with group strategy. This background enables her to make a particularly valuable contribution as Chair of the Remuneration Committee. Catherine's breadth of human resources experience in other listed companies and as a non-executive director is particularly valued by the Board. Our own HR team is also able to leverage Catherine's background.
Background
Catherine Glickman retired as group HR director at Genus plc in February 2018, having previously held the same title at Tesco plc where she led retail management development and customer service training during a period of significant expansion in the UK and overseas. Prior to this she held positions at Somerfield plc and The Boots Company plc. More recently, Catherine was non-executive director and remuneration committee chair of Marston's plc from December 2014, until January 2020 when she stepped down. She is a graduate of Durham University with a BA Hons in English.
External appointments
Non-executive director and remuneration committee chair of TheWorks.co.uk plc.
Non-executive director of East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust.
Juliette Stacey
Independent Non-executive Director
Appointed January 2022
Contribution, skills and experience
Juliette's career, both in finance and other leadership roles, has provided her with an in-depth understanding of corporate governance, internal controls, compliance, strategy and significant international M&A. This knowledge and experience is important to the effectiveness of the Board. Her extensive financial expertise and insight make her ideally placed to serve as Chair of the Audit Committee. Serving as audit committee chair at other listed companies also brings a wider industry perspective.
Juliette qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Ernst & Young LLP. Juliette spent seven years at The Mabey Group; having joined as the group finance director, she led the business for 5 years as the group chief executive. Prior to Mabey, she spent 12 years at Savills plc, initially as finance director, Commercial UK & Europe and then as chief operating officer, Commercial UK & Europe where she was responsible for coordinating the roll-out of strategy and managing operations. Juliette is a graduate of Royal Holloway College with a BA in Geography.
External appointments
Senior independent director and audit committee chair of Fuller, Smith & Turner P.L.C.
Non-executive director and audit committee chair of Sanderson Design Group plc.
Professor Dame Karen Holford
Independent Non-executive Director
Appointed September 2023
Contribution, skills and experience
Karen brings extensive engineering, technical management and governance experience through a career during which she has held leadership and advisory positions in industry, higher education and government-related science and technology bodies. Throughout Karen's career, from her undergraduate engineering apprenticeship to her current role as Chief Executive and Vice-Chancellor, she has been passionate about use-inspired research and development, technical innovation, and collaboration. Karen also brings a wealth of experience in addressing lack of diversity in organisations by challenging perceptions and working with underrepresented groups.
Background
Karen is the Chief Executive and Vice-Chancellor at Cranfield University and was previously Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Cardiff University where she spent 31 years engaged in research with industrial impact and research-led learning and teaching together with a significant administrative and leadership profile. She began her career as an undergraduate engineering at Rolls-Royce (Aero), gaining a BEng(Hons) at Cardiff University, followed by a PhD, sponsored by the HSE. She then took a role as graduate engineer at AB Electronic Products Ltd., culminating in a position as senior engineer with technical responsibility for projects and leadership of a large mechanical design team. Karen was elected to Fellowship of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2015 and in 2016 was named as one of the 50 most influential women engineers in the UK. In 2017, Karen received her CBE for services to engineering and the advancement of women in engineering. Karen has served as a non-executive Council member for UKRI STFC and as a member of the ESPRC Strategic Advisory Network, having previously served as the external Chair of the EPSRC Engineering Strategic Advisory Team. From 2020 - 2022, Karen served as the Chair of the Royal Academy of Engineering Research Committee. Since 2020 Karen has been a member of the National Physical Laboratory Science and Technology Advisory Council, and currently serves on the Oxford-Cambridge Arc Universities Group Board, and on the Oxford Cambridge Supercluster Board. In 2023 she took up the role of Chair of the Midlands Innovation University Partnership Board and joined the Board of Universities UK.
External appointments
Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive of Cranfield University.
Stephen Wilson
Independent Non-executive Director
Appointed June 2022
Contribution, skills and experience
Stephen has extensive international business experience in the biotechnology, software and IT industries where he was, and continues to be, involved in strategic, financial, business development, investor relations and IT transformation matters. His global business experience includes spells living in both the USA and Europe, and the management of businesses and negotiation of M&A transactions in North and South America, Europe and Asia (including in China). This knowledge and experience is a valuable addition to the Board and helps the growth of our businesses globally.
Stephen was previously the Chief Executive of Genus plc. Prior to Genus, Stephen was the Chief Financial Officer of Misys plc, following 25 years at IBM where he held several senior finance and business development roles. He started his career at Ford Motor Company. From 2012 to 2016 Stephen was a Non-executive Director and chair of the Audit Committee at Xchanging plc. Stephen is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and holds an MA in mathematics from the University of Cambridge.
External appointments
Non-executive director of Canonical Holdings Ltd.
Richard McMurtry
Non-executive Director
Appointed July 2024
Contribution, skills and experience
Richard's background engineering has provided him with an in-depth understanding of product development. He also has experience in key areas of technology including robotic systems. As well as this, Richard has extensive experience in board roles.
Background
Richard is a highly experienced director of various businesses and an investor who supports start-up companies committed to developing the future of innovation in the UK. He trained as an engineer with significant involvement in product development and robotic systems.
External appointments
None
Kasim Hussain
Group General Counsel and Company Secretary
Appointed July 2024
Contribution, skills and experience
Kasim acts as an advisor to the Board and senior leadership on all matters of risk and governance. He is responsible for leading the global legal, compliance and company secretarial teams and is a specialist in M&A and strategy. Kasim has substantial experience in a listed environment and is also a member of our executive committee.
Background
Before joining Renishaw, Kasim Hussain was Group Divisional Counsel and a member of the divisional Executive Committee at the FTSE 100 engineering group, Spirax Group plc. Before that, he was in private practice undertaking M&A at a number of leading international firms including Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Addleshaw Goddard. He studied Law at the University of Warwick and is a practicing Solicitor (England and Wales).
External appointments
None