Welcome to the latest edition of the Company Newsletter.    In this 100th edition you can read about the latest admissions, the Church Service and Reception that followed the Election Court on 15th September (Election results published separately), September’s Shop Talk, progress with the new(ish) Fellowship Committee and about the oldest PhD – Sir George Cox!  

But first, it is worth reflecting on the fact that this is indeed a milestone 100th issue. I took over as Editor at issue 60 and it is fitting to reflect on the history and evolution of our Company as captured in these pages. Each edition has been a testament to our shared commitment to our values: Fellowship, Education and Philanthropy, (although of course Philanthropy we now cover in a separate newsletter and a large part of our Education efforts are reflected in the CMCE newsletter).   I hope that these Company Newsletters have reflected the evolving landscape of our Company over the years, and that we can continue with the same spirit of curiosity and innovation that has brought us here.  Keep those stories coming and I will keep on editing!
Now read on…

New Admissions

There was an Admissions Ceremony on 15th September, after the Election Court, at the Guildhall.  There were four new Freemen, all shown below:

Also admiied were Amarjeet Hans, taking the Livery, and one new Junior Freeman, Matt Wilding, both shown below.

Congratulations to all, and a warm welcome to the Company. Congratulations also to Leon MacPherson and the Membership Committee, whose hard work continues to attract strong, high-quality members. As ever, thanks to Mark Fox for all the brilliant photos.

Church Service and Reception

As noted above, following the Election Court the Master, Wardens and Court Assistants processed from the Guildhall around the corner to St. Laurence Jewry church for the annual church service.

About 40 people attended the service which, I gather, was on the theme of the prodigal son, but quite a few more than that joined for the reception afterwards. There was much discussion about the recent elections, upcoming events and so on. Everybody enjoyed some wine from the Company cellar and excellent canapes sourced by our Clerk, Julie Fox. A good time was had by all, and the stragglers had to be chased out at about 9:00 pm.

Shop Talk

Court Assistant and Chair of the Education Committee Nick Bush reports:  
The latest Shoptalk was held on Tuesday 8th September at the Cheshire Cheese pub in Temple. About 25 Members and a few prospective Members joined the session to hear from two recent joiners:
•    Belinda Brown works on a fractional basis as a senior finance leader and executive coach, advising and supporting leaders in growing businesses across consumer, retail and professional services sectors.  As a Catholic child of a single mother, and of mixed race, Belinda grew up in Antrim (NI) with first-hand experience of social exclusion and was, after qualifying as an accountant, well placed to move into environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting. Belinda outlined her career including time with Diageo and Sephora where she eventually “got fed up with selling lipstick” despite it increasing her popularity with her young niece.  She has hit the ground running as far as working in the Company is concerned and has recently set up the Company's Instagram account and crafted a supporting Social Media Policy. One interesting feature of Belinda’s career is a tendency to create her own job titles. She has carried that on with us and refers to herself now as our “social media correspondent”. Passionate about football, she finished by describing her ideal job as manager of a Premier League team.

•    Adam Kearns is a senior manager with Cap Gemini Invent who delivers operational and transformational programmes for clients across the transport sector. Adam's background is in the military, and in military intelligence specifically – I’m informed that that is not a contradiction in terms. He served in several interesting theatres, but it would be remiss of me (I am again informed) to report them here. The experience did prepare him for being thrown into, and having to adapt rapidly to, different environments. More recently, and with Cap Gemini, Adam has had some hands-on experience with using AI in operational situations. His rather interesting conclusion is that while most people working with AI think it is a great personal productivity aid, the organisations that they work for find that it cannot be turned into a recognisable return on investment. Given that the scale of the investment going into AI data centres is moving markets across the world, that's an interesting observation!

Overall, it was a splendid evening for socialising, networking , chatting and indeed gossiping. (Ed: I’m told Lady Whistledown was there!) But not for eating – no one had any food despite an interesting Thai based menu. The next Shoptalk will be early in 2027, hopefully at the same venue.

Update on Governance – Fellowship Committee

Ed:  In the last Newsletter, I offered the hope that we could do a “deeper dive” into each of the main Committees in the Newsletter over the next year or so.  We can kick off with this update about the newly formed Fellowship Committee, which is already bringing fresh energy to one of the Company’s most important priorities: helping Members feel connected, involved and valued.

Set up following the recent Strategy refesh work, the Committee focuses on Member engagement and retention. Its terms of reference were presented to Court in March 2026 and it has already met four times between April and September. During its formation, the Committee was chaired by the Master, Malcolm McCaig, before John Blackburn took over as Chair at the beginning of September.

