Octavius Black#Mind Gym

Black is the son of socialite Brinsley Black (1930–2011){{cite web|title=BLACK, Brinsley Graham|url=http://announcements.telegraph.co.uk/deaths/139020/black-brinsley-graham|work=The Daily Telegraph|accessdate=29 April 2018|quote=Brinsley died peacefully at home on 25th September 2010, aged 81. Beloved husband of Moorea, brother of Hilary, father of Octavius and Eliza-Jane, stepfather of Pericles and proud grandfather of Bronte}}{{cite web|title=Brinsley Black|url=https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/news-photo/television-executive-and-socialite-brinsley-black-marries-news-photo/88681260#/television-executive-and-socialite-brinsley-black-marries-lady-moorea-picture-id88681260|publisher=Getty Images|accessdate=29 April 2018}} and his second wife, Lady Moorea Wyatt (née Hastings) (1928–2011), who was the daughter of the Labour peer and academic Francis Hastings (1901–1990), and Cristina Casati Stampa di Soncino (1901–1953). Black's grandmother Cristina was the only child of Camillo, Marquis Casati Stampa di Soncino (1877–1946) and Italian heiress and eccentric patroness of the arts Luisa Casati (1881–1957).{{cite news|last1=Clee|first1=Nicholas|title=The Red Earl: The Extraordinary Life of the 16th Earl of Huntingdon – a daughter's biography of her father|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/nov/23/red-earl-huntingdon-selina-hastings-review|accessdate=29 April 2018|work=The Guardian|date=23 November 2014}}

Through his mother's earlier marriage to politician and diarist Woodrow Wyatt, Black has one older half-brother, Pericles Plantagenet Wyatt (born 1963).{{cite web|title=Woodrow, Verushka, Pericles and Petronella: welcome to the world of the Wyatts|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/woodrow-verushka-pericles-and-petronella-welcome-to-the-world-of-the-wyatts-533899.html|work=The Independent|publisher=ESI Media|date=20 November 2004}} Through his father, Black has a half-sister, Eliza-Jane.

After graduating from university, Black joined management consultants Booz Allen Hamilton as a business analyst, before joining the Robert Maxwell-owned AGB Research market research business. After the disappearance of Maxwell the business went into administration.[http://www.agbnielsen.net/aboutus/history_agb.asp The History of TAM – AGB to Nielsen] AGB Nielsen, December 2004 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100801131514/http://www.agbnielsen.net/aboutus/history_agb.asp |date=1 August 2010 }}

Black joined employee communication consultancy Smythe, Dorward Lambert as their sixth staff member, going on to become sales and marketing director before it was sold to Omnicom in 1996.{{cite web|url=http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/news/96266/Acquisition-motives-behind-Omnicom-rsquos-latest-buy---Omnicom-its-chequebook-again-time-buy-Fleishman-Hillard-move-mirrors-approach-taken-building-its-advertising-agency-networks/?DCMP=ILC-SEARCH |title=Acquisition: The motives behind Omnicom's latest buy – Omnicom has had its chequebook out again, this time to buy up Fleishman-Hillard. The move mirrors the approach it has taken to building its advertising agency networks|work=PR Week|publisher=Haymarket Media Group|date=18 April 1997 |accessdate=6 October 2013}}

Between 2012 and 2014, Black wrote an occasional column in the business section of The Sunday Telegraph on the human aspects of business.{{Cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/search/?queryText=%22octavius+black%22&sort=recent |title=The Telegraph |access-date=2 April 2018 |archive-date=25 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925235456/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/search/?queryText=%22octavius+black%22&sort=recent |url-status=dead }}

Before that, Black, along with co-founder Sebastian Bailey, started The Mind Gym at his kitchen table in 2000.{{cite web|author=Ivy Pasic|url= http://traveller.easyjet.com/features/2009/08/business-mind-gym-aug09|title=Meet the savvy company revolutionising the way we use – and improve – our grey matter|work=EasyJet Traveller|publisher=EasyJet|date=1 August 2009}} The company, which is listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange, designs and delivers corporate learning and development programmes. It offers 90-minute-long training sessions known as "workouts".{{cite web|work=Personnel Today|url= http://www.personneltoday.com/hr/quick-fix/|title=Quick fix|date=1 May 2001|publisher=DVV Media International }} The company serves 53% of S&P 100 and 61% of FTSE 100 companies[http://www.themindgym.com/about/ About us] Mind Gym via 400 qualified Mind Gym Coaches delivering in 40 countries. It operates from three offices (New York, London, Singapore).{{cite web|author=Companies House|title=Annual Report and Financial Statements Year Ended 31 March 2014; Company Number 03833448|year=2014}}

In February 2018 the Mind Gym was successfully listed on the AIM with a valuation of £145 million. The same year, it was listed in the Top 20 leadership training companies by the training industry and{{cite web|url=https://trainingindustry.com/top-training-companies/leadership/2018-top-leadership-training-companies/ |title=2018 Top Leadership Training Companies|date=23 February 2018|publisher=Training Industry}} No. 36 on the list of the Top 100 private companies with the fastest growing profits by The Sunday Times.{{citation needed|date=August 2018}}

With co-founder Sebastian Bailey, Black co-authored three books (The Mind Gym: Wake Your Mind Up,{{Cite book|url=https://www.hachette.co.uk/titles/mind-gym/the-mind-gym-wake-up-your-mind/9780316729925/|title=The Mind Gym: Wake Up Your Mind|date=2019-01-29|isbn=978-0-316-72992-5|language=en-US}} The Mind Gym: Give Me Time,{{Cite web|title=The Mind Gym: Give Me Time : Mind Gym : 9780316731690|url=https://www.bookdepository.com/Mind-Gym-Give-Me-Time-Mind-Gym/9780316731690|access-date=2021-12-25|website=bookdepository.com}} The Mind Gym: Relationships{{Cite book|last=Gym|first=Mind|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iHC8PAAACAAJ|title=Relationships|date=2009|publisher=Sphere|isbn=978-1-84744-063-1|language=en}}).

