SIMON OSBORNE FCIS, Solicitor
Director, ICSA Board Performance Unit
As joint director of the ICSA Board Performance Unit, Simon Osborne has worked successfully with major companies and other organisations. He brings first hand knowledge and understanding of the practical and personal aspects of the operation of boards and how to identify performance improvements, combined with the necessary interpersonal skills to facilitate change.
Up until April 2003 Simon was a main board executive director of RT Group PLC (formerly Railtrack Group PLC). He is currently non-executive chairman of Crown Business Communications Limited, a corporate communications agency, and a director of RT Group PLC. He is also Deputy Chairman of the principal railway industry charity, the Railway Benefit Fund.
Simon lectures on governance issues for ICSA Seminars and Central Law Training and is a member of the International Corporate Governance Network.
Simon Osborne qualified as a solicitor in 1973. He is a Fellow of the ICSA and has chaired the ICSA's Company Secretaries Forum.
GEOFFREY SHEPHEARD FCIS
Director, ICSA Board Evaluation Unit
Geoffrey is the most experienced of the ICSA Board Performance Unit facilitators, having carried out over 100 director interviews over three years. Major clients, such as Kingfisher plc and Scottish Power plc, have requested him to carry out evaluations in successive years. He brings considerable knowledge of the range and reactions of directors, supported by a quiet, approachable style.
As a Chartered Secretary in public practice, Geoffrey has worked closely with Chairmen and senior directors of FTSE 250 companies, often on extremely sensitive boardroom matters. He specialises in company law and company secretarial practice.
Geoffrey Shepheard qualified as a Chartered Secretary in 1969. He is a Fellow of the ICSA and a member of the International Corporate Governance Network.