The Committee brings together colleagues from across the Company, including the Clerk and representatives from the Pro Bono, Education, and Governance Committees plus the wider Membership. This broad mix is helping to ensure that ideas are practical, joined up and relevant to Members at different stages of their Company journey.

A key early task has been to coordinate the events calendar for 2026/27 alongside the Master (Elect's) plan for the year. Improved forward planning should make it easier for Members to see what is coming up, choose the events that suit them and enrol in good time. The Fellowship Committee is also supporting the development of Special Interest Groups, with new groups for Young Consultants and Non-Executive Directors being introduced. These groups should create more opportunities for Members to meet others with shared interests, exchange experiences and build useful connections.

Another encouraging area is the Buddy System, led by Olga Croft. The Committee is helping to gather feedback from its first year and to celebrate what has been achieved so far. Alongside this, Members are looking at how the Company can better support and mark the special moment when colleagues gain the Freedom of the City of London. (More on the Buddy System next time). 

The Committee is exploring further ways to add value to Livery membership, including ideas around branding, discounts and dinners. It is also supporting the launch of an online Fellowship Forum, (reported in the last Newsletter) which should make it easier for Members outside London, or those unable to attend in person, to take part in Company life.

Finally, the Committee is keen to encourage low-cost and free-to-attend events, often through partnerships, so that Fellowship remains accessible, enjoyable and inclusive. It is also discussing how best to work with Marcomms, social media and the Annual Report to tell the Company’s story more effectively. In short, the Fellowship Committee has made a lively and positive start, with plenty more to come.

Past Master Sir George Cox PhD

As recently as five years ago we reported (NL-Sept-21 | WCoMC) on Sir George Cox (who was our fourth Master back in 1997-1998) and who, since stepping down as Chair of Council and Pro-Chancellor at Warwick and various other roles, had two books published on American Secret Projects. Now George has been at it again:  apparently, his education is now complete and he is no longer a student.  Why? Because George has recently completed his PhD!  The photo below is of George at Kings College Graduation Ceremony at the Festival Hall recently.

 
Kings aren’t sure but George might well be the oldest PhD recipient ever (Hon Degrees excepted). According to George, one lady in the audience came up to him afterwards and congratulated him for being an inspirational example of life-long learning!   Hearty congratulations to George.  

For those with an interest in military history, George’ s PhD explores how the US and UK intelligence agencies assessed Soviet aerospace developments during the Cold War. It looks at the changing political landscape, the methods used for intelligence gathering, and the consequences of these assessments and details how intelligence estimates shaped Western strategic decisions, influenced military and political policies, and poses questions about the accuracy and impact of those intelligence efforts.

Social Media Policy

Following the launch of our Instragram Account - see the August Newsletter - we have created a new "Social Media Policy". This policy governs the Company’s use of social media as an official channel for sharing news, events and activity across its three pillars of Philanthropy, Education and Fellowship. It sets out who may act on the Company’s behalf, what may be posted, and how the Company handles photographs and personal data in doing so. 

And Finally ....

A few reminders aimed especially at new and existing Freemen: 

1. Follow us on LinkedIn here.
2. Follow us on Instagram here.
3. The road to Livery is open to you, and if you are interested in taking the Livery or just finding out more, please contact any of the Wardens or Chair of the Membership Committee - Leon MacPherson or the Clerk. (Ed: We used to have the role of “Livery Clerk” who would chase, cajole and generally encourage Freemen to progress. We are missing those efforts but I am trying to do my bit here!)  The first step is to obtain the Freedom of the City which involves swearing an oath at a private ceremony at the Chamberlain's  Court.  When you attend to receive the Freedom of the City, remember to seek out our Company’s gift to the Guildhall in the Court of the Chamberlain …. … the Stopwatch.  (See more on that here (NL July 2022) and here (NL October 2022).   (I was there recently for a Freedom Ceremony and was able to point out our gift to all those attending, but I will not be at every Freedom ceremony). 

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Thank you, as ever, for reading this far. There is no “Get to Know ....” feature this time but we will feature new Wardens and Court Assistants in coming editions.  

Many thanks to all those who contributed to this edition of the Newsletter.   And one final special thank you to Cathy Cant who has acted as my sanity checker, proofreader and co-conspirator, for the past 40 editions of the Company Newsletter.  I could not have done it without her support.

Steve Cant - Editor