Leadership at Business in the Community
Leadership at Business in the Community
At Business in the Community (BITC), each of our campaigning areas and the geographic reach of our work is driven by a group of business leaders who provide strategic guidance and support us in achieving our objectives.
Introduction to Leadership at BITC
Our leadership groups provide high profile opportunities for leaders to share their expertise and experience. By joining one of our leadership teams you can influence the national debate, shape the agenda for action and work with other leaders to identify the unique ways in which business can help innovate and create more sustainable livelihoods and prosperous communities.
Our Responsible Business Exchange, issue area specific Leadership Teams, Advanced Practitioner Network and Sector Leaders Networks lead our business transformation initiatives. Our Place Advisory Group, Community Climate Fund Steering Group, Pride of Place Boards, and National & Regional Boards lead our community transformation initiatives.
Additionally, we have CEO and Board Networks that bring their experience and ideas to drive action and innovation in responsible business across the UK. These include our Leadership Council, a group of CEOs from across the UK’s most prominent businesses who drive better outcomes for community and country, The King’s Seeing is Believing Council, C-Suite leaders who ensure that the values and prestige of our SIB programme are maintained and sustained, and BITC Fellows, leaders who are acknowledged for their support and significant contributions to BITC and Responsible Business.
Our Leadership Teams
Our Leadership Teams are made up of senior executives who lead and support each of our issue areas and campaigns: Climate Action, Employment and Skills, Gender Equality, Responsible Business, Race Equality, Wellbeing, and Cost-of-living.
Our Regional Leadership Boards
Alongside issue-specific Leadership Teams, our Leadership Boards shape and deliver Business in the Community’s agenda for action in specific regions.
Regional Leadership Board members act as a ‘critical friend’ and sounding board to the BITC team as well as serve as BITC ambassadors, encouraging membership recruitment and member engagement and championing responsible business in their region. They also facilitate activity on the ground both within their own organisation and their broader network.
The King’s Seeing is Believing Council
The King’s Seeing is Believing programme brings together CEOs and senior business leaders in small groups to connect with communities across the UK. The King’s Seeing is Believing Council ensures that the values and the prestige of the programme are maintained and sustained. The Council comprises influential and respected business advocates who have attended and led more than three visits.
Pride of Place Taskforce and Place Boards
Business in the Community’s (BITC) Place Taskforce is a group of leaders from businesses, the voluntary sector and local authorities. This collective supports the mission of BITC’s Pride of Place programme, to facilitate meaningful connections between businesses, communities, and local councils to reset economic ambitions and collaborate on new, innovative solutions that will deliver long-term, transformative impact.
Since its inception in 2016, The Pride of Place programme has had an impact in 16 places across the UK. Active Places include Blackpool, Bradford, Coventry, Hounslow, Lowestoft, Newport, Norwich, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Rochdale, Sheffield, Wisbech and York. Places coming soon include Belfast, Colchester, Glasgow and Southampton. Each Place is supported by a Pride of Place Board. Explore our Pride of Place programme and Place pages to learn more about our Pride of Place Board members.
Our Leadership Council
Our Leadership council consists of CEOs from across the UK’s most prominent businesses. Together, they bring their experience and ideas to drive better outcomes that lift up our communities and country.
Business in the Community Fellows
Our Fellows have worked closely with BITC and include previous and current business leaders who have used their leadership and expertise to make a significant contribution to BITC and the issues that it campaigns on.
| Roy Adair CBE | Baroness Ruby McGregor-Smith |
| Lord Allen of Kensington | Dame Helena Morrissey |
| Sir Dominic Cadbury | John Neill CBE |
| Sir William Castell LVO | Marco Pagni |
| Sir Ian Cheshire | Lord Price CVO |
| Sir Anthony Cleaver | Sir Michael Rake |
| Sir Jeremy Darroch | Lord Rose of Monewden |
| Sir Peter Davis | Sir Anthony Salz |
| Paul Drechsler CBE | Chris Satterthwaite CBE |
| Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia CVO | Peter Simpson |
| Alex Gourlay | Dame Cilla Snowball |
| Christine Hodgson CBE | David Soanes |
| John Holland-Kaye | John Spence CBE |
| Steve Holliday | John Studzinski CBE |
| Dame Vivian Hunt | Truett Tate |
| Antony Jenkins CBE | The Lord Timpson OBE DL |
| Adrian Joseph OBE | John Varley |
| Sir Richard Lambert | Anne Watts CBE |
| Allan Leighton | Bob Wigley |
| Jonathan Lewis | John Williams |
| Peter Mather |
Our Executive Leadership Board
Harriet Walker
Advisory & member Services Director, Business in the Community
Lesley Wolfenden LVO
Company Secretary, Business in the Community