Sir David Lees
Sir David Lees started his career with Binder Hamlyn as a Chartered Accountant, later becoming Finance Director for a reconstructed company, Handley Page Aircaraft Ltd.

Sir David joined the GKN Group in 1970. He became Finance Director in 1982 and Chairman and Chief Executive in 1988. He retired as Chief Executive at the end of 1996 but continued as Chairman until 2004.

Board Mandates
Sir David became Chairman of Tate & Lyle in 1998. In 2005 he was appointed Deputy Chairman of QinetiQ Group plc.

In 2001 he was appointed to The Panel on Takeovers and Mergers.

He has been Deputy Chairman of Brambles Industries Ltd and Brambles Industries plc and Chairman of Courtaulds plc.

From 1991 to 1999 he was a Non-Executive Director of the Bank of England.

In 1998 he was appointed to the board of the Royal Opera House.

Sir David has been Chairman of the CBI Economic Affairs Committee and a member of the CBI President’s Committee.

He was President of the Society of Business Economists from 1994 to 1999.

Awards
Sir David was appointed a Knight Bachelor in The Queen’s Honours list in 1991.

In 1996, he received the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic
of Germany and in 1999 received the ICAEW Award for Outstanding Achievement.

In 2006 he was named ‘Personality of the Year’ by the Brazilian Embassy and Chamber
of Commerce and in 2007 Sir David was commissioned to be a Deputy Lieutenant
of Shropshire.