Carl Symon
Chairman
Aged 62
Carl Symon, a US national, was appointed to the Board as Chairman on 1 February 2006. He is a non-executive director of BT Group plc, BAe Systems plc and Senior Independent Director of Rexam PLC, and retired as a non-executive director of Rolls-Royce Group plc on 7 May 2008. He is also Chairman of Clearswift Systems Ltd, BT Group’s Equality of Access Board and an advisory board member of Cross Atlantic Capital Partners. He retired from IBM in May 2001 after a 32-year international career during which he held several senior executive positions.
Chairman of the Nomination Committee
Simon Fox
Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
HMV UK & Ireland
Aged 47
Simon Fox was appointed to the Board with effect from 4 September 2006 and became Chief Executive Officer on 28 September 2006. He became Managing Director of HMV UK & Ireland on 1 Feburary 2007. He was previously Chief Operating Officer for Kesa Electricals plc with responsibility for Comet in the UK, Kesa’s subsidiaries in Continental Europe and e-commerce developments. Prior to his appointment as COO of Kesa, he was Managing Director of Comet, which he led through its demerger from Kingfisher. Prior to this he founded Office World, the UK’s first out-of-town office supplies retailer. He began his career as a graduate trainee at Security Pacific Bank and thereafter worked at Boston Consulting Group and Sandhurst Marketing plc.
Roy Brown
Senior Independent Director
Aged 61
Roy Brown was appointed to the Board as Senior Independent Director on 23 April 2002. He is Chairman of GKN plc and a non-executive director on the Franchise Board of Lloyd’s of London. He is non-executive Deputy Chairman and Senior Independent Director of Alliance & Leicester plc and a member of the CBI International Advisory Board. He is a former non-executive director of Brambles plc and British United Provident Association Limited BUPA and a former executive director of Unilever plc and Unilever NV.
Chairman of the Remuneration Committee
Member of the Audit and Nomination Committees
Christopher Rogers
Non-Executive Director
Aged 48
Christopher Rogers was appointed to the Board on 1 October 2006. He is Group Finance Director of Whitbread plc, having been appointed in May 2005. Previously he was Group Finance Director of Woolworths Group plc and Chairman of the Woolworths Group Entertainment and Wholesale Publishing businesses. He qualified as an accountant with Price Waterhouse and joined Kingfisher Group as Corporate Finance Manager in 1988. Subsequent appointments included Group Financial Controller at Kingfisher plc and Finance Director and Commercial Director of Comet Group plc.
Chairman of the Audit Committee
Member of the Nomination and Remuneration Committees
Neil Bright
Group Finance Director
Aged 45
Neil Bright was appointed to the Board as Group Finance Director in March 1998. He joined HMV in August 1996 as Group Finance Director from its then parent company, Thorn EMI plc where he was Group Planning Manager. He is a Chartered Accountant, having trained and qualified with Coopers & Lybrand in London.
Gerry Johnson
Managing Director, Waterstone's
Aged 47
Gerry Johnson was appointed to the Board with effect from 26 July 2007. He joined Waterstone’s as Managing Director on 1 October 2005, and led Waterstone’s through its acquisition and successful integration of Ottakar’s. He is a career retailer having started his working life at Tesco in 1978, holding a variety of roles over 11 years, latterly as Superstore Manager. He spent five years at Asda Group’s Allied Maples Division before moving to Wickes PLC in 1994. In 2001 he was appointed Managing Director of Booker and was a main board director of its parent company, Big Food Group PLC.
Lesley Knox
Non-Executive Director, Waterstone's
Aged 54
Lesley Knox was appointed to the Board on 23 April 2002. She was a founder director of British Linen Advisors, a specialist merchant bank focusing on growth companies. Prior to that she was Corporate Finance Director then Head of Institutional Asset Management at Kleinwort Benson Group. She is Chairman of Alliance Trust PLC and a non-executive director of Hays plc and Signet Group plc. She is also a member of the Board of Governors of the Museum of London and a former director of the arts charity The Federation of British Artists Limited.
Member of the Audit, Nomination and Remuneration Committees
Philip Rowley
Non-Executive Director
Aged 55
Philip Rowley was appointed to the Board on 1 October 2007. He was Chairman and CEO of AOL Europe until February 2007. He is a qualified chartered accountant and was Group Finance Director of Kingfisher plc from 1998 to 2001. Prior to that his roles included Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of EMI Music Worldwide, and Chief Operating Officer and CFO of Golden Books Family Entertainment, the largest children’s book publisher in the US. He was also the co-founder and Managing Director of Tribeca Technologies, a New York-based technology company and a former non-executive director of Tradus plc (previously QXL Ricardo plc) until its delisting in March 2008. He is currently a non-executive director of ARM Holdings Plc and Chairman of Skinkers Ltd.
Member of the Audit, Nomination and Remuneration Committees