Distinguished Speakers

One great thing about studying in Oxford is the very large number of illustrious speakers who visit the business school. A short list of the speakers who have visited the business school so far this year include: Sir John Rose, Chief Executive, Rolls Royce; Tony Tyler, COO, Cathay Pacific; Sir Lyndsay Owen-Jones, Chairman, L'Oreal; ex-US president Jimmy Carter, ex-US Vice President Al Gore; Neville Isdell, CEO, Coca Cola Group; Tim Harford, author of The Undercover Economist and member of the Financial Times editorial board; and George David, CEO, United Technologies Corporation, to name just a few.

It would be pointless to try and extol the virtues of listening to the experiences of men who have achieved so much. The opportunity to hear such a large number of distinguished speakers and the chance to actually have a one-on-one conversation with them during the post-talk drinks reception makes it one more reason to choose Oxford.

A few days ago the school had its annual public lecture, delivered by Oxford Graduate Nicky Oppenheimer, the billionaire chairman of the De Beers group. The lecture delivered was an informative discourse on the company's business and perspectives in the extremely complex mix of diamonds, development, and democracy.

Indeed there have been (and I suspect there will continue to be) questions about the ethics of the diamond business in Africa: issues relating to conflict diamonds, development of communities and countries in some of the poorest parts of the world, and to De Beers' role in influencing matters (including politics) in these areas. Regardless of the merits (or indeed lack of) of such arguments, it was refreshing to hear the company's perspective, and to Mr. Oppenheimer's candid submission that a lot more could be done, and needed to be done, in these areas. It was also amusing to hear, when he was introduced as an Oxford graduate who started as the chairman's assistant, that Mr. Oppenheimer was quick to explain that the only reason he could do that was because the chairman whose assistant he started out as was his father.




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