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91Èȱ¬ appoints Executive Board
The 91Èȱ¬ has appointed four non-executive directors to the 91Èȱ¬'s new Executive
Board.
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David Robbie, Group Finance Director, Rexam plc; Robert Webb QC, General
Counsel at British Airways; Dr Mike Lynch OBE, co-founder and Chief Executive
of Autonomy Corporation plc and Dr Samir Shah OBE, Chief Executive of Juniper
Communications, an independent production company, will take up their new
appointments on 1 January 2007.
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The appointment of Marcus Agius, Chairman-designate of Barclays PLC, as Senior
Independent Director was announced last month.
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One further non-executive
director is expected to be appointed early next year.
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Announcing the appointments, Mark Thompson, 91Èȱ¬ Director-General, said: "This
is an important moment in a new system of running the 91Èȱ¬ under the new
Charter and Agreement.
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"I am delighted to have attracted four further
outstanding individuals to join Marcus Agius in a non-executive capacity on
our new Executive Board.
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"Together, they bring an exceptional range of
skills, experience and perspectives which I believe will be crucial in our
decision-making process as we seek to deliver a very challenging agenda in
the years ahead."
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Their appointments follow changes to 91Èȱ¬ governance set out in the 91Èȱ¬'s new
Charter and Agreement.
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The 91Èȱ¬ Trust will replace the 91Èȱ¬ Board of Governors on 1 January 2007, and
appointments to the 91Èȱ¬ Trust were announced in October by the Department for
Culture, Media and Sport.
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A new Executive Board will for the first time include non-executive directors
who make up a "significant minority" of the board.
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The Executive Board will
oversee the effective delivery of the 91Èȱ¬'s objectives and obligations within
the framework set by the new 91Èȱ¬ Trust.
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Appointments to the Executive Board are made in accordance with procedures
laid down in the Charter and Agreement and, in the case of non-executive
directors and the Director-General, are subject to the approval of the 91Èȱ¬
Trust.
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The appointment of eight executive directors to the Executive Board has also
been formally approved.
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Jenny Abramsky, Director, 91Èȱ¬ Audio and Music; Jana
Bennett, Director, 91Èȱ¬ Vision; Tim Davie, Director, Marketing, Communications
and Audiences; Ashley Highfield, Director, Future Media and Technology;
Stephen Kelly, Director, 91Èȱ¬ People; Zarin Patel, Group Finance Director;
John Smith, Chief Executive, 91Èȱ¬ Worldwide and Caroline Thomson, Chief
Operating Officer are appointed with immediate effect.
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The appointments of
Mark Thompson (who will chair the Board) and Mark Byford were confirmed last
month.
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David Robbie said: "The 91Èȱ¬ is one of the world's best known and most
important cultural institutions. I look forward very much to making a
contribution as it faces the many challenges and opportunities that lie
ahead."
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Robert Webb said: "This is a new way of organising and of running the 91Èȱ¬. It
will be our job to make it successful, and we will."
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Dr Mike Lynch said: "I am very pleased to be part of the 91Èȱ¬, an organisation
of talented people with a forward looking vision, which has become so valued
a part of British life."
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Dr Samir Shah said: "I am delighted to be involved in helping guide the 91Èȱ¬
through these exciting and challenging times."
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Marcus Agius said: "I greatly relish the prospect of working with the new
non-executive directors announced today.
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"Together with the 91Èȱ¬'s executive
directors, and under Mark Thompson's chairmanship, we will seek to manage the
Corporation in a way which will delight Licence Fee payers."
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Notes to Editors
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Biographies
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David Robbie, who will chair the Board's Audit Committee, was educated at St
Andrews and began his career at KPMG as a manager in London and New York.
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He
was Head of Corporate Finance and Investor Relations then Vice-President,
Finance at Invensys plc before becoming Group Finance Director at CMG plc
(now Logica CMG plc).
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He became Chief Financial Officer at Royal P&O
Nedlloyd N.V. in 2004 before joining Rexam plc as Group Finance Director in
2005.
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He is a trustee of the Almeida Theatre.
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Robert Webb QC, who will chair the Board's Fair Trading Committee, read law
at Exeter University and was called to the Bar in 1971 and appointed QC in
1988.
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He was Head of Chambers, 5 Bell Yard, between 1988 and 1998 and a Recorder
of the Crown Court from 1993 to 1998.
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He joined British Airways plc in 1998 as
General Counsel, where, in addition to legal and regulatory affairs, he is
responsible for government and industry affairs, safety, security, risk
management and the environment.
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He is a non-executive director of the
London Stock Exchange and of Hakluyt & Co Ltd and a Board Member of London
First.
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Dr Mike Lynch OBE studied Engineering at Cambridge University and obtained a
PhD in mathematical computing.
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He is a technology entrepreneur and has
founded a number of technology companies including the software company
Autonomy plc where he currently serves as CEO.
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He has held a number of
advisory and board roles in the venture capital industry and is currently a
non-executive director of Isabel Healthcare.
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He was named the Confederation
of British Industry's Entrepreneur of the Year, won an IEE Award for
Outstanding Achievement and was awarded an OBE for Services to Enterprise.
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He
is also a Lady Margaret Beaufort Fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge.
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Dr Samir Shah OBE is Chief Executive of the independent production company
Juniper Communications and a former Head of Political Programmes and Head of Current Affairs at the 91Èȱ¬.
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He worked in the 91Èȱ¬ Office Research
Intelligence Unit after graduating from Hull and Oxford Universities, before
joining London Weekend Television in 1979 as a researcher, rising to become
Editor of a range of current affairs programmes.
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He joined the 91Èȱ¬ in 1987 as
Head of Current Affairs, moved to head up political programmes in 1994,
before leaving to join the independent sector in 1998.
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He is Chair of the
Runnymede Trust and a trustee of the Victoria and Albert Museum and of the
Medical Foundation for the Victims of Torture.
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He holds a Special
Professorship in the Department of Post-Conflict Studies at the University of
Nottingham.
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91Èȱ¬ Press Office
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