Will Whitehorn MEGIN ZONDERVAN

Fee Band

  • Conference Speakers£5k to £10k
  • Reputation, Branding & Marketing, Manufacturing & Eng., Creative Thinking, Transformational Leadership, Business Strategy

As Richard Branson’s right hand man, Will took the space tourism venture, Virgin Galactic, from a vague dream to a project with real spacecraft and its own spaceport. Now involved in businesses from communication to tech to cutting-edge transport systems, including as a long-term non-exec with online estate agents Purplebricks, Will also considers brand, disruption and innovation in a world of fast-changing technology and increasing customer expectations.


Biography

As a search-and-rescue helicopter crewman in the North Sea, Will once had to pluck Richard Branson out of danger. He went on to become Virgin Brand Development & Corporate Affairs Director, a Special Advisor to the Virgin Group, and Branson’s right-hand man.

After working on large scale Virgin projects including the Pendolino train, Will took up the post of President of Virgin Galactic. He was at the hub of one of the most exciting business ventures of the early twenty-first century: commercial space travel. He brought it from a nascent dream in the mind of Richard Branson to a project with real spacecraft, test flights and a spaceport.

Will steered Virgin Galactic from concept to reality. He convinced investors, oversaw technical plans, and developed a strategy which will soon lead to daily flights one hundred miles above the Earth’s surface. Few can claim to be involved in such a breakthrough project.

After handing over to a US-based President for the next phase of the project, Will returned to brands and communication, whilst continuing his involvement in disruptive and innovative businesses. He was a founding shareholder and director of the online estate agency Purplebricks, where he remains a non-exec. He also holds Chair and board positions at transport group Stagecoach, online gaming group GVC, three brand and communications companies, and mobility innovation company Transport Systems Catapult.

He is a director of the Science and Technology Facilities Council, the government funding body for scientific research, is the President of the Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport (CILTUK), and President of UKspace, the national space industry trade body.  Will is the Chancellor of Edinburgh Napier University. As the titular head of the institution, he confers degrees and other awards of the University, in the city where he was born.

In presentations Will draws the distinction between invention and innovation – and argues that with the right incentives the private sector can create a whole new industrial revolution in space and what this could mean. He looks at how to engender a culture of innovation and what that means, looking at those who do it best, and the common practices amongst them. He also explains how Virgin can go almost anywhere, from cola to credit cards to space, and even if a particular venture doesn’t work out, the brand and the company values remains undamaged.

Videos of Will Whitehorn

Conference Speaker Will Whitehorn JLA Speaker Breakfast on Innovation at Virgin

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Agent Recommendation

What’s so impressive about Will is how passionate he is about new ideas and innovation, combined with a steely focus on beating the competition! Listening to his story, you realise you're getting an insight into the dawn of mankind's next giant leap – it’s hugely inspiring.

JLA Agent Harvey Coulson
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Event - - Date TBC

Speakers Breakfast

Racing to High Performance with Guenther Steiner and Paul McKenna

Speakers
Paul McKenna and Guenther Steiner

Date TBC.  We will be looking at high-performance and mindset with our two excellent speakers.

Guenther Steiner is the Former Team Principal of F1’s Haas, a role he held from the team’s inception until this year. Under his leadership, he grew Haas into one of the sport’s leading independent teams.

Joining Guenther on stage will be broadcaster and behavioural scientist Paul Mckenna, who has written a number of bestselling books, and works on how psychology and mindset can impact achievement.

Please register your interest using the link above for what is sure to be a fascinating and illuminating session.

Location

Bishopsgate Institute, 230 Bishopsgate, London EC2M 4QH

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Event - 17/09/2024 - 09:00

Speakers Breakfast

Navigating Risk and Chaos – Strategies For Coping With An Uncertain World.

Speakers
Clive Myrie, Sabrina Cohen-Hatton, Rt Hon Lord Parker of Minsmere, and Robin Niblett

On Tuesday 17th September we had the pleasure of hearing from a remarkable panel of keynote speakers, who shared their expertise on the challenges of managing Risk in a chaotic world.

The panel featured esteemed speakers, Dr. Sabrina Cohen-Hatton KFSM (Firefigter and Neuroscience researcher), Lord Parker of Minsmere (Andrew Parker, Former Director General of MI5), and Sir Robin Niblett (Former Director and Chief Executive of Chatham House). The event was hosted superbly by Mastermind and BBC News presenter Clive Myrie.

Over the hour, our panellists explored Risk on multiple levels, from global affairs to business environments and personal everyday challenges. They provided valuable insights into how we can better manage and mitigate Risk in today’s unpredictable world.

 

Location

87 Barts Close, 87 Bartholomew Close, London, EC1A 7EB

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