Ian has almost 25 years of Footsie board experience, gained at Abbey National plc, Rentokil Initial plc, and British Energy plc. He was CFO and CEO during his 9 years on the Abbey board, spent 8 years on the Rentokil board as a NED and Audit Committee Chairman, and 7 years on the BE board as a NED, SID, Deputy Chairman and Audit Committee Chairman.

Currently, he is a NED and Audit Committee Chairman at John Menzies plc, a NED, SID and Audit Committee Chairman at Remploy Ltd., Chairman of Rentokil Initial Pension Trustees, and Chairman of the Court of the Whitgift Foundation. He also acts as an advisor to Independent Audit Ltd., and chairs its Advisory Board.

As you'll guess from the above, his experience is centred on banking and finance! His finance industry appointments included 3 years as Chairman of the Association of Payment Clearing Services (APACS) and the Presidency of the Institute of Bankers.

Ian has an MA in Economics from the University of Edinburgh, is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, and a Fellow of the Institute of Bankers. Ian is a Criticaleye Associate.

Andrew Minton

Charlie Wagstaff

Matthew Blagg

We've all heard the phrase, 'It's lonely at the top'. As chief executives across Criticaleye's Membership tell me, being a leader can be immensely rewarding, but also quite isolating. Who do you turn to when it comes to debating important issues on strategy? And, where can you go for solutions?

Unlike the individuals on the teams you lead, who are more than likely encouraged to share ideas and information, there are few people you can ask for useful and impartial advice. Your staff will expect you to have the answers already and professional advisors are likely to push their own agendas. In addition to this, the immediacy of today's business environment, where advances in technology and communications have intensified the pace of change, has created a world where leaders and directors have to be up-to-date and on-message around the clock.

Criticaleye was created in 2002 with the aim of helping leaders across industry sectors, business functions and geographical locations resolve business issues through peer-to-peer debate and discussion. Our Community works on the premise that business leaders and chief executives  need a safe space to ask questions and discuss solutions without the threat of being held to ransom by employees, stakeholders or the media for not knowing the answer to every problem or challenge that presents itself.

Being part of the Criticaleye Community means a number of things: Access to a managed network of leaders who can offer you fresh perspectives on and solutions to your critical issues. Intimate events on topics that have been generated from within the Community; a dedicated Relationship Manager to monitor your Membership activity and ensure you're getting the most value from it; a seasoned executive or 'Associate' to provide high level advice and ensure you are talking to the right people in the Community. And access to Criticaleye's Insight through an interactive online knowledge portal which is made up of cutting-edge business research, event write-ups, film footage of events and interviews and Community Articles by other Members.

Matthew Blagg, Founder & CEO, Criticaleye