Black's Parent Gym is a six-week parenting programme for parents of children aged 2–11. It is funded by Black's commercial enterprise, Mind Gym, and applies its corporate training knowledge to teach parenting skills.[https://archive.today/20150119054339/http://www.parentgym.com/what_we_do ParentGym] It was piloted in 2010 and runs 150 programmes every year for parents areas including London and Brighton and Black said he hopes to roll it out nationwide.{{cite web|author=Robert Booth|url= https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/may/18/parenting-lessons-roll-out-country|title=Mind Gym tycoon wants to roll out free parenting lessons across country|work=The Guardian|date=18 May 2012}}

Black was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2023 New Year Honours for services to entrepreneurship, business, life sciences and the community.{{London Gazette|issue=63918|supp=y|page=N9|date=31 December 2022}}

Black is a regular public commentator on workplace issues, including in The Telegraph,{{Cite news |last=Oliver |first=Matt |date=2022-01-04 |title=‘Unconscious bias training is a fad that doesn’t work’ |language=en-GB |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2022/01/04/unconscious-bias-training-fad-doesnt-work/ |access-date=2023-06-13 |issn=0307-1235}} City AM,{{Cite web |title=The Notebook: Octavius Black on HR's 'Davos', how to fix low productivity rates and wellbeing |url=https://www.cityam.com/notebook-octavius-black-hr-davos-low-productivity-rates-wellbeing/ |access-date=2023-06-13 |website=www.cityam.com}} The Times,{{Cite news |last=Black |first=Octavius |date=2023-06-13 |title=Want to keep hold of your workforce? Then embrace soft power |language=en |url=https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/article/want-to-keep-hold-of-your-workforce-then-embrace-soft-power-kh5mz9qfq |access-date=2023-06-13 |issn=0140-0460}} The FT{{Cite web |date=2022-11-29 |title=Politics in the workplace: how to deal with opposing views |url=https://www.ft.com/content/0aa8f2f5-1b0c-474b-b453-0bbd01aa1fab |access-date=2023-06-13 |website=www.ft.com |language=en-GB}} and more. He has given a TEDx talk on how to make workplaces more inclusive,{{Citation |title=Are you one of us? What behavioural science reveals on inclusion {{!}} Octavius Black {{!}} TEDxSquareMile |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOlynlKPR-8 |access-date=2023-06-13 |language=en}} and in May 2023 hosted a CHRO Summit at the Royal Opera House, London, with speakers including Dame Emma Walmsley, Martha Lane Fox, Sir Trevor Phillips and Matthew Syed.{{Cite web |title=The Notebook: Octavius Black on HR's 'Davos', how to fix low productivity rates and wellbeing |url=https://www.cityam.com/notebook-octavius-black-hr-davos-low-productivity-rates-wellbeing/ |access-date=2023-06-13 |website=www.cityam.com}}{{Cite news |last=Field |first=Matthew |last2=Corfield |first2=Gareth |date=2023-05-18 |title=TikTok purposefully dumbing down Western teenagers, claims Lastminute.com founder |language=en-GB |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/05/18/tiktok-videos-dumbing-down-teenagers-martha-lane-fox/ |access-date=2023-06-13 |issn=0307-1235}}{{Cite news |last=Field |first=Matthew |last2=Price |first2=Chris |date=2023-05-18 |title=We must fight back against end of home working, says Microsoft executive |language=en-GB |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/05/18/we-must-fight-back-against-end-of-home-working-microsoft/ |access-date=2023-06-13 |issn=0307-1235}}{{Cite news |last=Ralph |first=Alex |date=2023-06-13 |title=Dame Emma Walmsley: chief executives are not superheroes |language=en |url=https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/article/dame-emma-walmsley-chief-executives-are-not-superheroes-0kqgm25m0 |access-date=2023-06-13 |issn=0140-0460}}

Black married Joanne Cash, a libel barrister, in December 2007. Friends who attended their exchange of vows "included Ed Vaizey and Michael Gove, [...] Viscount and Viscountess Rothermere, Stuart Rose and Kirstie Allsopp."{{cite news |last1=Eden |first1=Richard |date=7 February 2009 |title=David Cameron finds new 'guru' |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mandrake/4550142/David-Cameron-finds-new-guru.html |accessdate=29 April 2018}} The Telegraph called Cash a "rising star" of the Conservative Party when she stood for Westminster North in the 2010 general election.{{cite news|title=Rising stars: new face of the Conservatives|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/6166756/Rising-stars-new-face-of-the-Conservatives.html|accessdate=29 April 2018|date=10 September 2009|work=The Telegraph}}

The couple are reported to live in Notting Hill.{{cite news |date=7 May 2010 |title=Joanne Cash concedes defeat with rant at the press |work=Evening Standard |location=London |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/joanne-cash-concedes-defeat-with-rant-at-the-press-6466737.html |accessdate=29 April 2018}}

{{Reflist}}

• [http://www.themindgym.com/ The Mind Gym]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Octavius}}

Category:1968 births

Category:Living people

Category:English chief executives

Category:People educated at Eton College

Category:Alumni of the Queen's College, Oxford

Category:Commanders of the Order of the British Empire

Category:Spouses of life peers