Are Alan and Karren the only business role models?
Lord Sugar’s new assistant Karren Brady, chief executive of Birmingham City football club, may become as famous as the entrepreneur and TV star himself, but neither present a representative picture of British business. Yet what other corporate leaders could the general public recognize, either by name or face?
Shouldn’t the public be worried that they do not know the people who provide their jobs, decide what they can buy and make profits from their purchasers? Shouldn’t young people wanting to go into commerce have role models other than someone who runs a football club and someone who used to own one?
There are few if any business heroes in Britain. Sir Richard Branson may not be typical but, like Brady and Sugar, he is successful. From the quoted sector his rival at British Airways, Willie Walsh, may be recognizable and possibly Stuart Rose of Marks & Spencer is too. Rupert Murdoch makes the list, but where are the others?
We are even short of villains, despite the conversion of Sir Fred Goodwin. But when corporate governance got rid of the Tiny Rowlands, Robert Maxwells and Asil Nadirs it also got rid of the good guys. Past generations had corporate giants like Arnold Weinstock, Charles Clore, Isaac Wolfson or Maxwell Joseph. Now there are not even the equivalents of more recent champions such as Stanley Kalms, James Hanson, John King or John Harvey-Jones.
Even names that might have been recognised have moved on, like JP Garnier of Glaxo, Chris Gent of Vodafone or Clara Furse at the London Stock Exchange, leaving today’s company leaders nameless or faceless.
The governance zealots who prefer corporatism to personality cults are partly to blame because they think no-one person should dominate a company. But the executives are also responsible because they see themselves as managers rather than owners and feel they are failures if they do not move on after five years or so. Few businessmen at quoted companies are prepared to stay with a company throughout their career and few are owners like Branson, Murdoch or Philip Green.
Many of today’s businessmen prefer the low-profile and high profits on offer in private-equity or hedge funds. But without role models, why should today’s apprentices want to go into business? Don’t be surprised if people seek to emulate Brady and Sugar.
